Fab Foodie
hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
- Location
- Kirton, Devon.
Lard is fine, as is dripping, goose fat.Is the correct answer! I would substitute only olive oil and re-stress a point made earlier: that the choice of spud is crucial. The OP specified Maris Piper, which are fine/good, and often used hereabouts, though given my druthers I'd always go King Edward.
You work on each spuddy with a fork? Are you, like, mad? Drain 'em, put the lid back on, shake till done. Done.
As for 'turning' pieces, interesting. It does bring to mind my 10 year old mind being boggled by watching carrots in a factory being 'turned' to become the uniform shape & size preferred by the American consumer, a process which left about half the carrot used in the bin.
Oh, one more thought for anyone who's never done it, you test for the 'doneness' of the boiling potatoes by poking/scraping them with a fork. If they still feel hard, boil on. They're done when you can feel the surface give slightly to the fork...when you feel you can scrape them. Doneness matters, because if they're too hard they won't go floury, soak up oil and get crispy.
I used to use lard, because my mum always did. I was recommended olive oil for health reasons, and it seems fine to me. And healthier.
Olive oil shouldn’t be used at high temps as it has a low smoke point…it’s a poor frying oil and a waste of money when Rapeseed is pretty much as healthy as Olive oil as makes no difference at roasting temps.