Key Takeaways

• Baking soda is the key ingredient in creating extra crispy potatoes.
• The baking soda helps to release the potatoes’ starches, enhancing their crispiness.

Baking soda does a lot of heavy lifting at my house. It removes stubborn stains from baby clothes, soothes bug bites, scours my cooktop, churns out endless cookies, and even washes my produce. It turns out that finding new uses for baking soda becomes a hobby, especially as you approach forty.

I’m excited to share a favorite new use for my Costco-sized container of baking soda: roasted potatoes.

While it may sound unconventional, this recipe relies on a process you can trust. When it comes to innovative, science-backed recipes, there’s no one I trust more than J. Kenji López-Alt. When he shared his recipe for Extra-Crispy Parmesan-Crusted Potatoes in The New York Times, I knew I had to try it.

Kenji suggests adding 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to two quarts of water—enough for about three pounds of cubed potatoes. He boils the potatoes, drains them, and roasts them in a hot oven. The result? Extra crispy potatoes, all thanks to the baking soda.

Why Baking Soda for Crispy Roasted Potatoes?

This recipe stands out for a couple of reasons, but let’s start with the role of baking soda. Why use something typically reserved for baking to create crispy potatoes? The answer lies in its alkalinity!

If you’re also nearing forty, recalling your high school chemistry lessons might be a challenge. Here’s a refresher: when you look at the pH scale, water is neutral, and baking soda is slightly alkaline. Cooking the potatoes with baking soda breaks down the outer edges, releasing starches that create a rough, starchy surface perfect for crisping up.

What’s So Great About Shaggy Potatoes?

Creating a starchy surface on potatoes is essential because this slurry-like coating is what makes them incredibly crispy. It’s akin to having built-in breading; when the shaggy potatoes hit the hot oven, the exterior crisps up beautifully while the insides remain fluffy.

You Can’t Go Wrong With Butter and Cheese

After parboiling the potatoes, they take a delicious turn with the addition of melted butter and grated Parmesan cheese. These ingredients are mixed in a large bowl and vigorously combined with a spatula to further roughen the edges.

This technique enhances the crispy, crunchy exterior. When the potatoes emerge from the oven, the cheese creates a shatteringly crisp edge that’s impossible to resist. My only advice? Make a double batch if you plan to serve these as a side dish—I found myself snacking on nearly half the tray while they cooled.