These slow cooker roast potatoes have finely chopped fresh rosemary to add flavour and are dusted in a little semolina to add crunch! So convenient and they save you space in your oven to cook other things too.
Roast potatoes are great all year round with a roast dinner. At Christmas when we have so many dishes to prepare, you can run out of oven space easily.
That’s when you can turn to your slow cooker to roast them instead! When you can get crispy edges this way, why not.
Using your slow cooker instead of the oven also saves energy, since slow cookers use about the same energy as running a light bulb.
I also make my turkey crown, roast parsnips and Brussels sprouts in my slow cooker, so adding roast potatoes to the menu was a no brainer.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need for this recipe. You’ll find the quantities together with the full directions in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- potatoes – of course the key ingredient to make roast potatoes! I use Maris Piper potatoes, or sometimes I just grab standard white potatoes in bags labelled as good for roasting or as all-rounders. King Edwards are also good for roast potatoes. You want a floury potato, not the firm, waxy kind (like you would use in salads) for the best results. Floury potatoes are the ones that get fluffy edges when you cook them, producing the crispy edges once roasted.
- olive oil – I keep extra virgin olive oil in the cupboard so I use that. You can use normal olive oil or sunflower oil if you prefer. Or go luxurious and use duck or goose fat at Christmas!
- semolina – or semolina flour. Semolina is a coarse wheat flour, yellow in colour, and can be dusted over roast potatoes to add crunch as you roast them. You can usually get it in the world foods aisle in supermarkets. If you don’t have any you can either skip this or use a little plain flour to coat the potatoes instead.
- sea salt – we like to sprinkle over a little sea salt before serving our roast potatoes, to enhance the flavour.
- rosemary – I use a few sprigs of fresh rosemary picked from the garden. I remove the stem and chop it finely and sprinkle over the potatoes. It can darken during slow cooking so you might like to chop some more and sprinkle it over just before serving to add colour. You can use dried rosemary or even switch this to another herb if you prefer, or just leave it out.
Instructions
Before you start, read my step-by-step instructions, with photos, hints and tips so you can make this recipe for slow cooker roast potatoes perfectly every time.
Scroll down for the recipe card with quantities and more tips at the bottom of the page.
- Peel and cut the potatoes into chunks of similar size. I tend to cut them into quarters.
- Parboil the potatoes for 8-10 minutes, in a saucepan.
- Drain the potatoes well.
- Put the potatoes back in the saucepan, put the lid on and shake the pan to roughen the edges of the potatoes.
- Put one tablespoon of olive oil in the base of the slow cooker pot. Next put the potatoes in the pot, coat with the remaining olive oil and semolina, and mix well to combine. Sprinkle over the chopped rosemary.
- Cook on high for 2 hours, with a tea towel under the lid (to stop moisture dripping from the lid onto the potatoes). Turn the potatoes over carefully using a metal spoon.
- Cook on high for a further one and a half to two hours, still with the tea towel under the lid. Turn occasionally.
- To serve, tip the potatoes into a serving dish, and make sure you scrape all the crispy edges from the slow cooker pot as well to add crunch. Sprinkle over a little sea salt and more chopped rosemary.
Hint: You can use a couple of squares of kitchen roll instead of the tea towel to stop moisture dripping into the slow cooker pot and making your roast potatoes soggy. If you are using a tea towel/cloth, make sure you fold the edges up over the lid and do not leave them hanging down over the sides of the slow cooker.
Serve your roast potatoes with your roast or Christmas dinner and enjoy.
Equipment
Use a large slow cooker such as a 5.7 litre or 6.5 litre (or larger if you have it) for this recipe.
This allows plenty of room for the potatoes to have contact with the sides of the slow cooker pot, which is how they brown and go crispy.
You do not want to have more than one layer of potatoes as they will not brown in that case.
If you are using a small slow cooker (e.g. 3.5 litre) you will need to cook fewer potatoes so that all of them are in contact with the pot.
Slow cookers with a metal pot will provide even better results than using a ceramic pot, as they heat up quicker.
Storage
You can keep leftover roast potatoes in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Reheat in the oven (takes approx. 10 minutes) to restore crunch.
They can be frozen for up to three months.
FAQ
Yes, for best results, to get a fluffy centre, potatoes do need to be parboiled before you roast them in your slow cooker. If you don’t parboil them, your potatoes will be more like sautéed potatoes and firmer in the middle.
Pairing
These are my favourite dishes to serve with my slow cooker roast potatoes:
Recipe
Slow Cooker Roast Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1.25 kg potatoes Maris Piper, Yukon Gold (USA)
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp coarse semolina
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp rosemary fresh or dried
Equipment
Instructions
- Peel and cut the potatoes into chunks of similar size. I tend to cut them into quarters.1.25 kg potatoes
- Parboil the potatoes for 8-10 minutes, in a saucepan. Drain the potatoes well.
- Put the potatoes back in the saucepan, put the lid on and shake the pan to roughen the edges of the potatoes.
- Put one tablespoon of olive oil in your slow cooker pot. Next put the potatoes in your slow cooker pot, coat with the remaining olive oil and semolina, and mix well to combine. Sprinkle over the chopped rosemary.4 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp coarse semolina, 1 tbsp rosemary
- Cook on high for 2 hours, with a tea towel under the lid (to stop moisture dripping from the lid onto the potatoes). After two hours, turn the potatoes over carefully using a metal spoon.
- Cook on high for a further one and a half to two hours, still with the tea towel under the lid. Turn occasionally.
- To serve, tip the potatoes into a serving dish, and make sure you scrape all the crispy edges from the slow cooker pot as well to add crunch. Sprinkle over a little sea salt and more fresh chopped rosemary.½ tsp sea salt
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