Name: Roasted Potatoes with Spicy Caramelized Onions
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Ingredients: 2 pounds Red Bliss potatoes or other low-starch potatoes, scrubbed clean, dried, halved, and cut into 3/4-inch wedges; 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil , divided; Salt and ground black pepper; 1 medium yellow onion , sliced thin; 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 1/2 teaspoon lime juice; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Why This Recipe Works

To arrive at our ideal roast potatoes recipe—potatoes that were crisp and deep golden brown on the outside, with moist, velvety, dense interior flesh—we wound up choosing a waxy potato such as Red Bliss, which is better able to retain moisture than classic baking, or high-starch, potatoes. Covering the potatoes with foil for part of their roasting time helped cut the cooking time in our roasted potatoes recipe (and keep the potatoes moist); this let the potatoes steam in their own moisture. Olive oil, with its higher smoke point, was better able than butter to tolerate the high temperature (425 degrees) at which we were roasting the potatoes.

Before You Begin

To roast more than two pounds of potatoes at once, use a second pan rather than crowding the first. If your potatoes are small, like new potatoes, cut them in halves instead of wedges and turn them cut-side up during the final ten minutes of roasting.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Toss potatoes and 3 tablespoons olive oil in medium bowl to coat; season generously with salt and pepper and toss again to blend.

Place potatoes flesh side down, in a single layer, on shallow roasting pan; cover tightly with aluminum foil and cook about 20 minutes. Remove foil; roast until side of potato touching pan is crusty golden brown, about 15 minutes more. Remove pan from oven and carefully turn potatoes over using metal spatula. (Press spatula against metal as it slides under potatoes to protect crusts.) Return pan to oven and roast until side of potato now touching pan is crusty golden brown and skins have raisin-like wrinkles, 5 to 10 minutes more.

While potatoes roast, heat medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining olive oil, yellow onion, and salt and ground black pepper to taste. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are caramelized and deep golden brown, about 15 minutes. Stir in cayenne and ground cumin; cook until fragrant, about 1 minute longer. Transfer to large bowl; add lime juice, parsley, and roasted potatoes. Toss to distribute, and serve warm.