These Air Fryer Duck Fat Roast Potatoes are first parboiled then tossed in delicious duck fat before being cooked to crispy perfection. I’ve included my favourite trick to make them extra crunchy and really pack in that mouth-watering duck flavour that make these roasties extra special.
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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, air fryers might be the best thing to ever happen to potatoes. From your everyday regular roast potatoes, air fried sweet potatoes and crispy whole baby potatoes, the air fryer cooks them so evenly and the crispiness is unparalleled.
This duck fat version is no different. In fact it really is the same recipe as the regular roasties but with the type of fat switched. And there is an extra step mid cooking which makes a difference. The trick is to remove the potatoes from the air fryer once they’re part roasted. And then give them a second toss in the remaining duck fat. Trust me – it minimises waste and adds a whole extra layer to the potatoes – literally!
How to Serve
I do generally save these duck fat roasties for big special occasion roast dinners like Easter and Christmas dinner. But only because I’m a roast dinner fiend and eat them most weeks! So I have to make the special ones special somehow.
You can find all my roast dinner recipes in my index page or check out my Christmas recipe collection below:
Christmas Feast: Menu & Recipes
Here you’ll find all of my recipes for the main Christmas Dinner event. There are air fried, oven cooked and stovetop recipes and everything from main event turkey recipes, to Christmas dinner side dishes with all the trimmings, sauces and classic puddings, plus a few alternative options and of course bonus mince pies.
Don’t miss the pigs in blankets, homemade paxo stuffing or packet stuffing balls with added sausage. It would be a travesty to not include simple sprouts. mashed carrot and swede, the best roast parsnips and crispy roast potatoes amongst lots of other delights. Round the meal off with bread and cranberry sauces then end with a classic sherry trifle or mix things up with my microwave mincemeat sponge and custard.
Ingredients
Potatoes
It is essential to peel the potato before roasting. Skin on roasties might well have a time and a place but it isn’t here!
It is also important to not keep a peeled potato out of water for any longer than possible. This is why as part of my step by step guide I tell you to peel the spuds and put them straight into cold water. And then chop them and put back into cold water.
As well as preventing the potatoes from discolouring, there is another reason for this. You will notice that when you drain the water away, it is cloudy. This is starch released by the potato. The less starch there is, the fluffier the potato will be. Which leads me to the big question…
What Variety of Potato is Best for Roast Potatoes
Potatoes largely fall into two categories; waxy and floury. Some varieties do sit on the line, but you want to use a floury potato variety for roast potatoes.
King Edwards are roast potato royalty. They are my go-to variety and what I seek out for Christmas. Other common varieties that make great roast potatoes include Maris Piper, Rooster, Vivaldi, Apache, Elfe and Russett.
Potatoes don’t always come labelled with the variety. But you can look for potatoes labelled as “floury”, an “all rounder”,”suitable for baking” or “jacket potatoes”.
What you want to avoid is the waxy kind. These include Jersey Royals which are more suitable for boiling and serving with butter or air frying whole. You can roast them. But they don’t make roast potatoes!
Duck Fat
Assuming that you haven’t recently roasted a duck and set aside the drippings, duck fat is now readily available to buy in jars from the supermarket. Some varieties are found in the chiller section and others on the shelves – either type is totally fine to use.
Of course if you have recently roasted a duck, or ever intend to, you absolutely should keep and use the fat from that!
Seasonings
I like the potato and duck fat flavours to shine so I’ve simply used sea salt flakes to season these potatoes. Maldon is my preferred brand – the flavour is subtle and the flakes are lovely and soft.
If you want to add other flavours like garlic and/or herbs then of course you can. Feel free to experiment to your hearts content.
Allergen Information
This recipe is free from egg, dairy, gluten and nuts.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
How Long to Air Fry Duck Fat Roast Potatoes
The cooking process has 3 stages. The first is to boil the potatoes in salted water until they are just cooked. This takes around 20 minutes. Once the potatoes are drained and have steamed dry for a couple of minutes they can be tossed in the duck fat and seasoned.
The second cooking stage it to air fry them for 15 minutes then toss them in the remaining duck fat. The final stage is to air fry them for a further 10 minutes.
The total time from start to finished roasties is just under and hour including 20 minutes boiling time and 25 minutes air frying.
How to Air Fry Duck Fat Roast Potatoes From Frozen
If you are looking to get ahead of the game, the best thing to do is to prepare and cook them roasties until around 5 minutes into the air frying time.
At this point you can jump ahead and add the extra duck fat. And then free freeze them. This means putting them in the freezer uncovered with a little space around each. Once they’re totally frozen you can move them to a freezer bag or air tight container. This two step freezing process will prevent them from sticking together in the freezer.
You can then air fry the potatoes directly from frozen. They will take around 20 to 25 minutes. Just keep checking them and make sure they’re they’re piping hot in the middle.
Leftovers – Storage & Reheating
Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for several days or frozen. They are best reheated in the air fryer – they only take around 5 minutes or a little longer from frozen. You can also microwave them but you won’t end up with anything as crispy as the original potatoes.
You can serve leftovers with other roast or Christmas dinner leftovers or include them on a leftovers buffet – hot roast potatoes with cold cuts always goes down a treat.
For something different, smash the roasties up and fry them in a little butter or more duck fat. Serve with fried eggs for breakfast. Delicious!
Common Air Fryer Questions – A Brief Guide to Air Frying
- What exactly is an air fryer?
- What are the benefits of using an air fryer?
- Are all air fryers the same?
- Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
- Do air fryers need to be pre-heated?
- What is the best temperature to air fry at?
- What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
- Can food be cooked from frozen in an air fryer?
- Can I reheat food in an air fryer?
- Are air fryer liners a good idea?
The Air Fried Feast Community
Come on over to Facebook and join my community discussing all things air fryer. Get involved in sharing your experiences and trials, help out others and find out what wonderful things everyone is cooking in their air fryers!
What Exactly is an Air Fryer?
Very simply, an air fryer is a small convection (fan) oven. The benefit is that the hot air is circulated all around the food being cooked which speeds up the cooking time and cooks the food more evenly.
What are the Benefits of Using an Air Fryer?
Size, time and energy usage. Air fryers are ideal for cooking smaller quantities. Heating up a space that the food just fits into requires less energy and means that the heat source is much closer to the food. Combining these two things can speed up the cooking time.
Are all air fryers the same?
Nope! The term air fryer is now used very broadly. I consider there to be 4 main types:
Basket Air Fryers
These are what I would consider to be the most common, especially in the UK. A boxy type unit has a pull out drawer/basket. Food isn’t usually visible whilst cooking.
Some larger models have two drawers so different items can be cooked at different temperatures or for different times.
This is the type that you’ll see in the images in this recipe. I mostly use a Cosori Lite 3.8L (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal. It isn’t an overly expensive or fancy model.
I’ve also recommended to several friends and family the model with a slightly larger basket. This is the Cosori 4.7L (CAF-L501) with a 4.7 litre basket. The unit is no larger than the 3.8 litre model on the outside but does have a larger internal basket capacity. I’ve since bought this version to use for some recipes where my smaller model was just too small. I’ll always note this in the recipe.
Rotary Air Fryers
Round air fryers with a paddle in the centre that rotates to move the food. This is the type I used for years – the most common is a Tefal Actifry.
Rotary types are not usually good for recipes where the food is breaded, glazed, likely to break up or in a tray/container. They do however make the best chips and roasted veg.
My 2 in 1 version like the one I’ve linked also has a rotating tray for things that could be broken up by a paddle, but the height clearance with the lid isn’t deep enough to use it to cook some items like sausage rolls. I’ve now actually retired by Actifry in favour of having my two basket type fryers.
Mini Oven Air Fryers
These usually have a glass door, shelves and overall are really quite large. You can cook quite a decent quantity of food in them so are best if regularly cooking for multiple people. They often come with extra features like a rotisserie spit or kebab skewers.
Multicookers with Air Fryer Functions
Some like Ninja 11 in 1 and some of the earlier versions with a few less functions, have an air fryer option. They mostly operate the same as a basket fryer but the basket drops in the top rather than sliding in like a drawer.
Some electric pressure cookers like Instant Pots can also air fry when used with a specific lid.
Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
As much as I do love air frying, the honest answer to this is no. And the more detailed answer is that it will always depend on what you’re cooking, how much of it you’re cooking and what type and size of air fryer you have.
Once you need to cook in more than 2 batches, it often makes more sense to use an oven. If you already have the oven on to cook other items, it may make more sense to throw one more item in rather than using an additional appliance.
I don’t think either method is often necessarily better than the other. The important point to note is that there is absolutely no difference in the finished product.
Do Air Fryers Need to Be Pre-Heated?
The answer to this is rather annoying – it depends. It depends entirely on your model and type of air fryer. The best advice I can offer is to check your manual and follow their guidance. My Cosori models have a preheat function. I press a button and it heats at 205c/400f for 4 minutes.
It’s also worth noting that regardless of whether you are supposed to pre-heat or not, if you are cooking in batches, it is quite likely that anything after the first batch will cook a little quicker because of the retained heat. It is best to check on them before the cooking time is completed.
What is the best temperature to Air Fry at?
It will always depend on what you are cooking and from what state. All of my air fryer recipes don’t use temperatures above 200c/390f because many of the most common fryers in the UK don’t go above this. Mine goes to 230c/450f and I use this temperature a lot but it is no help for me to share recipes which many people can’t use.
What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
Not all air fryers have different settings like this. When they do it usually relates to the fan speed. The default setting to use will always be “air fry” so unless something else is specifically stated in the recipe, always use the air fry option.
There are other air fryers that have an additional heating element which cooks from underneath rather than just the top. Just as with the other settings, unless you are using a recipe which states to use a second heating element, stick with just using the top down air fry option.
Of course if and when you become more confident with air frying, using recipes and the settings of your air fryer, you can start adapting them to suit.
Can Food Be Cooked From Frozen In An Air Fryer?
Absolutely! To cook from frozen you usually will need to reduce the cooking temperature and increase the time to make sure your food is cooked right through to the middle.
It is best to check my individual recipes for cooking from frozen advice as some items are a little different. And there are occasionally exceptions to the rule.
Can I Reheat Food In An Air Fryer?
Yes. As a general rule I reheat food for roughly 1/3 of the original cooking time at the same temperature. Or at 10 degrees lower for half the time for larger items.
Are Air Fryer Liners a Good Idea?
Unless otherwise stated, I do not use liners when air frying. Basket and rotary type air fryers are designed to be used without liners. Mini oven types will generally require some kind of tray like with a regular large oven although most come with crisper racks to use.
There are many air fryer liners available including quite thick silicone ones. These will affect the cooking times and possibly temperatures of your cooking/baking. I also don’t like how cooking juices are prevented from dripping through the basket rack. This can stop food from crisping all the way around.
When I do want to collect the juices, I mostly use some foil, or occasionally a foil tray which can be washed and reused.
If you do prefer to use them, once you have got a feel for how they affect your cooking and baking, you may need to make adjustments to the recipe accordingly.
More Air Fryer Recipes
All my recipes with instructions for how to cook or bake them in the air fryer can be found in my Air Fryer Recipe Index.
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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The Recipe
Air Fryer Duck Fat Roast Potatoes (Parboiled Recipe)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 600 g Potatoes - Floury
- 2 tsp Fine Salt
- 3 tbsp Duck Fat
- 2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes
Instructions
- Put a kettle of water on to boil.
- Half fill a medium saucepan with cold water.
- Peel 600g Potatoes and put each into the pan of water as you peel it. This stops the potato discolouring. Make sure to cut off any brown or nasty spots on the potatoes.
- Cut each potato into chucks around the size of a golf ball. You can vary the number of cuts on each potato depending on its size. You also don’t have to cut everything straight. The more faces and edges to a potato chunk, the more opportunity for crispiness.
- Replace the chunks back into the cold water as you work.
- Once the kettle has boiled and everything is cut, drain the cold water out of the pan using a colander.
- Return the potatoes to the pan and cover with boiling water. Add 2 tsp Fine Salt and give it a stir.
- Boil the potatoes on a medium high heat for roughly 20 minutes. Test the potatoes with a small knife. They want to be almost cooked through. The best roast potatoes are made when you are convinced that you over boiled them!
- As the potatoes are nearly cooked, start the preheat setting on your air fryer if required.
- Drain the potatoes well and leave them to sit for a minute and steam. You want as much water to evaporate off as possible.
- Sprinkle over 2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes and spoon over 3 tbsp Duck Fat.
- Gently stir the potatoes in the fat and salt. The duck fat will melt with the residual heat of the potatoes. You can be a little rough as you want to chuff up the edges of the potatoes, You don't want to be so rough that you make mash.
- Move the potatoes to the air fryer. I do this with tongs to prevent them from breaking up. Set the pan aside, don't clean it up yet.
- Air fry for 15 minutes at 200℃/390℉.
- Tip the part roasted potatoes back into the pan and toss to soak up any residual bits of fat and salt. If you are preparing these ahead of time, this is the point to stop cooking and store the roast potatoes until you want to finish the cooking and serve.
- Tip the potatoes back into the air fryer basket and air fry for a further 10 minutes at 200℃/390℉.
- Serve hot and crispy!
Notes
- This recipe is tested in a Cosori Lite (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal.
- Not all models advise preheating is required. Please follow the recommended instructions for your model. Mine has a specific preheat setting which is 4 minutes at 205c.
- For this recipe, I managed to fit in around 600g (20 roast) potatoes with more than enough room for air flow. I could potentially fit another 150g with just enough space left.
- As all air fryer models are a little different, you may find that you can fit more or less in at a time. Some models include stacking shelves which will increase capacity.
- Required cooking times and temperatures can also vary between models and brands. If you know that your air fryer runs a little hotter than most recipes suggest, use a lower temperature. And vice versa. Equally if you find that food cooks more quickly in your machine than instructions usually state, reduce the cooking time (or check it earlier) and vice versa.
Dave says
I had a little practice run so I can make these for Christmas. What a revelation, they are the bees knees!
Lesley says
Love a good roast potato and these were perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy inside.