I just use a skillet, sometimes cast sometimes not, sliced raw potatoes, and vegetable oil. The lid has to be off in order for them to get crips. I use mostly medium heat.

My Mom used to make crispy fried potatoes in the oven.wish I knew her secret.

As a kid on the farm fried potatoes was a mainstay of our diet. Every day we would boil a huge pot of potatoes with the skins on and have boiled potatoes for lunch.

All the leftover boiled potatoes were left sitting on a plate on the kitchen table and we would then use them to make fried potatoes for supper & breakfast. (you can also put them in the fridge, but we didn't have a fridge on the farm,,,,LOL)

After the potatoes have been boiled and cooled the skins can be peeled off with your fingers, just loosen a little with a table knife then pull the skin and it will peel off in a super thin layer leaving the entire potatoe intact. You then slice the potatoes and fry them in a large iron skillet. Being precooked they will fry up very quickly and it is easy to get them crispy if you desire.

I always use my cast iron skillet. I get the oil hot before putting the taters in and cook on a medium-high temp. Absolutely do not cover them if you want them crisp.

Make sure your peeled potatoes are completely dry. Some potatoes have more water than others so, when I finish peeling, I take a clean towel and roll them around in it. Heat your pan before you put anything in it, then add oil and heat that at high until it's hot and then turn it down a bit. Now gently add the potatoes so they don't splatter on you. That will do the trick. The heat has to be high enough to create a crisp.
The way to do it in the over is basically the same but you toss the potatoes in a bag with some oil and place it on the new reynolds foil that is no stick. I use a cookie sheet. Takes about 30 to 45 minutes on 400. I add salt and pepper and rosemary but you can add whatever to your taste. Incidentally if you make the roast potatoes,they go great with roasted Italian sausages and onions which I make in a separate pan.

I always like using my electric skillet for my fried potatoes. It might also depend on the type of potatoes you are using. I think the white round potatoes, not russet are a little better for frying. Usually I soak my potatoes in cold water and put either lemon juice or vinegar in the water, drain and rinse well and let drain as much as possible and then fry. I usually use canola oil, but a combination of things could be use. Good luck with your fried potatoes, I love them!

Sue

This post made me hungry for them....as a kid, we always called it "Fresh fried potatoes" if they were raw slices, instead of having been boiled first. I'll have to try the oven idea....sounds good.

I think the trick is to leave them alone until they brown on the bottom, meaning don't stir them at all until they've sat in the hot oil/butter for a good 5 minutes. I start with the heat on med-hi, and let them go until they are browning. After a quick turn--the less stirring, the better-- I turn the heat down some and put the lid on to cook them through while the other side browns. Towards the end I take the lid off and let any moisture evaporate. The heat has to be high enough to give the potatoes any color. Also, for me a stainless steel pan doesn't work as the potatoes will stick.

I stick my potatoes in the microwave for a few minute, then slice and fry them. don't even peel them and as sjerin said, don't stir them just let them brown and then flip.

Fried taters must be cooked in cast iron with bacon grease! LOL
Oh, and with diced onion!

If they are sliced too thick that can also hinder them from crisping up. I like doing them in a deep fat fryer or one of the smaller ones like the fry daddy, I have a different brand but similar, has the basket to put them in and let them fry till they float to the top and pull the basket out, makes them pretty much just like the ones you get served at restaurants.

A good high temperature helps a lot. So when I fry potatoes, I use half oil (safflower) and half butter. The combination raises the smoking temperature of the fat.

Sometimes I fry cooked potatoes (baked or boils), sometimes I use raw. You have to be willing to take your time and let them cook and cook, until they do crisp up. If you want really crispy, a single layer is best. I do love my potatoes with fried onions, BUT the water in the onions tends to make it a lot harder to get the potatoes crisp.

I use olive oil and a non-stick skillet. I think it comes down to not stirring them too much and cooking them longer. They'll crisp up eventually.

I've also made them crispy in the oven by tossing them in olive oil, baking them, and then turning on the broiler for a bit at the end. Just watch they don't burn.

What I've never been able to do is to cook shredded hashbrowns. I think maybe they are too wet or something but they always turn out to be one big mushy plop of potato. I stick with cubing them usually.

Go back and re-read angelaid's post!!

Sue

Sorry, I disagree with the bacon grease, I don't like it at all. Chicken fat!! I don't eat potatoes but when I did fry them it was high starch taters (russets) fried in Chicken fat.

jennmonkey...try putting your hash browns in the oven a bit to dry them out, then fry them.

Once I rinse the sliced potatoes under running water in my colander, I have to take a clean dish towel and drain them well before frying or they never get crisp. Potatoes seem to have some sort of starch on them that must be washed off and POTATOES TOWEL DRIED before cooking.

Ditto to Ang!

I have started using Simply Potatoes - they come fresh, not frozen, in a green bag - at my grocery store they are in with the eggs.

Just open the bag and dump in a hot pan with some olive oil in it. Don't stir right away. Keep over medium heat and don't put a lid on if you want crispy.

Two things hinder crisp potatoes, starch and moisture. Doing as redcurls suggested will remove some starch and dry them. Excess moisture will steam the potatoes. Dry heat (not necessarily high heat) is the trick to crispy potatoes so an oven can work if the potatoes aren't stacked up and steaming each other. The moisture will evaporate. Also as some have said if you cover the pan you'll keep the steam in so don't cover them.

Oh, I like them soft but a little brown. I often microwaved them first then brown them quickly, they are so good. I did more than enough for one meal, then cook some later.

I would think you would have to deep fry them to get the crisp.

Don't try to rush frying potatoes by turning up the heat. That'll cause then to stick. It takes time to do pan fried potatoes right, and it does take a hot pan at the end of the frying cycle to brown the potatoes. Cook the potatoes at medium heat until they soften and begin to show signs of crisping, and then increae the heat a bit to finish.

I've never found it necessary to 'dry' the potatoes. Howver, if the grease is piping hot before you drop in wet potatos slices, water drops can burst to steam and cause splattering of hot grease - must be avoided. Drop in the potatoes before the grease gets above the boiling point of water.

Mom always peeled the potatoes (because that's the way her mom did it), but I have found that is not necessary. At my house, we fry them with the skin on.

Occasionaly, the top of a potato may get exposed to the sun while growing. This causes chlorophil to form in the exposed part. The exposed part will have a very light green color, same as a lightly colored leaf. This should be cut away and discarded. It tastes like grass and humans have trouble digesting it.

I also use oil and butter for frying raw sliced potatoes. Medium heat and don't turn until they are crisp and golden brown on one side. I also makes sure the slices are nice and thin. Salt and pepper, sometimes onion.
On the grill: slice the potatoes onto a very large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil. Add lots of butter, onions, salt and pepper. Wrap tightly and place on the grill, turning often. They need to grill for 45 mins to an hour on a medium grill, depending on the thickness of the slices. Yummy!

I found this info on the Cook's Thesaurus website, about potatoes.

Varieties: Potatoes with a high starch content, like russets, bake well and yield light and fluffy mashed potatoes. Those with a low starch content, like red-skinned potatoes, hold their shape after cooking, and are great for making potato salads and scalloped potatoes. Medium starch potatoes are called all-purpose potatoes, and they'll work in most potato dishes.

Best for baking: russet potato

Best for potato salads, gratins, and scalloped potatoes: Yellow Finn potato, new potato, red-skinned potato, white round potato, and purple potato

Best for mashing: russet potato, Yukon gold potato, Caribe potato, and purple potato

Best for soups and chowders: Yukon gold potato, Yellow Finn potato, red-skinned potato, white round potato, and purple potato

Best for pan-frying: red-skinned potatoes, white round potatoes, new potatoes, and fingerling potatoes

Best for French fries: russet potato, purple potato, Bintje potato

Best for purees: fingerling potatoes

Best for roasting: new potatoes, Bintje potatoes

Best for steaming: new potatoes, Yukon gold potatoes

Best for potato pancakes: russet potato, Yukon Gold potato

Sue