Honey Bacon Roasted Potatoes : A Sweet & Savoury Delight

Are you on a quest for a side dish that not only supports the main event but has the potential to become the star of the plate? One that marries fluffy and crisp textures with a flavour so compelling you’ll want to make it time and time again? If that sounds like you, then your search is over. We believe the humble potato holds remarkable promise, and when you introduce the salty crispness of bacon and the luscious sweetness of honey, it becomes something truly exceptional. We are delighted to share our tried-and-tested recipe for honey bacon roasted potatoes, a dish that proves simple ingredients can yield the most extraordinary results.

This is far more than just another recipe for roasties. It’s a culinary experience. Picture golden, crunchy exteriors that give way to a light, fluffy centre, all enrobed in a glossy, sweet-and-savoury glaze, punctuated by salty morsels of bacon with every mouthful. It’s the ideal accompaniment for a Sunday roast, a guaranteed hit at any gathering, or simply a wonderfully comforting dish all by itself. Let’s get started!

Why We Know You’ll Adore This Recipe

Before we get to the method, let us explore why these honey bacon roasted potatoes are destined to become a firm favourite in your home. This recipe is a certified success for several key reasons:

• An Unbeatable Flavour Combination: The smoky, savoury notes of the bacon create a perfect harmony with the natural sweetness of the honey. Paired with aromatic herbs and fluffy potatoes, it creates a true taste sensation.
• Incredible Textures: We will guide you on how to get potatoes that are wonderfully crisp on the outside while staying perfectly soft and light on the inside. The addition of crunchy bacon bits introduces another layer of satisfying texture.
• Surprisingly Simple: Although the outcome is truly impressive, the method is refreshingly straightforward and suitable for cooks of every skill level. We’ve broken it down to ensure you can achieve perfection every time.
• Wonderfully Versatile: These potatoes are the ultimate culinary team player. They are a fantastic match for roast chicken, grilled steak, fresh fish, or even a simple side salad.

Ingredients for Honey Bacon Roasted Potatoes

To craft the most mouth-watering roasted potatoes, we suggest you begin with top-quality ingredients. The finer your initial components, the more magnificent the finished dish will be. Here is everything you will need to make these genuinely crispy roasted potatoes.

• Potatoes: 1.5 kg, floury variety such as Maris Piper or King Edward, peeled and chopped into 2-inch chunks.
• Bacon: 200g streaky bacon, chopped into small pieces.
• Honey: 3 tablespoons of runny honey.
• Olive Oil: 4 tablespoons, plus extra for drizzling.
• Garlic: 3 cloves, finely minced.
• Fresh Rosemary: 2 sprigs, leaves finely chopped.
• Salt: 1 teaspoon, or to taste.
• Black Pepper: ½ teaspoon, freshly ground.
• Optional: A pinch of red chilli flakes for a gentle kick of heat.

Step-by-Step Guide to Perfection

Follow our clear, detailed instructions to prepare a tray of roasted potatoes that will have your guests begging for the recipe. We have perfected this method to guarantee the best possible crispiness and flavour.

Making the Perfect Honey Bacon Roasted Potatoes

1. Preheat and Prep: To begin, set your oven to 200°C (180°C Fan/Gas Mark 6). Pour the olive oil into a large, heavy-bottomed roasting tin and place it in the oven to heat up. Ensuring the fat is searingly hot is a vital secret to achieving a super-crisp finish.
2. Parboil the Potatoes: Put your prepared potato chunks into a large pot and cover them with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and allow the potatoes to cook for approximately 8–10 minutes. Your aim is for them to be slightly soft on the surface but still have a firm core.
3. Drain and Fluff: After parboiling, drain the potatoes completely in a colander. Then, give the colander a few good shakes to scuff up the potatoes’ edges. This “fluffing” step is essential because it creates a textured surface that will catch the hot fat and turn incredibly crispy.
4. The First Roast: With great care, take the hot roasting tin out of the oven. Gently add the fluffed potatoes to the hot oil, turning them to coat each piece thoroughly. Be mindful, as the oil will be very hot and may sizzle! Place them in the oven to roast for 30 minutes, turning them over at the halfway point.
5. Cook the Bacon: As the potatoes undergo their first roast, put the chopped bacon into a dry frying pan on a medium heat. Cook until it reaches your desired crispiness. With a slotted spoon, lift the bacon from the pan, leaving the rendered fat. Keep the crispy bacon aside for now.
6. Create the Glaze: To the bacon fat remaining in the frying pan, add the minced garlic and chopped rosemary. Sauté for about 30 seconds until aromatic. Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the runny honey. This mixture forms your delicious, flavour-infused glaze.
7. The Final Roast: Once the potatoes have roasted for 30 minutes, take them out of the oven. Pour the honey and bacon fat glaze over them, then sprinkle the crispy bacon bits on top. Toss gently to combine everything in the tin. Return to the oven to roast for a further 15–20 minutes, until the potatoes are a deep golden brown, sticky, and wonderfully crisp.
8. Serve and Enjoy: Take the roasting tin out of the oven. Finish with a last sprinkle of salt and freshly ground black pepper. For the best experience, serve immediately while they are still hot and at their crispiest.

Our Top Tips for Flawless Roasted Potatoes

We have prepared this dish more times than we can count, and we’ve gathered some useful knowledge in the process. Here is our essential advice to help you achieve success every time.

Choose the Right Potato

The variety of potato you select has a significant impact. For optimal results, you need a floury or starchy potato. In the UK, choices like Maris Piper, King Edward, or Desirée are ideal. Their fluffy texture cooks beautifully on the inside, allowing the exterior to become perfectly crisp. Waxy potatoes, such as Charlotte or new potatoes, will not provide that signature fluffy interior. For more information on selecting the right spud, the Love Potatoes campaign offers a fantastic guide to British potato varieties.

Don’t Crowd the Pan

A frequent error when roasting is to overcrowd the tin. Your potatoes require ample space to roast properly. If they are packed in too closely, they will steam rather than roast, which leads to pale and soft potatoes. We recommend using a large roasting tin, or even two smaller ones, to give every potato the space it needs to turn golden and crisp.

Embrace the Bacon Fat

Whatever you do, don’t throw away the fat that renders from the bacon! This is liquid gold. It is bursting with a smoky, salty flavour that will infuse the potatoes and help them to crisp up perfectly. Using this fat as the foundation for your honey glaze is an absolutely essential step for creating the ultimate sweet and savoury potatoes.

Variations and Customisations

Although we believe this recipe is wonderful just as it is, we always encourage you to adapt it to your own tastes! Here are some suggestions to spark your creativity:

• Add Some Heat: If you like things spicy, add a good pinch of red chilli flakes or ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper into the honey glaze mixture.
• Bring in More Herbs: Fresh thyme is another herb that pairs wonderfully with honey and bacon. You could add a few sprigs into the tin for the final 20 minutes of cooking.
• A Cheesy Finish: For an exceptionally indulgent twist, grate a layer of Parmesan cheese over the potatoes during the last 5 minutes of their roasting time.
• Make it Vegetarian: It’s easy to create a vegetarian alternative by leaving out the bacon and using only olive oil. To replicate a smoky taste, add ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika when you first season the potatoes.

What to Serve with Honey Bacon Roasted Potatoes

These potatoes are remarkably adaptable. They serve as the perfect star side for a traditional Sunday roast, yet they also complement a wide variety of main dishes. For a brilliant surf-and-turf style meal, we highly recommend serving them alongside The Ultimate Crispy Baked Shrimp Recipe So Easy. And if you are a true potato lover seeking another comforting dish to add to your repertoire, our recipe for Tasty Cheesy Ground Beef Stuffed Crispy Mashed Potatoes Delicious Easy is one you must try.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Can I make these honey bacon roasted potatoes ahead of time?

You can certainly get a head start by parboiling the potatoes in advance. After draining and fluffing them up, allow them to cool down completely before storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 24 hours. When it’s time to eat, just follow the roasting instructions. However, to get the absolute best crispy results, we advise roasting them right before you plan to serve.

Can I use an air fryer for this recipe?

Absolutely, an air fryer is a fantastic tool for this bacon and potato recipe. After parboiling and coating in the initial oil, air fry them at 200°C for around 20 minutes, making sure to shake the basket at the halfway mark. Next, toss them with the honey glaze and crispy bacon, then air fry for an additional 5-7 minutes until they are sticky and golden.

My honey glaze burnt. What went wrong?

Due to its high sugar content, honey can catch and burn if it’s subjected to very high temperatures for too long. That is precisely why we incorporate the glaze near the end of the cooking process. If you know your oven tends to run hot, you might need to lower the temperature a little for the final 15 minutes, or loosely cover the tin with foil if you see the glaze darkening too fast.

Can I use a different type of bacon?

Our recommendation is to use streaky bacon because its higher fat content renders down perfectly, yielding the ideal fat to crisp the potatoes and form the glaze. You are welcome to use back bacon, but as it is considerably leaner, you may find you need to add a bit more olive oil to compensate.

Conclusion: Your New Favourite Side Dish Awaits

We have now passed on all our best-kept secrets for making the most sensational honey bacon roasted potatoes. With their crunchy exteriors, fluffy interiors, and an unforgettable sweet-and-salty coating, they are so much more than a simple side—they are a standout dish worthy of being the main attraction. This recipe is a wonderful example of how a few simple, carefully selected ingredients can be elevated into something truly memorable.

So, there’s no reason to delay! It is time to make your way to the kitchen and whip up a tray of pure comfort and delight. We are certain that after one taste, this recipe will earn a cherished spot in your regular cooking rotation.

If you give this recipe a go, we would be thrilled to know what you think! Please drop a comment below to tell us how you got on, or feel free to share a picture on social media and tag us. Happy cooking!