Golden potato circles are fries with a show-off streak: thick half-centimeter rounds punched into rings with cutters, chilled 10 minutes in ice water (starch is the enemy of crisp), dried, oil-sprayed on a rack and baked 20 minutes at 200 °C — or 15 in an air fryer — then swirled through slow golden garlic butter and served with a mayo-sriracha dip. The scraps become mash. Serves 3.
Instructions
- 1
Peel the potatoes and slice into sturdy rounds about half a centimeter thick.
- 2
Punch out rings with cutters about 5 mm apart in radius — and save the scraps for mashed potatoes.
- 3
Chill the rings in ice water — starch is the enemy of crisp.
10:00 - 4
Pat dry, spread on an oven rack and spray with oil; flip each and spray the other side — they are too delicate for a bowl toss.
- 5
Bake at 200 °C for 20 minutes, or air-fry for 15.
20:00 - 6
Melt the butter, let the crushed garlic go slow and golden for 1–2 minutes, then swirl the rings through until glossy; salt and pile up.
- 7
Stir the dip — mayo, a crushed clove of garlic, a good squeeze of sriracha — and serve.
Watch the video
Notes from our kitchen
The rings are handled on the rack, sprayed side by side, precisely because a bowl toss breaks them before they ever crisp. Keep the garlic in the butter slow and golden — the video files burnt garlic under crimes — and swirl the rings through off the heat. Nothing is wasted: the punched-out centers and edges are tomorrow’s mash.
Variations
- Skip the cutters. Plain thick rounds crisp exactly the same way — the rings are theater, not chemistry. If you do cut rings, three cutters about 5 mm apart give the evenest walls.
- Dip swaps. The mayo-garlic-sriracha is a template: swap sriracha for the roasted tomato chili juice reduced thick, or fold in dill for something closer to the stacks’ sauce. A plain garlic aioli also earns its place.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why the ice-water soak?
Surface starch browns before it crisps and glues rings together on the rack — ten minutes in ice water pulls it off, which is the difference between shattering-crisp edges and leathery ones. Dry them properly after; water is the other enemy.
Oven or air fryer?
Both work: 20 minutes at 200 °C on an oven rack, or about 15 in an air fryer. The rack matters more than the appliance — air on both faces means no flipping mid-bake and no soggy underside.
What do I do with the scraps?
The punched-out centers and outer trim are pre-peeled, pre-sliced mash ingredients — boil them while the rings bake and you get a second side dish from the same three potatoes. The video is unapologetic about it: mashed potatoes, don’t judge.
Related Recipes
Parmesan Potato Stacks
Crispy Potato Slice Pancake
Garlic Parmesan-Crusted Roasted Potatoes with Bacon
Golden Garlic Butter Potatoes
Potato Skins with Paprika
