March 20, 2025, 6:47 a.m. | Reading time: 9 minutes
A juicy “Sunday Roast” makes the week perfect in Great Britain: the festive Sunday roast with vegetables, potatoes, gravy and “Yorkies” is a tradition. But what makes the perfect Sunday roast? Sunnytrips author Doris Tromballa has elicited her insider tips from two London chefs. This much can be revealed: the meat is not the most important thing!
There is no better Sunday in London for me than meeting up with friends for a “Sunday Roast” and then taking a stroll along Regent’s Canal. I love having guests and cooking - but unfortunately I still haven't quite got the hang of English Sunday roast. That's why before my next attempt I asked two chefs how they prepare their roast. What's the secret? The answers amazed me! And immediately afterwards I tried to implement the tips. Can I now make the perfect English Sunday roast?
The History of the Sunday Roast
The classic Sunday Roast ingredients
The heart of the perfect “Sunday Roast”
The right type of potato
The perfect roast potato: This is how it works!Method by Peter WeedenMethod by Heston Blumenthal
Peter Weeden's method
Heston Blumenthal's method
The potato as a pacesetter
The self-experiment using the Weeden method
The most important thing about Sunday Roast is not the food
The History of the Sunday Roast
The Sunday Roast is a living cultural heritage: almost every pub and restaurant offers this feast on Sunday. The tradition is said to have become established in the 18th century, especially in the county of Yorkshire, which at that time was experiencing a boom due to the industrial revolution and was able to significantly increase its agricultural production. Apparently the roast became so popular because you could put it in the oven before going to church and then it would be ready to eat just in time after mass. In a 2025 survey, the Sunday Roast came in second place among the things Brits love most (1st place: the bacon sandwich, 3rd place: the cup of tea). So the Sunday roast has a firm place in the hearts of the people of Great Britain!
The classic Sunday Roast ingredients
A typical Sunday Roast consists of:
Meat: Roast beef is traditionally served, but lamb, chicken or pork can also often be found on the menu. But there is also meatless roast, as vegetarian and vegan substitutes are becoming increasingly popular in the UK, according to a survey. Three-star chef Heston Blumenthal has created a cauliflower creation for his London restaurant “Dinner”.
Yorkshire Pudding: This pudding is not a pudding as we understand it, but a hollow, airy pastry made from flour, eggs and milk. It is either torn up and dipped in the sauce or completely filled with sauce.
Fried potatoes: Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside – perfectly cooked potatoes are essential.
Vegetables: Roasted carrots, parsnips, green beans or peas provide freshness and color.
Sauce (Gravy): A rich sauce, often made from the gravy, connects all components.
Stuffing: The roast filling is a popular addition, especially for poultry, usually made from breadcrumbs, herbs and onions.
The heart of the perfect “Sunday Roast”
Be it beef or celery, parsnips or peas – I have eaten a lot of roast versions. What I noticed: Restaurants like to vary their vegetable side dishes. Cauliflower with truffle cheese or fried kale with pine nuts, have all been there. The meat also comes in different presentations: sometimes leg, sometimes roast beef, sometimes packed in a herb or crispy coating. But where you definitely don't do experiments are the potatoes. Maybe because the restaurants know that potatoes are one of the British holy places and expectations are high.
The potatoes for Sunday Roast have to be exactly like this: golden brown and crispy on the outside, falling apart-soft and piping hot on the inside. Three-star chef Heston Blumenthal, who designed the roast menu at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park in London, considers potatoes “the undisputed centerpiece” of the Sunday Roast. And Peter Weeden, head chef of the first organic pub in London, the “Duke of Cambridge,” says: “You have to completely dedicate yourself to the process of preparing potatoes.”
The right type of potato
When you buy them, you decide whether the potatoes can meet the high standards of a “Sunday Roast”: Weeden recommends “the flouriest potatoes you can get. And not too sweet.” Blumenthal uses the floury “Marie Piper”, which is difficult to obtain in Germany. Here you can use the varieties “Lilly”, “Ackersegen”, “Afra” or “Gala”. You should also look carefully at the size. “About the size of my fist,” says Weeden – so that doesn’t mean baby potatoes or triplets. Choose the larger chunks. Spherical, i.e. long and wide, is the ideal shape. Blumenthal prefers his potatoes peeled (rather generously so that there are rough edges), Weeden processes them completely, i.e. with the peel on.
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“That’s where most of the nutrients are and it gives the potatoes a natural, rustic touch.” Before cooking for the first time, you should wash them well and cut out any green spots and any germination. As a rule of thumb: shoots up to one centimeter can be removed; the potato is then still edible. Whether with or without a peel is not important for the subsequent cooking process - both work. What counts here is what you like better. Then the potatoes are cut in half.
The perfect roast potato: This is how it works!
This surprised me: Blumenthal and Weeden both throw their potatoes into cold salt water! While I always waited for the water in the pot to boil, the two kitchen professionals recommend starting with cold water and then bringing it to the boil. But both chefs have different methods of how to get the best result:
Peter Weeden's method
Weeden brings the water to a boil as quickly as possible and only leaves the potatoes in for three to five minutes at the most. Then they are strained. Allow to cool briefly - then shake the potatoes vigorously in the pot. “This creates a rough surface,” explains Weeden. His mother even scored all the potatoes individually with a fork to achieve this effect, he says. Then the potatoes are coated with beef fat or sunflower oil. An ovenproof dish is covered with a few millimeters of beef fat or sunflower oil and the potatoes are placed on top - cut side down.
The oil in the mold doesn't have to be hot yet, says Weeden. The gold pieces are then cooked in the oven at 180 degrees (fan oven). After 30 minutes, turn it over and continue baking for another 30 minutes. “If you have time, you can cook at a lower temperature and for longer,” adds Weeden. When the time is up, the temperature is increased again to 190 to 195 degrees to create the crispy texture. The finish consists of olive oil, rosemary, thyme and garlic.
Heston Blumenthal's method
Blumenthal only heats the cooking water slightly and lets the potatoes simmer in it for about 15-20 minutes. Then turn up the heat and continue cooking over medium heat until the potatoes are almost falling apart. Blumenthal recommends lightly pressing the potato with your thumb. If it gives slightly, it's just right. Then they are strained and placed in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.
When the potato pieces have cooled, they are put in the fat - ideally in a deep fryer. They sizzle over low heat (around 140 degrees) for “13 to 14 minutes” (Blumenthal takes it precisely). Then they are cooled again in the refrigerator before they are fried a second time in the hot fat for a few minutes until golden. The finish: a few splashes of warm beef fat with garlic, thyme and rosemary, plus sea salt to taste.
The potato as a pacesetter
Weeden and Blumenthal both emphasize: The potato determines the timing when planning a Sunday roast. "The meat can rest under aluminum foil and let the meat juices out again when it's ready before the potatoes. But the potatoes have to be as hot as possible on the table," explains Weeden. This is one of the reasons why Blumenthal also takes his time until the last minute with the final frying process. Also important: “You have to know your oven,” says Weeden. Sometimes it takes a few tries until you know exactly which heat is right. Don't get frustrated!
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The self-experiment using the Weeden method
Inspired by my new knowledge, I immediately tried my hand at making the perfect baked potatoes for my next Sunday Roast. First without guests – you never know. Since I don't own a deep fryer and large amounts of hot fat on the stove are a bit scary for me, I decided to try Peter Weeden's method. In fact, I found Blumenthal's favorite variety, "Marie Piper," in my London supermarket and looked for specimens about the size of my fist. After eight made it into the selection, after washing and dividing, they went into the cold salt water. A little nervously, I waited until the water finally boiled - then I stopped the time. Five minutes! Strain, wait, now came the unusual part: shaking the potatoes! I was a little unsure whether the potatoes would hold up or whether I would unintentionally end up making mashed potatoes - but no!
Just as Peter had said: the potatoes became wonderfully rough but kept their shape. Like the annual rings of a tree, my potatoes now had a light yellow ring on the outside, but inside they were still hard and dark yellow. The tubers spent the next hour in the oven as planned, while I was always a little worried whether the cooking time might be a bit long. Don't they turn black at some point? But even after I really heated them up at 195 degrees for the last 20 minutes, nothing bad happened - on the contrary. What came out of my oven was almost as I know it from Peter from “Duke”: golden brown, crispy on the outside, buttery soft on the inside, with a great aroma. Add a few splashes of olive oil and a handful of herbs: a poem.
The most important thing about Sunday Roast is not the food
I am very grateful that Heston Blumenthal and Peter Weeden shared their potato secrets with me. Now I feel fit: the guests can come! But Peter Weeden would like to tell me one more thing: “The most important thing about Sunday Roast is not the food,” he says. “It’s that you all feel good, that it’s a nice day for everyone.” Cooking and entertaining guests has become an exhausting challenge for many in recent years. "You want to be perfect, everything should be flawless, but that's not what's important. It's about enjoying things together in a relaxed and happy way." And it seems to me: this is actually the secret to a perfect Sunday roast.
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