In the Winter Oven: Fire-roasted Potatoes and Parsnips

It’s dark by 5 p.m., and wintry but not too cold, an evening that could be medieval as easily as it is modern. Just the kind of night that’s perfect for a bright fire and a big pan of oven-roasted root veggies. All that’s needed to complete the scene are potatoes, parsnips, onions, a few sprigs of rosemary, spices and oil. 

Since it’s been too cold outside for a while to fire it up, I’ve been pulsing the woodfired oven today at Chez Bullhog – bringing it up to temperature slowly so as not to crack anything. This morning I built a small fire with kindling and applewood sticks. It burned just long enough to take the edge off the cold inside the oven box. Around noon, I built another fire, slightly larger and a little farther back on the oven floor, and let it go out after it had burned for about half an hour. Then, one more fire with about 2 pounds of wood, built to the right side instead of the left. Now, a couple of hours before dinnertime, I’m ready to have a real fire.

Admittedly, using a woodfired oven for this dish involves some special equipment, so if you don’t have a woodfired oven, don’t worry – I’ll provide instructions for roasting in a conventional oven. As for ambience? Maybe a fire in the fireplace…some candles…some spiced cider? Perfect.

Fire-roasted Potatoes and Parsnips

Makes two 9×15 pans of veggies

2 pounds red potatoes

2 pounds parsnips

1 pound yellow onions

24 – 5” sprigs of rosemary

¼ cup good olive oil

1½ teaspoons kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

(alternate spices: herbs de Provence, paprika, cayenne)

1. Wash and scrub the potatoes and parsnips. Do not peel. Remove hairs and side-roots from the parsnips, and then cut off the top and bottom ½ inch.
2. Cut potatoes in half or, if large, in quarters. Cut parsnips in half lengthwise, and cut the fat top part in quarters but leave the bottom bit whole.
3. Cut onions in half lengthwise. Cut off the top and bottom of each half and remove a layer of outer skin. Cut each half into 4 or 5 wedges.
4. Distribute veggies into two 9×15 pyrex or ceramic pans, making one layer in each. Arrange 12 rosemary sprigs amongst the veggies, and then sprinkle 3 or 4 tablespoons olive oil over the veggies and sprigs. Top each pan with ¾ teaspoon kosher salt and generous grindings of black pepper. 

For woodfired roasting: the fire should be 2 hours old, with enough hot coal and enough fuel to sustain an hour’s heat without needing to stoke. You’ll see in the photo below that there is a moderate amount of flame, which will be extinguished when the door is placed. Put the fire near the back of the oven, and put the two pans in a V so that one long side of each is facing the fire. Turn the pans around every 15 minutes, and turn the veggies over after a half hour, putting the door back in place each time. The veggies will be cooked through in 1 hour to 1 hour and a quarter, depending on how hot the fire is. 

For conventional oven roasting: preheat your oven to 450º. Roast for 20 minutes, turn the veggies over, and drop the temperature to 425º. Continue roasting for another 30 minutes, turn again and finish for 10 or 20 minutes, depending on the oven and the thickness of the veggies. Do not use a convection fan, as it will dry out the vegetables.