How To Parboil Potatoes: 10 Steps (with Pictures) - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow How to Parboil Potatoes Perfectly Every Time PDF download Download Article Plus, delicious ways to use your parboiled potatoes Co-authored by Annabelle Reyes Reviewed by Marrow Private Chefs

Last Updated: July 29, 2025 Fact Checked

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  • Prepping Your Potatoes
    • |
  • Parboiling Your Potatoes
    • |
  • Using Parboiled Potatoes
    • |
  • Reasons to Parboil Potatoes
    • |
  • Parboiled Potatoes Recipes
    • |
  • Video
    • |
  • Q&A
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  • Tips
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  • Things You'll Need
|Show more |Show less ARTICLE VIDEO X

This article was reviewed by Marrow Private Chefs and by wikiHow staff writer, Annabelle Reyes. Marrow Private Chefs are based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It is a chefs’ collective comprised of an ever-growing number of chefs and culinary professionals. Though regionally influenced primarily by coastal, traditional southern, cajun, and creole styles and flavors, the chefs at Marrow have a solid background in all types of cuisine with over 75 years of combined cooking experience. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 899,987 times.

Parboiling is the act of cooking food partially so the cooking time is reduced when the food is added to a recipe. The word itself is a mixture of “partial” and “boiling.” Because potatoes have a tendency to take longer to cook than other ingredients, many recipes call for parboiled potatoes. We’ll take you through the process step-by-step, and we’ll even provide a few recipe ideas to inspire you if you’re not sure how to use your parboiled potatoes yet. Keep reading for everything you need to know!

How to Parboil or Par-Cook Potatoes

Place your clean potatoes in a pot or saucepan. Fill the saucepan with water until your potatoes are completely covered, then bring to a boil on your stove. Let the potatoes boil for 5-15 minutes depending on their size. Remove the potatoes from the water and let them cool, then proceed to the next step of your recipe.

Steps

Section 1 of 4:

Prepping Your Potatoes

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  1. Step 1 Clean the potatoes and peel them (if needed). 1 Clean the potatoes and peel them (if needed). First, scrub your potatoes under running water to ensure that they’re clean. Next, check to see if the recipe calls for peeled or unpeeled potatoes, and peel them if needed.[1]
    • If your potatoes do need to be peeled, use a potato peeler or a paring knife, and carefully peel them above a bowl or the trash. This makes clean-up a lot easier!
  2. Step 2 If necessary, cut your potatoes into equal-sized pieces. 2 If necessary, cut your potatoes into equal-sized pieces. Potatoes take a long time to cook, hence the need to parboil them. If you want to cut down their cooking time even more, consider cutting your potatoes into smaller pieces.[2] In general, the smaller the potato, the quicker it'll cook. Just make sure to cut them into uniformly sized chunks, so that they all cook at the same rate.
    • Of course, if your recipe calls for whole potatoes, you won’t be able to cut them into chunks. That’s okay—they'll just take a bit longer to parboil!
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Section 2 of 4:

Parboiling Your Potatoes

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  1. Step 1 Place your potatoes in a saucepan and cover them with water. 1 Place your potatoes in a saucepan and cover them with water. Fill the pot with room temperature water until the water reaches about 1 inch (2 cm or so) above your potatoes. This way, they'll all cook evenly.
    • If you have a large amount of potatoes to parboil, you may need to use a larger pot, rather than a saucepan.
  2. Step 2 Bring the water to a boil and let the potatoes cook for 5-15 minutes. 2 Bring the water to a boil and let the potatoes cook for 5-15 minutes. Small to medium potatoes will typically need to boil for about 7-10 minutes, while larger potatoes may need about 12-15 minutes. If you’re parboiling potatoes that you’ve already cut into small chunks, you may only need to parboil them for about 5 minutes.[3]
  3. 3 Remove the potatoes from the heat and drain the water. Stick a fork into one of your potatoes (or into a potato chunk, if you’ve cut yours into pieces) to check if it's done yet. The potato should have a cooked and soft outer edge, but firmer toward the middle. When they're ready, take them off the heat and drain the water.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Parboil Potatoes 4 Place the potatoes straight into cold water. This stops the cooking process immediately. Simply fill a bowl with water and ice, then place your potatoes into the cool water for a few seconds. Your potatoes are now ready to be used as required in your recipe!
    • Parboiled potatoes will not keep for a very long time. Try to use them within 1-2 days after parboiling.
    • If you’re storing your potatoes for later use, put them in a bowl in your fridge. Don’t store them in a plastic bag, as this causes them to sweat and soften more.
    • To extend their shelf life, try freezing your parboiled potatoes. Pat them dry, and place them on a lined cookie sheet in the freezer for a few hours. Once they’re frozen, transfer to Ziploc bags and store in the freezer for 2-3 months.[4]
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Section 3 of 4:

Ways to Use Parboiled Potatoes

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  1. Step 1 Roasted potatoes 1 Roasted potatoes One of the best ways to use parboiled potatoes is roasting them. When your potatoes are parboiled and then roasted, you’ll get a delicious, crispy exterior and soft, fluffy interior that satisfies all the taste buds.[5]
  2. Step 2 Crispy hashbrowns 2 Crispy hashbrowns A little-known secret for making delicious homemade hashbrowns? Parboil the potatoes before shredding them. From there, you can add them directly to a pan with oil or butter, or form them into patties and fry until crispy. This cuts down on the cooking time and gives your hashbrowns the perfect consistency.[6]
  3. Step 3 Sautéed mixed veggies 3 Sautéed mixed veggies Another reason for parboiling is that potatoes take so much longer to cook than other vegetables. For example, if you try to sautée raw potatoes in a pan with broccoli, carrots, and onions, the other veggies will cook much more quickly, leaving you with icky raw potato chunks. If you parboil your potatoes, you can throw them right in with the rest of your mixed veggies, and they should take roughly the same amount of time to sautée.
  4. 4 Sheet pan dinner Sheet pan dinners involve placing several different ingredients onto one cookie sheet, then baking everything at once in your oven.[7] Since potatoes take a longer time to cook than many other ingredients, it can be helpful to parboil them before adding them to your sheet pan. Here are some delicious combinations to try for a sheet pan dinner:
    • Chicken, potatoes, broccoli, red onion, lemon
    • Shrimp, sweet corn, potatoes, cajun seasoning
    • Sausage, potatoes, broccoli, red onion, bell peppers
    • Steak strips, potatoes, garlic, balsamic vinegar, thyme[8]
  5. 5 Soups and stews If you’re making a delicious soup or hearty stew, try parboiling your potatoes first. This way, you’ll never get stuck with partially raw potatoes when the rest of your ingredients are done cooking!
  6. Step 6 Roasted sweet potatoes 6 Roasted sweet potatoes Just like regular ol' potatoes, sweet potatoes can be parboiled before roasting to ensure a deliciously crispy exterior and fluffy interior. The next time you’re cooking sweet potatoes, try parboiling them first!
    • In fact, any starchy vegetable (such as carrots) can be parboiled. Once you see the magic that is parboiling with potatoes, consider expanding your repertoire with the rest of the root veggie family!
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Section 4 of 4:

Reasons to Parboil Potatoes

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  1. Parboiling potatoes cuts down their cooking time. When you parboil (partially cook) potatoes before adding them to a recipe, they’ll cook at roughly the same rate as the other ingredients in your dish. Parboiling potatoes also helps you get the perfect crispy exterior and fluffy interior when you’re making roasted, fried, or hash brown potatoes.[9]
    • Parboiling potatoes is also helpful when you’re meal prepping for the week. When you’re ready to use the potatoes, they’ll cook much more quickly than raw ones would!
      • Just make sure to use them within 2-3 days if you refrigerated them, or 2-3 weeks if you froze them.
    • Note: For dishes that require fully boiled potatoes, parboiling is unnecessary. If you’re making mashed potatoes, for example, you’ll want to leave your potatoes in the boiling water until they’re fully cooked.

Parboiled Potatoes Recipes

Sample Roasted Parboil Potatoes Recipe Sample Parboil Potato Veggie Stir Fry Recipe Sample Parboil Potato Hashbrown Recipe Sample Roasted Parboil Sweet Potatoes Recipe

Community Q&A

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  • Question What is the best way to store parboiled potatoes in the refrigerator - in water or drained? Community Answer Community Answer I drain the pan as soon as they are done and immediately fill it with cold water to stop them cooking any longer. But once they're cool to the touch - which can be around 15 minutes - I drain them and drop them into a dry bowl and pop in the fridge (unless I'm cooking them immediately). I don't know if keeping them in water would keep them ready any longer but so long as I use them within a day I've never found it necessary. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 3 Helpful 16
  • Question How do I parboil potatoes in a pressure cooker? Community Answer Community Answer Perhaps you should consider another method to parboil your potatoes as a pressure cooker would nearly cook them completely. Because it really takes minutes to parboil them in a pot of water, a pressure cooker would take less time and would require much more effort than is necessary. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 14
  • Question Twice I've made scalloped potatoes with different cooking times. Both times the potatoes were harder than I would've liked. Can I precook the potatoes in boiling water for a time before starting recipe? Community Answer Community Answer Yes. For fresh potatoes, not the box mix, boil the potatoes whole, peeled until "al dente", still firm. Rinse under cold water until they are cool enough to handle, cut into slices and continue to make the recipe. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 4 Helpful 18
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Video

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Tips

  • Parboiling works best with potatoes that are meant for boiling. Some high-starch varieties, such as Russet potatoes, are too floury and can crumble after parboiling.[10] Waxier potatoes, such as red potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes, are the best choices for parboiling.[11] Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Parboiled potatoes are great for pizzas, curries, and salads, or fried up as hash browns and potato patties. Some people love to parboil potatoes prior to roasting. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 1
  • Some recipes might ask for potatoes to be cut and parboiled; follow the recipe's instructions for both the style of the cut and the time for parboiling. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
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Things You'll Need

  • Peeler (optional)
  • Saucepan
  • Bowl of cold water
  • Knife

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References

  1. ↑ https://idahopotato.com/dr-potato/washing-fresh-potatoes
  2. ↑ https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-boil-potatoes/
  3. ↑ https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/cooking-tips/article/effed-it-up-pan-fried-potatoes
  4. ↑ https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-freeze-potatoes/
  5. ↑ https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-ultimate-roast-potatoes
  6. ↑ https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-make-the-best-hash-browns-article
  7. ↑ https://www.delish.com/cooking/g4267/sheet-pan-dinners/
  8. ↑ https://www.delish.com/cooking/g4267/sheet-pan-dinners/
  9. ↑ https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/cooking-tips/article/effed-it-up-pan-fried-potatoes
More References (2)
  1. ↑ https://www.foodrepublic.com/1386598/best-worst-potatoes-boiling
  2. ↑ https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-boil-potatoes/

About This Article

Marrow Private Chefs Reviewed by: Marrow Private Chefs Culinary Experts This article was reviewed by Marrow Private Chefs and by wikiHow staff writer, Annabelle Reyes. Marrow Private Chefs are based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It is a chefs’ collective comprised of an ever-growing number of chefs and culinary professionals. Though regionally influenced primarily by coastal, traditional southern, cajun, and creole styles and flavors, the chefs at Marrow have a solid background in all types of cuisine with over 75 years of combined cooking experience. This article has been viewed 899,987 times. How helpful is this? Co-authors: 15 Updated: July 29, 2025 Views: 899,987 Categories: Basic Cooking Skills | Potato Dishes Article SummaryX

To parboil potatoes, first wash the potatoes and peel off the skin if you’d like them to be skinless. Then, cut the potatoes into equal-sized pieces. Place the potatoes in a wide saucepan and fill the pan with enough cold water to just cover the potatoes. Bring the water to a rolling boil over high heat, then turn the heat off. Let the potatoes sit in the pan for 5 minutes. Finally, drain the water and transfer the potatoes to a plate to cool. Store your parboiled potatoes in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use them. If you want to learn how to roast or use your potatoes once they've been parboiled, keep reading the article! Did this summary help you?YesNo

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    "This article was very informative. I've only recently started to cook and I needed par boiled potatoes and I..." more
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Yes No Advertisement If you buy through links on our site, we may earn a commission.Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Marrow Private Chefs Reviewed by: Marrow Private Chefs Culinary Experts Click a star to vote Co-authors: 15 Updated: July 29, 2025 Views: 899,987 Michael Sylvain

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"This article was very informative. I've only recently started to cook and I needed par boiled potatoes and I..." more Rhonda Baggio

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"I was wanting to make some quick homemade french fries. I peeled and sliced my potatoes, gave a quick parboil, and..." more Kathi Joseph

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"I have never parboiled potatoes before this really helped! I was making pot pie and I was trying to find out the..." more Cynric Whitaker

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