When it comes to winter and foraging, pine comes calling. Just the scent alone can bring me to a place of calm, and cooking with it adds a heavenly aroma to my kitchen. Especially when I’m cooking oven roasted potatoes on a bed of pine needles.
I have to give credit to Garden and Gun for the inspiration for this recipe. I’ve prepared it several times for classes I teach, and for my family, and everyone always loves it.
A layer of pine needles and small twigs are placed in the bottom of a cast iron Dutch oven, and then placed on high heat until the needles begin to smoke. This step releases the oils in the needles for a wonderful aroma.
The potatoes are then placed on top of the pine, and another layer of pine needles are placed on top of the potatoes.
The Dutch oven is covered and placed in the oven at high temperature. A half hour later, amazingly delicious oven roasted potatoes are yours to enjoy.
Can I Use Other Evergreens in the Recipe?
Can you use other types of needles? Absolutely, as long as the evergreen is an edible. You may use spruce, fir, or hemlock needles instead of, or in addition to, the pine needles. Just be sure to stay away from yew, or Norfolk pine which is not a true pine.
How to Identify Pine
Pine can easily be identified by their needles, which always grow in clusters of 2 to 5 depending on the species. The needles of no other evergreen grow in clusters.
These clusters of needles are attached to the stems of the tree. The needles of spruce, fir, and hemlock, on the other hand, are attached individually.
In addition, pine needles tend to be longer than spruce, fir, or hemlock needles.
Note that the needles of the pine are attached to the stem in clusters.
Oven Roasted Potatoes on a Bed of Pine Boughs
At a gathering at a friend’s last year about foraging in winter, we enjoyed foods of all kinds made with pine, including these oven roasted potatoes. We also had pine tea, a salad with Pine Infused Salad Dressing, Pine Needle Sugar Cookies, and Pine and Raspberry Fermented Soda.
And then we made Pine and Honey Moisturizing Lip Balm, and Pine Bath Salts for Natural Stress Relief.
It was such a fun get together, and we learned so much about the benefits of pine.
More Posts on Pine That You’ll Love
How to Harvest Pine Resin and Use it to Make a Salve
Raspberry and Pine Fermented Soda
Pine and Honey Moisturizing Lip Balm
Pine Bath Salts for Natural Stress Relief
Oven Roasted Potatoes on a Bed of Pine Needles
Ingredients
- 2 pounds yellow potatoes choose small, or cut into quarters
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or melted tallow or lard
- 1/2 - 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- pine needles and small branches
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Toss the potatoes with the avocado oil, tallow, or lard.
- Season the potatoes with course sea salt.
- Cover the bottom of a large cast iron Dutch oven with pine needles and small pine branches.
- Place the Dutch oven on the stove top over high heat until the pine begins to smoke.
- Remove from the burner, and place your potatoes on top of the pine.
- Cover the potatoes with more pine needles and small branches, and place lid on Dutch oven.
- Place in a pre-heated oven, and roast for 30 minutes, until potatoes are tender.
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Maria Josephine says
Yummy. I love this Potato recipe and I try to cook this recipe. Thanks for the share.
Kristel says
Hi Susan, I’ve been wanting to try this ever since I saw your post. I finally tried making them for Christmas dinner tonight. It smelled good but we didn’t taste any pine in the potatoes. When I heated the needles on high I saw that the pine needles were burning and removed the burned ones. Now I’m thinking I should have left the burned needles in. I will give it another try.
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Kristel! The potatoes have only a hint of pine taste. The aroma that fills the house when they are roasting is as much a part of the experience as anything!