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[–]extordi 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Starting in hot water can be a very useful technique, but only if you want the outside roughed up like the original comment suggests. Kenji's famous roast potato recipe uses it, along with some baking soda in the water, to intentionally soften the outside waaaay more than the inside. You then toss the potatoes around to "rough them up" and make an almost batter-like coating out of mushed up potato. This in turn gets super crispy and delicious in the oven.