The best and most superior way of eating potatoes in my humble and completely unbiased Slovenian opinion.

Let’s kick-off 2025 with something delicious: potatoes. Much like many other countries around the globe, my home country Slovenia is also a huge potato land. There is a popular proverb “ti imaš pa res krompir – you really have potatoes” for someone who is very lucky, and I guess we can thank the Austrian empress Maria Theresa for that, as she introduced mandatory potato planting in Slovenian lands back in the 18th century.

Fast forward to today or more specifically to the year 2000, when a couple of people decided to take it to a whole new level by officially founding the Slovenian society for the recognition of roast potatoes as an independent dish – they even have an anthem. What began as a joke soon grew into the 1st World roast potato festival, which now happens annually in September, each time in a different place around Slovenia.

Roast potatoes are a signature Slovenian way of preparing potatoes by slowly roasting them on some kind of fat with onions and are a mandatory ingredient of any proper Slovenian Sunday lunch. They are often served as a side-dish with some kind of meat, but if you ask the aforementioned society, they should count as an independent dish and I fully agree. You can see their official recipe in Slovene here, but I’ve included a general recipe for roast potatoes at the end of this post if you want to try making them at home. Otherwise you’ll just have to come to the World roast potato festival and try out their official version with pork fat and pork cracklings. 🙂

I’ve known about this potato festival for a while, as I once accidentally stumbled upon it in Ljubljana, but it was too crowded then, so I didn’t really try any potatoes. It took a couple more years and a random last-minute call from a friend for my partner and I to finally attend the 24th edition of the festival in 2024 when it was held in Črna na Koroškem. We did it properly though and it was absolutely amazing – we came early enough to try almost all the roast potato variations, we brought our own bowls and spoons and we left slightly drunk with a major potato-induced bellyache before the after party started.

IMPRESSIONS FROM THE WORLD ROAST POTATO FESTIVAL

Calling it the world festival is perhaps a bit much, since roast potatoes are a very specific local way of preparing potatoes, but I really loved the friendly vibe and that everyone was so dedicated to their potatoes and having a lot of fun. It really is a festival, not a competition, and it is entirely free to visit. All the stalls with different varieties of roast potatoes are run by volunteer potato crews of different local societies and town communities from around Slovenia. They arrive early in the morning and start preparing their unique version of roast potatoes, which must be ready until the official opening time. The festival then operates on a first-come, first-served basis until the potatoes on each stall run out and you can try as many as you want, although I recommend asking for very small portions if you want to try them all.

There are some minimum quantity requirements for participation for each stall, but the roast potato festival is quite popular, so if you decide to visit, come early and bring your own bowl and spoon for zero waste. You can also buy the official society bowls there or get a single use paper bowl, but that’s not the best combination with the greasy potatoes. It is possible to buy drinks and there is usually some accompanying live program with music and an after party in the evening once all the potatoes are gone. Also, all the potato stalls accept donations for their efforts, so make sure you bring plenty of cash. I can’t promise that everyone will speak English, as the potato crews mostly consist of older generations (yes, I now have a new goal for when I am retired), but if you show them your empty bowl with a smile I’m sure that it will be understood as a universal sign for “please give me more of your delicious potatoes”.

GENERAL ROAST POTATO RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 kg potatoes
• 1 large yellow onion
• 3 tablespoons pork fat or vegetable oil
• salt to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Wash the potatoes and set them to boil in a pot of cold, salted water whole and unpeeled. Once they are cooked after about 20 minutes, leave them outside to cool. Then peel the potatoes and chop them into thick circular slices.

Dice the onions and put the pork fat or oil into a wide pan over medium heat. Add the onions and roast until they turn glassy and golden. Then add the potatoes with a bit of salt and spread them out across the pan. Wait until their underside starts turning crispy, then start to gently turn the potatoes around with a spatula without mashing them. This roasting step lasts about 20 minutes depending on the quantity and is the most important, as you want the potatoes to roast well and soak up the fat, but without turning them into a mushy, mashed potatoes sort of mess or burning them at the bottom. The end result should be a bit chunky and richly yellow. Enjoy!

You can also add the classic pork cracklings or any other more avantgarde accessories in the last minutes at the very end. My favourite roast potato variations in 2024 were the ones with pumpkin seed oil, mushrooms, chard and cranberries. Fresh chopped parsley or chives are also always a good addition on top.