French Fries
What kind of Junk Food Vegetarian would I be if I didn’t show you how you can make fries in your own house? Fried food is awesome! It’s got the crispy crunchy texture we all crave combined with the golden brown caramelization only achieved by heating something up super fast. But frying at home can be so messy and gross. And some people find reaching their hands over a pot of super heated oil scary. That’s why this technique I am going to show you is awesome. We are going to fry these fries in the oven!
Fries should be crunchy on the outside and creamy on the inside. By soaking your cut potatoes in hot water for ten minutes while your oven heats up, you are going to start the chemical process of creating crunch.
We are able to skip the frying pan in this recipe by coating a sheet pan with oil and then sprinkling over salt and pepper. The prepared potato wedges will go on the oiled sheet and then you will cover it with foil. This will allow the potatoes to steam at first. Then after five minutes we take the foil off the pan so the outside of the fries can get crunchy.
As the fries cook you will turn the pan around halfway through the process. No oven is the same and no oven is perfect. This means that some areas of your over are hotter and so a little rotation makes sure everything browns at the same speed.
Using a spatula scrape the fries from the grip of the pan and flip them over so that both sides get super crispy. And that’s how we do it! Dip these fries in Ketchup or aioli (fancy mayo sauce) and pair them with an awesome veggie burger.
Oven Fries- The Recipe
Ingredients:
4 russet potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise into wedges
5 Tbsp canola oil
Salt and Pepper
Directions:
Heat your oven to 475 degrees and move the oven rack to the lowest position. Place the potato wedges in a bowl and cover with hot water. Soak potatoes for 10 minutes. Coat a 18 x 12 inch rimmed baking sheet with 4 tablespoons of canola oil. Sprinkle the oiled pan with salt and pepper.
Drain the potatoes and spread out on a baking sheet that is lined with paper towels. Pat the potatoes dry and transfer to a clean dry bowl. Toss the potatoes with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil.
Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the oiled and seasoned baking sheet. Wrap the pan in tin foil. Place in the oven to bake for 5 minutes. The foil ensures that the potatoes steam first.
Carefully remove the foil from the baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes until the bottoms of the potatoes are brown. Halfway through this baking time turn the sheet pan.
Now using tongs and a spatula carefully scrape each potato loose from the pan and flip it over. Bake another 5-15 minutes until the fries are crispy and golden.
Transfer the finished fries to a paper towel lined baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Serve and enjoy!
