RECIPE: Rec: Oven Fries from FC and Molly Stevens. These are a little fussy to make, but I thought they

RECIPE:
C

curious1

Well-known member
had a texture more like a french fry. Very good with some pan-fried fish, pole beans and coleslaw.

Oven Fries

by Molly Stevens

Three Steps to Perfect Oven Fries

This recipe is easily doubled; just use a second baking sheet so you don’t crowd the fries.Serves four.

2 large russet potatoes (about 1-3/4 lb. total), peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick sticks

Kosher salt

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil

Fleur de sel or other coarse salt, or Lemon-Fennel Salt

Rinse the potatoes:

Choose a pot large enough to hold the potatoes without crowding (4 to 5 quarts) and fill it with cold water. Drop the potato sticks into the water to rinse off the starch. You can immediately remove the potatoes from the water and proceed to the next step. Or if you want to prep the potato sticks in advance and roast them later in the day, you can leave them in the water. If you plan to wait more than 2 hours before roasting the fries, however, put the pot in the refrigerator.

Parboil the potatoes:

Drain the potatoes, rinse well, and return them to the pot with enough cold water to cover by 1-1/2 inches. Add 1 tsp. kosher salt. Partially cover the pot, and bring the water to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, reduce the heat to a calm boil and boil for 3 min. Gently drain the potatoes in a large colander and then spread them on paper towels to dry. (The potatoes can sit for up to an hour before roasting.)

Roast the fries:

When you’re ready to roast the fries, put a baking sheet on the middle oven rack and heat the oven to 450°F. Put the potatoes in a large bowl, add the olive oil, and toss to coat the potatoes, being careful not to break the sticks. Remove the hot baking sheet from the oven and arrange the potatoes on the sheet, leaving at least 1/2 inch between each. Roast, turning the fries over and rotating the baking sheet once after 15 min. and then again every 6 to 8 min., until the fries are nicely browned and crisp, a total of about 30 min. Sprinkle with fleur de sel or lemon-fennel salt, toss gently, and serve immediately.

From Fine Cooking 71, pp. 59

May 1, 2005

 
My fav oven fries are from Emeril. Not only can you sub the potatoes for sweet potatoes but you can

sub any veggie in place of the potatoes. They are AMAZINLY easy and tasty too. My kids LOVE these too!

This is from the show Emeril Green:

Healthy Baked Fries

Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 large baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), scrubbed
1 large egg white
1⁄2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1⁄4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, optional
Method:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease a large nonstick baking sheet with the vegetable oil.
Pat the potatoes dry and slice lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick slices. Turn each slice flat and slice again lengthwise into even fries, 1/2-inch thick.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the egg white until very light and foamy. Add the potatoes to the egg white and toss to coat evenly. Transfer the potatoes with a slotted spoon to the prepared baking sheet, positioning the fries so that they are not touching one another. Bake for 10 minutes.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and sprinkle the potatoes with half of the salt and pepper. Using a metal or hard plastic spatula, scrape the potatoes from the baking sheet and flip them over. Sprinkle with the remaining salt and pepper.
With oven mitts or potholders, return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown and crispy. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and serve hot.

 
We sure use a number of diff methods. I've been making them recently using peanut oil, rolling

them in it and 'frying' in the oven at 400. My nonstick sheet is dark and I find that 425 browns them too much. H just loves them and asks for them every second night.

Last night I tried the egg white method and we did not prefer it. We both found the texture of the outside to be unpleasant. I did one pan with and one without. I like to do side-by-side taste tests.

I make sure they are soaked, then well-dried beforehand. Now I often find H digging through bags of potatoes when I bring them home...he's searching for the big long ones, just for his fries. He's been so amazed that he likes them so much that he doesn't do his normal application of vinegar and ketchup. (vinegar is a Canadian thing)

 
So you soak them also, I think that was the secret to the ones I made, but I don't know why.I'll try

soaking them without the parboiling and see what happens. I usually just cut them in wedges, put Cajun or some such seasoning, salt, pepper and olive oil on them and bake. they're good, but I think these were better.

 
I soak them because my mom did. But I believe it is to remove some of the starch that would otherwis

cause them to brown too quickly.

I am amazed at the number of things I do just because I saw my mom do it. Eventfually I do start to wonder why.

My mom always insisted on really old potatoes for chips (as we called them) and wouldn't make them unless she had them.

 
Soaking doesn't eliminate starch--you want the starch for crisping and browning. But it draws

starch to the surface, which aids a longer-lasting crisp crust. Using drier (older) potatoes has the same effect. There's less moisture inside the potato to convert to steam, which would soften the outer crust quickly.

 
cooks illustrated has a great rec for oven fries which involves soaking but no parboiling. they

were delicious. in fact we had them with another of their 'lighter' recipes - the grilled chicken wings. i can post the recipes if anyone's interested.

 
Thanks Marg, I've been too busy this year! Rec: Oven Fries ...

Oven Fries from Cook's Illustrated Light Recipes spring 2008

3 russet potatoes (8oz each), scrubbed, each cut lengthwise into 10-12 even wedges.
1/4 cup plus 1 tsp vegetable or peanut oil
table salt and ground black pepper

1. adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Place potatoes in large bowl, cover with hot tap water, and let soak for 10 min. Meanwhile, coat 18x12" heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet with 1/4 cup of oil and sprinkle evenly with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and set aside.

2. drain potatoes. spread them out on triple layer of paper towels and pat dry thoroughly with additional paper towels. in bowl, toss dried potatoes with remaining tsp of oil.

3. arrange potatoes in single layer on prepared baking sheet and cover tightly with foil. bake for 5 min, then remove foil and continue to bake until bottoms of potatoes are spotty golden brown, 15-20 min, rotating baking sheet after 10 min.

4. scrape potatoes loose from pan with metal spatula, then flip over each wedge using tongs, keeping them in single layer. continue to bake until golden and crisp, 7-10 min longer, rotating pan as needed if browning unevenly. spread potatoes out over paper towels to drain briefly, discarding oil left on baking sheet. season with additional salt and pepper to taste. serve hot. serves 4.

 
Tried it last night. I mixed white truffle oil, about 1 1/2 t. to 1/2 cup canola oil.

I liked it a lot. Might try it a little stronger next time. H said he really didn't care, one way or another but thought they were a little tougher on the outside. I think that's because I cut them thinner. Too many variables at once.

I follow the Wildwoods method. They are really dry before they go into the oil. I soak them for at least 20 minutes. This is one thing I haven't changed.

Dinner was Dijon-rubbed pork tenderloin with tarragon cream sauce, truffly fries and julienne saute of red peppers, fennel, red onion and zucchini. I wouldn't normally serve the same shape as the fries but it was just us. Another good and simple dinner.

I may try a different pan (actually 2 pans now as H eats so much of them) without a dark surface and crank up the heat.

 
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