Oven Baked Fries (Blue Ribbon)

Baked French Fries are one of my family's all-time favourites. My kids love oven fries even more than the store bought fries. Russet potatoes are the gold standard for French fries in general. They are especially suitable for baked fries, because the skins are thicker and dryer than the skins of other potatoes, so they crisp up nicely in the oven.

How to Make Oven French Fries Crispy:
As deep fried french fries are often double fried (once at a lower temp, once at a higher temp to crisp) I've found the same thing works magically for oven fries. You can make oven French fries so good and crispy.

SOAK: Soak the potatoes in cold water after cutting for at least 30 minutes. This step removes a lot of starch (you will see it in the bowl after you remove them) resulting in a crispier French fry.

DRY: This is really important. Make sure you dry them well so they don't steam and get soft when they bake. I spin them in my salad spinner and then dab in a kitchen towel.

OIL and SEASON: Use parchment paper to keep them from sticking and oil to make them crisp. While these are a version of healthy fries, if you want them to crisp, you will still need to be generous with the oil.

TWO TEMP COOKING: This easy technique allows the fries to bake perfectly crispy. Simply bake at 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5) for a little bit to cook and then turn up the heat to really crisp them up.

Potatoes:
4 large baking potatoes, cut into strips
2-3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. Seasoned Sea Salt or suggested seasonings

Suggested Seasonings:
1 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, finely grated
¼ tsp. sea salt
¼ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. paprika
¼ tsp. black pepper, freshly cracked

Preheat an oven to 450°F (230°C/210°C fan, Gas Mark 8). Spray a foil-lined baking sheet with cooking spray if you are using a regular cookie sheet. I use an Aire Gourmet baking sheet, and if you like these fries, it is worth the investment of buying one. Because olive oil does not smoke at high temperatures when using this baking sheet, and the fries are a gorgeous golden brown. (I prefer to use parchment paper, which I don't grease, and it makes the removal of the fries a snap to prepare from oven to serving bowl.)

Soak the Potatoes:
After the potatoes are peeled and sliced, place them in a bowl of water with about two cups of ice cubes. Soak for at least 30 minutes then pat dry with paper towels.

Coat the Potatoes:
Place all of the dry ingredients in a plastic bag. Add potatoes tossing and kneading lightly to coat. Drizzle with one Tbsp. of olive oil. Tossing and kneading again to coat.

Arrange potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes. Turn the oven up to 425°F (220°C/200°C fan, Gas Mark 7) and cook until golden, about 20-25 minutes more.

There is no need to turn potatoes during cooking. Be sure to check them often to see how they are doing. Remove any potatoes that are done into a paper towel-lined bowl. Season with sea salt.

Makes 4 servings.

Making Potato Wedges:
Prepare your potatoes as you would for oven fries, except cut your potatoes into wedges and, follow the rest of the steps in the recipe. When it comes time to bake the wedges, put them on parchment paper to bake and allow a few minutes extra to make sure they are done. No need to turn during baking.

Leftovers with Eggs:
Don't throw out the leftover fries, or wedges. Wrap them in tinfoil and refrigerate. Leftover fries and wedges make great tasting eggs. Chop up the leftover fries or wedges and lightly brown them in a little olive oil, turn them over and grate a little cheese over the hot potatoes. I use about 1 Tbsp. sharp cheddar. Push the potatoes to the side of the skillet and add two eggs, scramble them and gently fold into the potatoes, cook a minute and flip them over, cook one minute more and turn out onto a plate. Add salt and pepper if desired.