The Greatest Crispy Roasted Oven Fries Of All Time

by Caitlin

Who doesn't love a great french fry?

Communists, obviously.

(Are communist jokes getting old? What's the new cool thing all the kids are saying? Maybe we should start subbing hipsters for communists? I mean, hipsters probably ARE too cool for fries, seeing as fries are so pedestrian, what with them being available to the masses and all.)

Regular fries are clearly not the healthiest choice, and regular roasted potatoes and oven fries just don't seem to cut it. Too crunchy, too soggy, strange texture, not that tasty? Friends, lament the lack of of quasi-healthy, delicious homecooked fries no more! Caitlin to the rescue! Actually, it's Cook's Illustrated to the rescue.

There is a recipe, but the key here is the technique.

First, you want to blanch your potatoes (after you cut them into the desired shape). This will help get the texture just right (say goodbye to gummy and starchy). You don't want them too soft -- the middle should still resist the tip of a knife -- as you need them to hold their shape for step two.

Which brings me to step two: After blanching, you'll drain them then toss them roughly with salt and olive oil.

In Cook's Illustrated's own words: "Parcooking was the key to our ideal crisp roasted potato recipe. Gently simmering sliced rounds drew starch and sugar to the surface. In the oven, the starch and sugar hardened into a crisp shell. Tossing the parcooked rounds with olive oil and salt created a rough surface, speeding evaporation and making the crusts even crispier. Yukon Golds had enough moisture to give us the creamy interior we wanted in our roasted potatoes recipe."

Behold!

 

The photos don't do these potatoes justice, and crispy bits are the best part! (Photos: Me.)

Here's the recipe. You can do it either in fry shape or roasted potato shape or sliced rounds or whatever you choose. Yukon Golds do seem to make for the best results here, but the good news is that they come in all shapes in sizes. We've used small baby yukon golds cut in half, or large yukons cut into fry shape. We have also used other kinds of potatoes, and we never pay much attention to the actual amount of salt, oil, and potatoes. As I said, it's the technique that's important (but the recipe is definitely a great place to get started).

Variations: add some mustard, vinegar, or fresh herbs like rosemary.

Sure, this is white potatoes and olive oil we're talking about so it's not exactly low fat diet food. But I personally believe that diet is a four letter word, olive oil is good for you, and potatoes are a whole food, so this isn't all bad. And they're so good. So so good.

Have you been struggling with oven fries? Have you tried this technique?

Comments

[Christy]

I haven't tried this, but I think that I'm going to try it this weekend. I can't wait until my subscription to Cook's Illustrated starts - I've never had something from CI turn out badly.

[Molly]

I read this and then made them for dinner tonight. Perfect. My husband called them the best homemade fries he's ever eaten. Love Cook's Illustrated. Thanks for sharing!

[Caitlin]

Christy, I'm with you. I definitely trust CI!

Molly, That's awesome! This made my morning. So glad you and your husband liked them!

[Duncan Hannah]

Shapes? You cut them into shapes first? What shapes? Elephants? Sailboats? Do some shapes work better than others? I would think that 'lifesaver' shape would work great. But then you have that whole doughnuts hole issue to deal with.

BTW, communist jokes never get old. So these two communists were sitting in a bar....

Love,
Dad

[Jenn S.]

Do you blanch them and THEN put them in the pot to boil? Or does blanching skip that step??

[Caitlin]

Hi Jenn,
Thanks for stopping by!
The blanching and the boiling are the same thing.
If you click on the link to the recipe it will give you specific step by step instructions.
Hope this helps!
-Caitlin

[Jenn S.]

Thanks!

[Val]

Where's the link for recipe?!?! Thanks

[Caitlin]

Hi Val,
Right under the picture, the word "recipe" is bolded, and that's the link.

And just in case: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/COOKS-ILLUSTRATED-CRISP-ROASTED-POTATOES-50076878

Let me know how they go!
Caitlin