With a crispy outside, and soft-fluffy inside, these Crispy French Fries are oven-baked, and not fried – so you can feel good about eating them!
French Fries are my favorite food. As a kid, we would have French Fries with dinner at least 3 times a week (they are my Dads favorite too), and when I wanted a late night snack, I would call up my grandpa, Bobby, who just lived down the street, and he would bring me a big, heaping plate of crispy, homemade french fries! Yes, I understand that I am, and was, very spoiled, but my love of French Fries has not changed. Come to think of it, my Grandma had the same love as French Fries as I do, except, she would always take mushy white bread, and make hers a sandwich, smothered with white vinegar. Weird, right? I still add the white vinegar to my fries now and again, but I don’t do the sandwich!
Back to French Fries…. When it comes to fries, we all know that crispy is best. But to get that crispiness, it usually requires the potatoes to take a nice, long swim in oil, or if you make fries like my Mom, and Grandpa, in a big ‘ol pot of lard!
In my search for a healthier version of Mom and Bobby’s famous (well, famous in our family) French Fries, I decided to bake my fries. The first few batches didn’t come out as planned, but, with my true love of French Fries, I ate them, and tried again, and again, and again – until I found this recipe. I have stuck with this recipe, and these French Fries outshine all others with their crispy outside, and light fluffy inside. Best of all, they don’t get soggy when they cool down, like their deep-fried counterparts, so if you want to save them, and reheat, you can!
To make these fries extra crispy, the secret is to soak the potatoes in cold water for at least 30 minutes before baking. This is something that my Grandpa did for years, and years, and he swears is the key to his perfect French Fries. Soaking the potatoes in cold water releases some of the starch in the potatoes, which makes for crispier French Fries. The next trick to make sure that the potatoes don’t stick to your pan, and get as crispy as possible, is to line your baking sheet with parchment paper.
The amount of potatoes you use depends on how many fries you want to make. If you’re baking fries just for you, I’d use 1 large potato. If you’re making the fries as a side dish for a family, use 1 medium potato per person.
Ingredients:
2 lbs potatoes
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Wash potatoes, and cut into french fries.
Place potatoes in a large bowl of cold water and let soak for 30 minutes.
Drain water off of potatoes, and in the same bowl, add olive oil and toss.
Pour potatoes onto a baking sheet in an even layer and season with salt and pepper.
Bake for 1 hour, rotating pan half way through cooking. Serve right away.
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