Favorite method for baked potato fries/wedges

[infernooo]

Hi folks!

As per the title, what is your tried and tested method for producing oven baked/roasted wedges or chips?

Soak & Rinse? Air Dry?

Parboil?

Brine?

Salt before?

Hot oil or just toss/spray/brush with oil?

Broil/Convection/Traditional (aka static aka conventional aka non fan forced)

Wire rack (more circulation/surface area exposed to heat) or oven tray?

Flip during cooking?

Skin on/off?

Starchy? Waxy?

Thick/thin? Fluffy centre or longer cook so mostly crust?

High/Low Heat?

Long/Slow Cook?

Oil of Choice?

Condiment of Choice?

Following are what I believe to be the pros and cons of each of these... in addition to the questions above, feel free to add advice, your own techniques or other variables you

think I may have missed that are important.

Soak & Rinse? Air Dry?

Pros: Less starch, possibly resulting in crispier exterior

Cons: Extra steps involved, air drying may mean having to start preparation the day before, could possibly leach out some of the potato flavour or waterlog causing soggy innards

Parboil?

Pros: Quicker overall cooking time, possibly crisper exterior due to "roughed up bits" (larger surface area)

Cons: Could possibly leach out some of the potato flavour or waterlog causing soggy innards

Brine?

Pros: Seasoning is distributed into the potato moreso than sprinkling on the surface, greater depth of flavour

Cons: Could end up too salty due to moisture loss when roasting, salt may draw too much liquid out causing soggy exterior?

Salt before? During? After?

Pros: When they come out of the oven they are ready to go, salt may penetrate whilst cooking to enhance depth of flavour rather than just surface salt

Cons: Could end up too salty due to moisture loss when roasting, salt may draw too much liquid out causing soggy exterior?

Hot oil or just toss/spray/brush with oil?

Pros: Hot oil can result in extra crispness

Cons: Extra step of heating up oil, danger of splattering hot oil

Broil/Convection/Traditional (aka static aka conventional aka non fan forced)

Pros: Broiling may crisp up exterior if you are not getting the colour/texture you are after without overdrying the centers, fan forced will result in shorter cooking times

Cons: Broiling you have to watch to avoid burning, conventional (non fan forced) may result in longer cooking times as surface moisture is not evaporated as quickly as in fan forced

Wire rack (more circulation/surface area exposed to heat) or oven tray?

Pros: Better chance of crisping all over due to more exposure of surface to the air, no need to flip during cooking

Cons: Possible sticking to wire rack, messier to clean up, oil may drip through wire onto tray below

Flip during cooking?

Pros: More consistent cooking, better crisping of surface

Cons: Longer cooking due to opening oven, more work, salt can fall off

Skin on/off?

Pros: More nutritious, more flavour, crispier

Cons: Some people dislike skins

Starchy? Waxy?

Pros: Starchy are lighter and fluffier, waxy have a good amount of solid potato centre

Cons: Starchy can lack substance due to feathery interior, waxy can some times have issues crisping

Thick/thin? Fluffy centre or longer cook so mostly crust?

Pros: Thin results in very crisp, thick allows for a good amount of solid potato centre

Cons: Thin results in mostly crispy potato, not much soft interior, longer cooking time

Shape?

Pros: Wedge shape has good ratio of surface to interior

Cons: Chips can lack interior potato content

High/Low Heat?

Pros: High heat allows quick cooking with crisp crust and good amount of potatoey interior, low heat allows more control of timing for serving

Cons: Possible over browning for high heat, low heat may dry out resulting in too much crust, not enough potatoey interior

Long/Slow Cook?

Pros: Same as for high/low heat

Cons: Same as for high/low heat

Ghee (Clarified butter)

Pros: Nice flavour, good browning potential

Cons: Butter flavour doesn't always go well with condiments (e.g. ketchup), saturated fat

Vegetable Oil

Pros: Nice neutral flavour that goes well with all condiments

Cons: Less efficient at browning

Duck Fat

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, flavour may not go well with all condiments

Goose Fat

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, flavour may not go well with all condiments

Chicken Fat

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, flavour may not go well with all condiments, some people may not appreciate flavour

Dripping/Tallow (Beef Fat)

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, some people may not appreciate flavour

Lard (Pork Fat)

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, some people may not appreciate flavour

Bacon Fat

Pros: Excellent browning/crisping and flavour

Cons: Higher saturated fat than most vegetable oils, flavour may not go well with all condiments, may end up too salty if not careful

Nonstick Spray:

Pros: Less fat needed, convenient

Cons: Less crispy result usually and crispness appears to subside quite quickly.

Eggwhite/Cornstarch/Dry Spice Mix:

Pros: Healthy

Cons: Less crispy result usually and crispness appears to subside very quickly

Condiments:

Sour Cream/Yogurt/Cream Cheese + Sweet Chilli Sauce

Salt

Chicken Salt

Salt + Vinegar

Tomato Ketchup

Honey Mustard

Ranch

Thousand Island

[Fat Guy]

I make these all the time and have never even considered most of these issues, so this discussion may lead to some interesting results. My normal procedure, however, is as follows:

Preheat oven to 400.

Slice russet potatoes into "steak fry" size (approx 1/4" x 1/2") skin-on pieces (though not every piece will have skin).

Pour some medium-quality extra-virgin olive oil in the middle of a half-sheet pan and spread it around with fingertips or a wadded up piece of paper towel. Spray can be used but the oil in commercial sprays is typically inferior in flavor. The Misto device is effective but probably unnecessary.

Lay the wedges out on the half-sheet pan and brush the tops with olive oil, using either oily fingers, a brush or same paper towel.

Cook about 30 minutes with convection off.

After about the first 20 minutes, pull the sheet pan out and, using a spatula or tongs, turn each piece over. I use a fish turner and a spoon. Tongs work quicker but can rip the potatoes.

Then, about 10 minutes later, when a little exterior color is starting to show, turn convection on.

They'll generally be done 10-20 minutes later depending on the oven and the size of the cuts.

Transfer to a metal bowl, sprinkle with salt, toss.

[Tri2Cook]

I'm going to watch this one with interest because I've never got results with oven fries that made it seem a better option than deep frying. Then again, I've never put a huge amount of effort into it either so it will be interesting seeing what those who have say on the matter.

[Fat Guy]

You get better results with deep frying. And if you're in a commercial environment where there's always a deep-fat fryer running anyway, there's no great reason (other than perhaps dietary) to consider oven fries.

But what you can get with oven fries (as we call them in our household) is pretty good results in a home kitchen without 1- heating up a deep fryer or pot of oil, 2- wasting or being stuck with a gallon of vegetable oil, 3- making a huge mess, 4- having vaporized grease collect on all your light fixtures, and 5- needing to worry a whole lot about safety if you have children or incompetent adults around.

[Tri2Cook]

Sounds like a good list of reasons to me.

[heidih]

I use the same standard method as Fat Guy, but I do not have a convection oven. I am thinking that either starting them on a mesh type rack (so as not to have to fish them out between rungs on a regular rack) or putting on the rack at the turning point might aid the crisping because it might allow heat circulation on all sides. Anyone else do this?

[David A. Goldfarb]

I also use pretty much the same method as Fat Guy, but if I have duck fat on hand, I prefer duck fat to olive oil.

Edited June 28, 2009 by David A. Goldfarb (log)

[nickrey]

Many of these issues are addressed in eGullet cook off 45 on this link

[Fat Guy]

I followed that topic and my memory is that I only saw a few posts mentioning oven fries, without this sort of detailed analysis. But maybe I missed something. If so, can you point to some specific posts?

[Emily_R]

Hard to imagine given such a comprehensive list, but my one absolute-must, that changed my whole oven fry experience, is not on there! Reynolds Nonstick Foil! Prior to it, I had to completely drench the potatoes in oil to avoid them sticking badly to the pan, and when they stuck I lost the crust I was working so hard to develop -- not to mention that adding so much oil at least partially defeated my desire to have them be healthier than french fries. The nonstick foil is amazing -- I can use very little oil and still get a great crisp on them.

[nickrey]

I followed that topic and my memory is that I only saw a few posts mentioning oven fries, without this sort of detailed analysis. But maybe I missed something. If so, can you point to some specific posts?

←

You are quite right, "many" is too strong. Reading back through the topic, the discussion on oven fries was more in terms of absorption of the oil and whether it defeated one of the reasons many people cite for using this technique, which is to reduce the overall amount of fat.

What we can likely take from that thread in addition to this is some of the concepts of multiple cooking, which infernooo covered in part with the comment on par boiling.

The technique that is used in Blumenthal's triple cooking of chips involves going beyond par boiling to fully boiling the potatoes such that they are cooked through prior to placing them in a refrigerator to remove moisture from the surface while coalescing the potato back into a more manageable solid form. These are then cooked a second and third time via deep frying.

Has anyone tried this technique with oven frying instead of deep frying? Presumably you could significantly increase the oven temperature in order to crisp and brown the outside while concurrently reheating the inside, rather than cooking it from scratch.

Edited June 28, 2009 by nickrey (log)

[nickrey]

I tried it out with a Pontiac potato, which is one that I find works well with deep frying.

The potatoes were peeled, sliced into equal sized chips and then cooked in salted boiling water for around fifteen minutes.

They were then removed from the water and placed on a wire rack in the fridge to cool and dry for two and a half hours.

The cooking was done in a 250C (482F) fan-forced oven until brown (around 15 to 20 minutes). The oven was pre-heated and the rack with the chips on it was placed on a pizza stone that had been in the oven while it was coming up to temperature. The chips were turned during cooking to make the cooking more even.

The four chips were (L to R)

no treatment ----- sprayed with olive oil ----- dredged through olive oil ----- dredged through duck fat.

When broken open, they looked like this:

They were all sprinkled with sea salt and we then tasted them.

All the chips were cooked through and the potato inside was creamy. All the oil treated chips had a noticeable crunch on the outside. The one without oil was solid but not as crunchy as the others.

None of the chips, perhaps apart from the one with duck fat, tasted particularly "oily or fatty." The lack of a fat sheen on them supports this.

The order of preference in terms of eating for both my wife and myself was:

1. dredged in olive oil

2. sprayed with olive oil

3. dredged in duck fat

4. no treatment.

In summary, they were very passable chips and better than many examples of fried chips that we have bought as take away (soggy, fatty). They tasted not only more healthier but were also more appealing to eat.

The chips were nowhere near the taste experience of triple cooked fried chips, but I think this was to be expected.

[Fat Guy]

I tried it out with a Pontiac potato

That's a red potato?

[nickrey]

I tried it out with a Pontiac potato

That's a red potato?

←

Post late last night I checked the packaging, it was actually a sebago.

I know from watching "In search of perfection," different potatoes have different outcomes for deep fried chips. Can the same be said for oven fries?

This was included infernooo's original list as "starchy or waxy." Heston Blumenthal proposed that it came down to moisture content: What type of potato works best?

Edited June 28, 2009 by nickrey (log)

[infernooo]

I tried it out with a Pontiac potato

That's a red potato?

←

A pink to red smooth skin and a creamy yellow flesh. Not too sure how much the local version is changed in translation from what you would have.

I know from watching "In search of perfection," different potatoes have different outcomes for deep fried chips. Can the same be said for oven fries?

This was included infernooo's original list as "starchy or waxy." Heston Blumenthal proposed that it came down to moisture content: What type of potato works best?

←

There definitely is a difference even in oven fries/wedges. I actually think pontiacs don't turn out as well as some others from testing I have done. I am going to repeat the testing before I can say definitively, but from memory, pontiacs actually didn't fare too well in my tests (desiree did slightly better)

[nickrey]

Had to edit my post (we must have been typing at the same time), it was actually a sebago.

There definitely is a difference even in oven fries/wedges. I actually think pontiacs don't turn out as well as some others from testing I have done. I am going to repeat the testing before I can say definitively, but from memory, pontiacs actually didn't fare too well in my tests (desiree did slightly better)

←

Edited June 28, 2009 by nickrey (log)

[JAZ]

Hard to imagine given such a comprehensive list, but my one absolute-must, that changed my whole oven fry experience, is not on there! Reynolds Nonstick Foil! Prior to it, I had to completely drench the potatoes in oil to avoid them sticking badly to the pan, and when they stuck I lost the crust I was working so hard to develop -- not to mention that adding so much oil at least partially defeated my desire to have them be healthier than french fries. The nonstick foil is amazing -- I can use very little oil and still get a great crisp on them.

←

Although I don't make oven fries, I do roast red (waxy) potatoes, and I've found the best trick to keep them from sticking is just to let them roast until the side that's on the sheet pan is done enough to release by itself. When I try to turn them too soon, they stick, but if I'm just patient and wait until they're deep golden brown, they're easy to get out of the pan. I do toss them with oil, but I wouldn't say that I drench them.

Maybe this wouldn't work as well with starchier potatoes like russets, though.

[Fat Guy]

That's an important bit of universal cooking advice that a lot of people don't seem to have down: many foods will release themselves, or become much easier to release, if you just give them time.

[Stephanie Brim]

I did this by accident once with a few quartered a-size new potatoes. We were supposed to have my spicy garlic potatoes for our grill night and I...er...left them in the oven a bit too long. The result: spicy garlic potato wedges. Crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside.

My weapon of choice is always olive oil. Oven is always on 400 degrees. The potatoes are tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, then thrown on a sheet pan in one layer for as long as it takes for the outside to crisp up...usually about 30-40 minutes, depending on the size of the wedges.

One thing I've learned is to not oversalt the potatoes like I did the first time, and to test them every once in a while for doneness instead of relying on the clock.

[Lisa Shock]

I like to toss the wedges with oil, olive or canola, in a bowl with Old Bay and some salt, just to get everything coated quickly. I then just spread on a pan and bake, no turning.

I make a red-cooked potato (occasionally adding other root veggies) by tossing with a glug of oil and a couple tablespoons of hoisin sauce. I mix the oil and hoisin first, then pour it into a pan and turn once halfway through, since you get a crispy glaze on the bottom. If the potatoes are cut fairly large and/or I have time, I will turn 3-4 times each time making sure to get a different side down on the pan.

[infernooo]

Had to edit my post (we must have been typing at the same time), it was actually a sebago.

There definitely is a difference even in oven fries/wedges. I actually think pontiacs don't turn out as well as some others from testing I have done. I am going to repeat the testing before I can say definitively, but from memory, pontiacs actually didn't fare too well in my tests (desiree did slightly better)

←

←

ahhh that makes much more sense. Sebagos work brilliantly. I would imagine if it was a pontiac it would not have turned out nearly as well.

[JSD]

I like mine to be very brown and crunchy. Most people would think they are too browned. Whatever.

I use a hot oven, 400 to 450, depending if I'm using it for anything else. I cut russets into long wedges with the skin left on. I mix some olive oil, salt and a good amount of cayenne, and pour this on the potatoes which I've put on a lipped baking sheet. Make sure the potato wedges are well coated. Then I arrange the wedges so the skin side is down, and the cut sides are up. Now I wait until they are well browned and somewhat crunchy. I serve them with ketchup.

[nickrey]

Next experiment.

Using Sebago potatoes again.

Boiled till fully cooked again, this time in slightly more salty water. Cooled and dried in the fridge for a few hours.

Dredged in olive oil.

On the premise that if they are cooked, they need more intense heat to crunch up the outside rather than circulated heat to cook through, I decided to cook them under the griller (broiler) on full heat, turning in the middle of cooking to brown both sides.

The result was actually better than last night's effort. Still not as good as deep fried but in essence it tasted like sort of a crispy skinned mashed potato. Would most likely be a definite winner with kids.

Thinking about modifications, I'd probably cook in less salty water and use sea salt on the outside to give a bit of textural variation.

This is a picture of the chips:

[MelissaH]

Next experiment.

Using Sebago potatoes again.

Boiled till fully cooked again, this time in slightly more salty water. Cooled and dried in the fridge for a few hours.

Dredged in olive oil.

On the premise that if they are cooked, they need more intense heat to crunch up the outside rather than circulated heat to cook through, I decided to cook them under the griller (broiler) on full heat, turning in the middle of cooking to brown both sides.

←

This seems to be a variation of the Fine Cooking smashed roasted potatoes, where you boil small potatoes till they're done, smash them, drizzle with oil and salt (and maybe some other flavoring) and then put in a very hot oven (convection if you've got it) to crisp the outside at the end. I know there have been discussions about modifications for stovetop crisping somewhere.

MelissaH

[DTBarton]

I make oven fries a lot. I just spray the foil with cooking spray and don't have a sticking problem. I cut the potatoes to the size I want, shake them in a plastic bag with a little peanut oil and stack them up on the foil in a crosshatch pattern with space between each fry trying to expose as much surface area to the heat as possible. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put in a 400 degree oven until the potatoes are cooked and hit them with the broiler until they brown some. You get a nice mix of textures and colors. The top layer is browner and crisper than the bottom layer. As good as deep fried? No, but very tasty and easy.