Oven Fries Made The Healthy Way

Have you ever tried to cook something and every time you made it you wish you hadn't. Well that was the case with me and oven fries until I was reading an old book that told how Thomas Jefferson had them made and served in the White House in 1802. And apparently they were made very close to the way we make them here. Jefferson made them with both regular potatoes and sweet potatoes.

And here I'm going to share with you the secret to making oven fries perfect each and every time and I promise you they will turn out perfect every time. The secret to making perfect oven fries each and every time is to soak the cut up potatoes in ice water for thirty minutes before you cook them. This soaking in ice water pulls out a lot of the starch and water and will make them steam less and get more crisp in the oven. It's very important that it be ice water. I put the potato wedges in a large metal bowl and then I cover them with crushed ice and water.

The perfect oven fry should be golden and crisp on the outside and fluffy in the middle. If you follow this recipe you'll end up with the perfect oven fries each and every time. Another secret of making the perfect oven fries is to cut your potatoes up into the same size pieces. If you do this the potatoes will cook evenly and you and every one who eats them will love them. To do this I usually cut my potatoes in half lengthwise and then I slice each potato half in four to six pieces depending on how big the potato is.

For Your Oven Fries You Will Need

1. About One Large Potato For Each Person.

2. A Bowl Of Water With Lots Of Ice Cubes In The Water.

3. Olive Oil.

4. Parchment Paper.

5. Baking Pan.

Be sure to wash your potatoes thoroughly under cold running water before you cut them up. It would not hurt to give them a good scrub with a vegetable brush to get rid of any grit or dirt. Now cut your potatoes up into thin even slices like in the photo of oven fries above. You want all the potato pieces to be about the same size. If you do this the potatoes will cook evenly.

Once you get all of your potatoes cut up put them into the ice water for at least 30 minutes. You want a lot of ice in the water so the potatoes will get very cold and a lot of the starch will be pulled out of your potatoes. You'll find that when you do this that the potatoes will crisp up better in the oven.

You want to preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line the baking sheet with the parchment paper. The new paper that has tin foil on one side and parchment paper on the other side is the perfect paper to cook your oven fries on. I can not stress enough how important it is to have the oven at 400 degrees before you put your potatoes into the oven.

Once the potatoes have been in their ice bath for at least thirty minutes take them out and quickly dry them off with paper towels. Put them in the bowl and toss them with some olive oil. Put the potato slices out on the parchment paper and then put the pan into the oven.

I sprinkle my oven fries with the orange seasoning salt and then I bake them in the 400 degree oven until they are brown on one side and then I flip them over with a spatula and brown them on the other side. If you don't line your pan with baking paper be sure to spray your baking pan with vegetable cooking spray.

I bet you will be really surprised when you try these oven fries. I know I was. Just simply amazed at how golden and crisp they were on the outside and fluffy in the middles. The reason homemade oven fries usually fail is because of all the starch and water in them and with out removing some of it with the ice water bath the potatoes steam to much in the oven and get soggy and soft. But with the ice water bath the starch and a lot of the water is removed and you get perfect oven fries.

I have also found that its best to cook the oven fries on the bottom rack in the oven. If you do all these things I guarantee you that your oven fries will turn out perfect every time. I know that mine always do. If you don't have an oven thermometer in your oven you should buy one that hangs from the rack in your oven because home ovens are often off from the dial by as much as 25 to 50 degrees.

Sometimes I'll dice up an onion very fine and sprinkle the onion over the home fries when I cook them. This gives you a lot of extra flavor and I really enjoy them that way.I have also cooked onions and bell peppers separately and then sprinkled them over my home fries before I serve them. They are really great served with omelets for breakfast this way. If you make them let me know how they turn out for you.

You can follow the same directions and make really good home fries out of sweet potatoes. Soak your sweet potato home fries in the ice water bath a little longer than you do your regular potatoes. I like to make the sweet potato home fries and when they are cooked I sprinkle them well and toss them with brown sugar. They may not be as healthy that way but they are delicious.

I also like to make the sweet potato home fries and when they come out of the oven I sprinkle them with brown sugar and cinnamon and people just rave over them. In case you're wondering you don't use seasoning salt on sweet potatoes. Not unless you want to anyway.

Honey Mustard Dip For Sweet Potato Home Fries

This dip is one of the best things I've ever tasted and it's oh so delicious when you dip your sweet potato home fries in it.

Recipe For Sweet Potato Home Fries Dip

1. One Half Cup Dijon Mustard.

2. One Half Cup Honey.

3. One Teaspoon Ground Sea Salt.

4. One Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper.

5. One Half Teaspoon Ground Cayenne Pepper.

Put all your ingredients into a food processor or blender and mix them together very well. I like to chill my dip overnight in the refrigerator before I serve and use it the next day.

If you make regular home fries or sweet potato home fries they are both a lot healthier for you this way than deep fried in oil. They will also have far fewer calories cooked this way. And the really great thing is that they taste wonderful. Try them and let me know what you think. I really appreciate you reading my Hub Page on Home Fries Made The Healthy Way. Thanks.