If you asked me if I would like to know (a.) who killed JFK; (b.) who made those big head statues on Easter Island; or (c.) how to make sweet potato fries crispy, without hesitation I would pick c. Should announcing this on the INTERNETS embarrass me? Well, don’t you want to know how to make crispier sweet potato fries? Content with soggy fries? I thought so. My secrets, culled from 96,500 Google returns, after the jump.
1. Cut the sweet potatoes into pieces that are roughly the same size
2. Place them in a big bowl
3. Coat with olive oil
4. Add seasoning (salt and sandwich sprinkle); mix
5. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet
6. Place potatoes on the pan in a single layer.
7. Bake at 400 until soft and brown
8. Take pan out of the oven and flip fries
9. Bake at 400 until soft and brown
10. Place the pan in the broiler for 1 minute (watch this closely)
Following these ten steps should yield crispi-er sweet potato fries. I emphasize the ER because in my experience using these methods produces the crispiest BAKED sweet potato I've ever tasted; they are still not as good as frying (Sorry folks, it's a cooking blog, not magic blog. If I could make baked fries taste like fried fries, I'd be on Oprah and she would be rubbing my back and painting my nails).
Things to avoid:
Do not use foil. The fries will stick to the foil and inevitably you will end up chewing a small piece of foil, which is akin to scratching your finger nails down a chalkboard.
Do not use Pam or some other spray butter.
Do not crowd the pan.
Make sure to season fries. I use Penzy’s Sandwich Sprinkle. This mixture of spices is a cook’s fairy dust.
