incredible olive oil french fries

These are truly incredible.  My seven year old niece was skeptical that I was making fries.  "In the oven?", she asked.  Later she said, "They smell like real fries."  And at dinner, she said they tasted like real fries too.  Then, I knew they were truly good.

Don't worry either, they don't have a distinctly olive oil flavour.  They just taste like utterly fantastic French fries.  Yes, you would pay money for them, and be quite happy about it.  And probably even happier if you watch your pennies, because a sack of potatoes is infinitely cheaper than the cost of soda.

I wish I could tell you that this recipe will make a big greasy mess, and that you have to find a particular kind of oil, and a particular kind of pot.  But you don't.  In fact, not even close.  Unfortunately, you do need a convection oven.  Okay, so there is a hitch.  Honestly though, until now, I have rarely used the convection features on my oven.  There just aren't many baked goods that I prefer burnt on the outside, but raw in the middle.  For fries though, convection is truly perfect.


There are two convection features on my oven, and I have found that the one which circulates the most air takes significantly less time, so not all convection is necessarily created equal.  Essentially, potatoes contain a tonne of moisture which the convection helps to dry out, and crisp up the outside of the potato all at the same time.

What? No time to go to the spa?  Prepare for a steamy potato-like facial upon opening the oven door.  Watch your eyes.

Olive Oil French Fries

Ingredients:
Yukon gold potatoes - enough to not quite fill a cookie sheet
extra virgin olive oil - a couple tablespoons
sea salt

1.  Pre-heat the oven on convection to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cover a cookie sheet in parchment paper, or a silpat (just means a bit of an easier clean up;  I like to spend my time cooking, not cleaning).
2.  Wash, dry, and slice the potatoes (preferably with the peel still on), to a thickness you desire.  I liked about a centimeter thick, give or take.
3.  Place the fries to-be, on the cookie sheet, and spread evenly.  Drizzle with a couple tablespoons of olive oil.  If you're skeptical, you can always add more later.
4.  Place the cookie sheet in the oven, and leave it alone for at least 20 minutes.  Then, check it and carefully turn the fries.  This will help to spread the oil even more.
5.  Keep the fries in the oven until the top begins to look golden brown, then give them another turn.  Put them back in, and continue to bake until they are as crisp and as golden as you like.  This might be 45 minutes - 1 hour.  That's it.
6.  Oh right, sprinkle with salt immediately upon removing from the oven.