These Baked Crispy Sweet Potato Fries are the perfect snack or pairing with any burger. Crispy (as the name implies), with just the right amount of salt, and a nice kick from some spices. I'd take them over Micky D's any day!
Ever since I became interested in healthy eating (believe it or not, I am really into nutrition and have been for years!), I started searching for healthier 'swaps' for my favorite foods. When sweet potato fries became popular, I was all over it. All. Over. It.
What I didn't realize was that making good crispy sweet potato fries at home is a larger feat than when using regular white potatoes. For the longest time, my sweet potato fries always turned out to be limp, kind of soggy strips of sweet potato. Waa waa waaah.
Then after months of watching me suffer, Vlad, the classically trained Russian chef who rarely ever cooked dinner for us, decided to end my misery by telling me how to get these delicious fries nice and crispy.
The important thing is to use a minimal amount of oil, don't take your fries out of the oven right away, and bake the fries in small batches.
By over soaking your potatoes, the resulting heat ends up steam cooking your fries if you leave them close together, which leaves you disappointingly munching on soggy fries. You want barely enough oil to coat your potatoes, and around a finger widths distance between each fry.
I like to use avocado oil because it is one of the healthiest oils available and it has one of the highest smoking points. If you don't have avocado oil, then use what you have available. I love extra virgin olive oil, despite the low smoking point.
You should also add the spices directly to the oil because it helps ensure the fries are more evenly flavor-coated. I love using a combination of chili pepper and cinnamon, but then again, I am obsessed with the sweet and spicy flavor pairing. If that isn't your thing, go all sweet with a bit of sugar and cinnamon, or even pumpkin spice (trust me on this one)! You can also go savory with a bit of garlic and onion powder or some sea salt and a couple of teaspoons of malt vinegar.
Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Ingredients
- 2 large sweet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 - 3 tablespoons avocado or extra virgin olive oil
- 1 - 1 ½ tablespoons seasoning I used 1 tablespoon cinnamon and ½ tablespoon pepper flakes
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Peel and cut your fries. They should on the thin side but not like shoestring fries. Coat them in cornstarch.
- Toss your oil and seasoning in a plastic bag.
- Put your fries in the bag and shake until fries are evenly coated.
- Line your fries on the baking sheet so they are evenly separated.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the fries and bake for an additional 8 - 10 minutes.
- Crack open the oven and turn off the heat. Leave for an additional 10 - 15 minutes.
- Remove and enjoy!
Sara says
I may be confused. In your article, you say that you're "not against cornstarch or anything, you just don't need it!"--and then it's in your recipe. Please advise.
Amanda says
Great question! That does seem confusing. I wrote the article when I first created the recipe I did not use cornstarch. Later, I updated the recipe after deciding I preferred the texture of the fries better when using the cornstarch, however, I did not get around to updating the post itself to reflect that.
Marie @ Substance of Living says
Amanda,
Baked sweet potato fries are one of our favorite snacks. These look delicious!
Cheers,
Marie
Substance of Living