Baked French Fries

The golden strips of yumminess

It is still undetermined who really introduced French Fries to the world, with both the Belgians and the French claiming they did, respectively.

According to the Belgians, they were frying up potatoes as early as the 17th century. It was supposedly done in the Meuse Valley between Dinant and Liège, where, when the rivers froze up and they could not get fish to fry, which was their usual staple meal, they cut up potatoes into long thin strips and fried them up instead.

The French story on the other hand involves a French army medical officer Antoine-Augustine Parmentier, who very famously campaigned for the potato as a potential food source throughout France and parts of Europe. Once the potato was accepted, its popularity skyrocketed, and within a short span of time, the French were soon making fries. Of course, it is unknown if they invented it or discovered it!

Whatever the case, today, we owe the French for making the French Fry so popular as it was they that brought it to America and Britain. After that the Americans introduced it to the rest of the world through their fast food chains.

While I love French Fries, I try and avoid frying them in oil when I make them at home. So, I bake them instead. This is one of my simple variations. Of course, you can create your own, using different herbs and spices. You can also just bake them plain with a little salt. It’s all up to your imagination!

Preheat your oven to gas mark 6.

Wash, peel and cut the potatoes into strips. I used my food processor with the French Fry gadget to do this.

On a baking pan, spread wax paper and grease it. Spread the fries on it evenly.

 

Now sprinkle the oil and mix. Ensure that all the fries are well coated. Then sprinkle the herbs and salt and mix again to ensure all the fries are well coated.

Place them in the preheated oven and bake until the fries are done. This should take around 20 to 35 minutes. Depending on the oven, the time could be shorter or longer. Just keep checking every 5 minutes or so by pricking a fry with a toothpick to see whether its done.

When you take them out of the oven, they'll be sizzling hot and may tend to stick to the wax paper. Wait till they cool down a bit, because then they will be easier to remove. 

It's always better to make these just before you are ready to serve, because if kept out longer, they may become soggy. Enjoy!