Nothing better than a side of baked sweet potato fries that are warm, crispy, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Try these Baked Sweet Potato Fries in Beef Tallow and you’ll be hooked!
When I first experimented with baked sweet potato fries, I made up a batch for dinner, and made the #1 biggest mistake: they weren’t crispy! They tasted delicious and were as floppy as possible. Even my 2 year-old son was disappointed! He insisted, “Those aren’t fries!” and broke out in tears. Needless to say, I frantically searched to uncover the secret to getting crispy fries every time.
Secrets to Baking CRISPY Sweet Potato Fries
Soak for 30 minutes and dry thoroughly.
Soaking the sweet potatoes for 30 minutes helps draw out starch from within the potatoes and is necessary for crispy fries. If you’re short on time, soak the sweet potatoes for at least 10 minutes. After soaking, pat them completely dry to avoid extra moisture on the fries during baking that leads to limp fries.
Place in a single layer.
Place the sweet potato fries in a single layer and be sure not to overcrowd them. This lets the air circulate around the them, and allows moisture from within the sweet potato to escape, rather than trapping it between fries. Sweet potato cubes and wedges hold their shape better than thin fries but still crisp up best with a small space between each one.
Don’t let the oil pool on the baking sheet.
Pooling oil happens when baking sheets are a bit warped and any excess oil drips to one corner of the pan. If you find a pool of liquid tallow, carefully remove the baking sheet from the oven for a moment and dab up the extra moisture with paper towels. Having enough oil on each fry helps create a beautiful, golden brown surface, but pooling oil will boil the sweet potatoes instead of crisp them up.
Turn up the heat and don’t flip the sweet potato fries.
Before the sweet potatoes are fully tender, turn up the heat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit until the sweet potato fries become golden brown. Keep a close eye on your fries during this time to ensure they do not burn. I do not recommend flipping the fries, as I have found that they take much longer to become crispy and golden brown.
Allow the fries to rest for 5 minutes.
Scrape the sweet potato fries off of the pan with a metal spatula and let them cool for 5 minutes. This step is especially important if you are planning to transfer the sweet potatoes to a serving dish. Stacking them on top of each other before they have cooled will create condensation and the crispy fries will go limp. This rest period also helps to lock moisture inside the fries and put a nice crispy texture on the outside.
Using Beef Tallow or Another Oil
I choose grass-fed beef tallow based on its amazing flavor profile that really compliments the sweet potato. Additionally, high quality, grass-fed tallow is loaded with health benefits. Duck fat and lard also work well with the high temperatures involved, and each adds its own flavor.
I have used extra virgin olive oil before, coconut oil, or butter, but these more delicate cooking fats cannot withstand high temperatures, so turn the oven down to 350 degrees F. Avocado oil has also gained recent attention for its ability to withstand high heat, but I only recommend high quality, extra-virgin avocado oil, which has a smoke point of 375-400 degrees F1https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-avocado-oil-a-guide-to-cooking-with-avocado-oil.
I choose not to use highly processed vegetable oils such as canola or soybean oil, and opt instead for high quality cooking fats that pair amazingly with this dish. Not only are vegetable oils treated with high heat and chemicals, but they also lack flavor. If you’re going for the health benefits of sweet potatoes, you might as well power pack them with the health benefits of grass-fed tallow too!
Additionally, if you choose to make your own tallow, it is very inexpensive. If the flavor of the tallow is too strong for you, you can also purify your tallow at home before using it for baking.
How to Cut Sweet Potato Fries
- I don’t use any special equipment for fries, just a simple knife and cutting board. If you make fries often, you may want to purchase a french fry cutter. For a classic french fry, simply cut sweet potatoes into about 1/4 inch strips. Play around with the thickness you like, because thicker and thinner fries will give you a different texture in the final product.
- Another option is cutting sweet potato cubes or wedges with the skin on to switch up the weeknight meal plan. Cutting cubes or wedges saves time during the cutting process, but may increase the bake time as I generally cut them thicker than french fries (about 1/2 inch thickness).
How to Make Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Recommended Materials
- Chef’s Knife (large non-serrated knife)
- Cutting board
- Large bowl
- Baking sheet
- Tin foil or parchment paper (optional for easier clean-up)
Ingredients for Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
2 medium sweet potatoes
3-4 tablespoons grass-fed beef tallow (or other cooking fat)
½ teaspoons sea salt, or to taste
¼ teaspoons black pepper, or to taste
Optional spices and seasonings: cayenne pepper, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, thyme, parsley
Instructions for Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Wash and cut the sweet potatoes into the desired shape. You may wish to peel the sweet potatoes or keep the skin on for added texture.
Rinse and soak them for about 30 minutes in cold water to draw out some of the potato starch.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. (204 degrees C)
Drain and dry the sweet potatoes thoroughly (additional moisture can lead to soggy fries while they’re baking). Place the fries in an even layer onto the baking sheet with space in between each fry to allow for airflow. This may require baking in smaller batches so the fries are not overcrowded.
Melt and drizzle the tallow over the cut sweet potatoes. Alternatively, you can grate cold tallow and sprinkle the shavings evenly over the sweet potatoes. Add seasonings, to taste.
Bake the fries for 8-12 minutes, checking regularly until the fork pierces the sweet potato with only a slight resistance.
Increase the temperature to 450℉ (232℃) for 3-8 minutes, while keeping the fries on the middle rack. Keep a close eye on the fries to ensure they do not burn!
Remove the sweet potato fries from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes. Serve these satisfyingly, crispy sweet potato fries as a great side dish to your favorite meals!
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Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Nothing better than a side of baked sweet potato fries that are warm, crispy, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Try these Baked Sweet Potato Fries in Beef Tallow and you’ll be hooked!
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 3-4 tablespoons grass-fed beef tallow (or other cooking fat)
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- Optional spices and seasonings: cayenne pepper, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, thyme, parsley
Instructions
- Wash and cut the sweet potatoes into 1/4 inch strips.
- Rinse and soak the sweet potatoes for about 30 minutes in cold water to draw out the potato starch.
- Preheat the oven to 400℉ (204℃).
- Drain the sweet potatoes and dry them thoroughly (additional moisture can lead to soggy fries while they’re baking). Place the fries evenly onto the baking sheet with space in between each fry to allow for airflow. This may require baking in smaller batches so the fries are not overcrowded.
- Melt the tallow and drizzle it evenly over the cut sweet potatoes. Alternatively, you can grate cold tallow over the sweet potatoes. Add salt, pepper, and additional seasonings, to taste.
- Bake the sweet potato fries for 8-12 minutes, checking regularly until the fork pierces the sweet potato with only a slight resistance.
- Increase the temperature to 450℉ (232℃) for 3-8 minutes, until golden brown. Check regularly so they do not burn!
- Remove the sweet potato fries from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes. Serve these satisfyingly, crispy baked sweet potato fries as a great side dish to your next meal!
Notes
Store sweet potato fries in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
Reheat leftovers in the oven while it preheats to 400 degrees F or in a sauté pan on the stovetop in a bit of grass-fed tallow.
- 1https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-avocado-oil-a-guide-to-cooking-with-avocado-oil
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