Oven Baked Fries

Methods:

1) Peel and mince garlic. Heat up oil slightly in a small saucepan and add in garlic. Under medium heat, stir garlic occasionally until it is fragrant and the oil is infused with garlic smell, about 1 minute. Filter out the garlic.

2) Wash and cut potatoes lengthwise into even sized wedges (refer to note 1). Cover with and soak in water for 5 minutes to prevent them from turning dark. Rinse and pat dry with kitchen towel. Place on a steaming rack, cover with aluminum foil and steam for 10-15 minutes (refer to note 2).

3) Preheat oven to 220°C.

4) Line a baking tray with non stick baking paper/ parchment paper. Brush some garlic infused oil on the paper.

5) Combine salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and remaining garlic infused oil in a mixing bowl. Add in the steamed potato wedges and toss well to coat. (refer to note 3 and 4).

6) Arrange wedges in a single layer on the prepared baking tray. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 220°C until golden brown and crisp. Flip halfway through cooking. Rotate the baking tray once to ensure even browning. (refer to note 6).

7) After baking, transfer the fries to a paper towel lined plate to absorb the grease. Serve warm with dipping sauce.

Notes:

1) For medium sized potatoes (about 170g), cut into 6 wedges.

2) Lay the wedges on a single layer on the steaming rack. I took a shortcut by stacking up the wedges on the stainless steel plate (as shown in the photo) and later realized that some parts were not properly steamed. Lesson learned! If you stack up the wedges, remember to rearrange them halfway during steaming.

3) Use your hands to toss for even distribution of the seasonings. Of course, wash your hands before doing this step. Nobody likes germs!

4) If the steamed wedges are wet, pat dry with kitchen towel before tossing.

5) Do not discard your cooked garlic. It can be used for other cooking purposes like stir-fry or pasta dish.

6) I put my wedges with skin facing bottom. Then I just rotated the baking tray 180 degrees without having to flip the wedges. Alternatively, you can lay the wedges on a single layer and flip once with a spatula.

7) You can experiment with chili powder or hot paprika if you want to have more kick for these fries. For kids who are not ready for paprika and garlic powder, you can omit them. It works equally well too.