Ultra Crispy Baked Potato Wedges (2023)

FAQs

How do you crisp potato wedges? ›

Fire up the oven to reheat roasted potatoes

To get those potatoes crisp again, Consumer Reports recommends reheating in a 400-degree oven, covering your potatoes with tin foil until warm, and then removing the cover for a final few minutes to allow the skin to crisp back up.

Why aren't my wedges crispy? To ensure that your homemade potato wedges are extra crunchy once cooked, it's so important to drain them very well after par boiling and then place back into the pot over heat and shake until ALL of the moisture has evaporated.

If you are trying to make potatoes with crispy skin, I don't recommend wrapping the potatoes in aluminum foil for a good baked potato. Wrapping the potatoes will cause the skin of the potato will end up soft instead of that delicious crispy crunch.

Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for a couple of minutes. Transfer to a roasting tray and add a good lug of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss together so all the wedges are coated in the oil then spread out in one layer. Cook in the hot oven for 30 minutes until golden, crisp and cooked through.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and take the potatoes out of the fridge to reach room temperature. Place the potato on a baking sheet or directly on the oven rack to achieve a crispy skin—Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the potato is thoroughly heated.

Soaking peeled, washed, and cut fries in cold water overnight removes excess potato starch, which prevents fries from sticking together and helps achieve maximum crispness.

Potatoes that have too much moisture = soggy. So, what to do is after you've drained them, let them sit for at least 5 minutes and allow the steam to leave the wedges. This is the moisture that we don't want escaping the wedges, which is good.

This is a crucial step - if the wedges are at all wet they will steam in the oven and come out soggy. Place wedges in a large zip lock bag and add 1 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour. Zip the bag up and give it a mix around to completely and evenly coat the wedges.

To make crispy roast potatoes, the temperature of the oven needs to be hot 220°C or 425°F - but if the oven is too hot the potatoes will burn before they crisp up. If the oven temperature is too cold your potatoes will not be crispy.

If you oil them up early, the skins may not turn crispy. The salt, too, can run off the potatoes in the heat. Instead, do a quick oil baste after the potatoes reach 205°F: Remove the pan from the oven. Brush with olive oil (or bacon grease if you have it) and a hefty sprinkle of kosher salt.

Should I poke holes in potatoes before baking? ›

"Yes, it's good to prick them," Smith told Food52. "It pokes holes in the skin, which allows steam to escape. Otherwise, they could explode—it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens every once in a while. The potato is full of water it's trying to turn to steam, or water vapor.

Three wedges is standard, but you might want four or more

And if you don't need that extra long iron, it's possible you can carry a fifth wedge so you have the right wedge no matter where you play.

Remove the potatoes when they are golden and crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. You can pierce a wedge with a fork to see if it's done--the inside should be soft and offer no resistance to the fork. You can top the fries with additional salt or a garnish like chopped chives or parsley.

So if you are serious about your equipment, and want to maintain peak performance, it might make sense to consider swapping out your wedges every 12-36 months depending on how often you play, practice, and the durability of the material.

Soaking Potatoes

The additional step of allowing the peeled, washed and cut potatoes to soak in cold water removes excess potato starch from the outside. This will help with the crisping up of the potatoes when they bake or roast.

Simple: a long, slow cool helps keep things crisp. And your oven can do all the work: first baking your favorite crisp/crunchy treats, then finishing the job by drying them out, too.

Keep potatoes crisp in a warm oven if you're serving them in 1-2 hours. If there is a slight wait before everyone eats, don't cover the crispy potatoes—this traps steam which will make the potatoes soggy. Just keep them in the oven, but turn the temperature to the lowest setting.

You should soak potatoes in salt water before cooking, especially if you are making French fries or baked potatoes, or when you are preparing potatoes ahead of time. Soaking potatoes helps to draw out water and remove excess starch, giving you firmer potatoes when cooked.

Give them a cold water bath: Once your potatoes are chopped, toss them into a large bowl. Then cover the potatoes completely with cold water and let them soak for at least 30 minutes (or up to overnight). This will help to rinse off the excess starch and help the potatoes crisp up beautifully in the oven.

Yes! Soak the potatoes in cold water to remove the excess starch from the outside of the potato. There are a few reasons why you want to remove that starch (it makes the potatoes burn, it keeps them from crisping up, it turns to sugar) but all you really need to remember is to soak them at least one hour.

Why do I always thin my wedges? ›

This can happen as a result of a swing path that doesn't reach down far enough. Or in other words, it is possible that your thin shots come as a result of a club that simply doesn't travel down enough to hit the ball on the sweet spot of the club and produce a healthy divot following the strike.

If there is a large amount of bounce on your club, it will make hitting off the fairway or tight lies more difficult as the back edge (bounce) will hit the ground first and the leading edge will be angled up too high as it approaches the ball catching it near the equator or top.

Roasted potatoes can become soggy if the water content in the potato isn't fully cooked. Different potatoes have different water content percentages. Also, be mindful of the oil.

It Gives a Firmer Texture

Since soaking potatoes in salt water draws out excess moisture and reduces their ability to absorb oil, it helps them have a firmer texture.

The Mistake: Overworking the Potatoes with a Food Processor, Blender or Mixer. Too much — or too vigorous — mashing will produce gluey potatoes. Your best tool is an old-fashioned masher, fork, ricer or food mill.

The best way to keep fried foods crispy? Just place them on a cooling rack set over a baking sheet. If you're frying multiple batches, throw the whole setup into a low oven to keep everything warm as you keep frying and adding to the rack.

Although spin was not a factor that changed, launch angle and the ability to control trajectory changed dramatically. Bottom line: If you want to have better distance control with your wedges in all conditions, learning to better deloft and compress the ball is going to lead to more control and hopefully lower scores.

Lack of or limited contribution of the lower body in the downswing is usually the primary cause. This causes the upper body to over work and typically breakdown through impact. So lack of lower body power, limited hip mobility and lack of core strength can all lead to Scooping.

The potato starch coating can give the foods a golden and crispy outer layer during the frying process.

What temperature do you bake potatoes in the oven? ›

Heat oven to 450°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil (or parchment*), and if you happen to own a wire cooling rack, place it on top of the baking sheet. Prep the potato. Using a dinner fork or a small paring knife, poke the potato at least 10 times on all sides. Place the potato on the prepared baking sheet.

We've found that when wrapping a potato in foil, they actually cook faster because the aluminum foil traps the heat, thus cooking them faster.

No! Wrapping potatoes in foil holds the moisture in—which means the potatoes will start to steam. If you wrap them in foil you'll be left with soggy potatoes instead of crispy ones. Baking them on a baking sheet (or even directly on the oven rack) spaced apart lets the air circulate around them for more even cooking.

The starches start cross-linking in a layer on the outside of the potato pieces. Eventually, heat drives off the moisture from the layer of starch, leaving behind empty cells. When you bite into those vacated cells, you experience that delightful crispy texture.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss the potatoes in a bowl with the oil, salt, and pepper until completely coated. Place on a baking sheet and bake until fork tender, about 45 minutes.

Restaurants prepare the potatoes ahead by boiling and mashing just the potato, then just before serving, it is mixed into boiling cream (or milk or even broth or a combination thereof) to reheat it and make it nice and creamy.

Rumor has it that an un-pricked spud will explode in the oven—but in all actuality, that's unlikely. Conventional wisdom says that when you bake a potato, you have to prick it with a fork all over a few times, piercing the skin to allow steam to release.

e) Space - It's important to space the wedges apart in the oven. If they're too close they will steam instead of bake, therefore turning soggy in the process! Also important to flip so both sides of the wedges have equal time with direct contact on the hot tray.

The main reasons for soggy sweet potato wedges are: overcrowding the baking sheet, not tossing in enough oil, having too thick sized wedges, and not roasting at a high enough heat.

How can I improve my crispiness? ›

Refrigerated potatoes are soggy, but there's an easy fix! Preheat your oven to 400 °F (204 °C) and spread the leftover potatoes on a baking sheet. Cover the sheet with foil and heat the potatoes in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Interestingly, cornstarch contains 25 to 28 percent amylose, which is higher than the amount in wheat or potato starch (which are 20 to 22 percent amylose), and this is why cornstarch works the best for making crispy coatings on fried foods.

Your potatoes need to take two separate dips in hot oil to reach restaurant quality. Oil-blanching is a two-part process that reduces the moisture and starch content in your fries, helping them crisp up.

Rice flour and cornstarch work particularly well because they fry up crispier than wheat flour. They also absorb less moisture and fat during the frying process, making the products less greasy.

THROUGH-SWING

Forget distance control—now they're lucky if the ball gets in the air. A better method is to set your hands lower on the grip, then swing at normal speed. For me, gripping down an inch takes off five yards. Sometimes I'll go down the entire length of the grip to take as much as 20 yards off a wedge.

When compared to your irons, wedge shafts will often be stiffer. The reduced flex accommodates the wedge's greater weight and provides your swing with more balance. Of course, the stiffness of the wedge shaft will vary between brands and types.

Yes! Soak the potatoes in cold water to remove the excess starch from the outside of the potato. There are a few reasons why you want to remove that starch (it makes the potatoes burn, it keeps them from crisping up, it turns to sugar) but all you really need to remember is to soak them at least one hour.