J’adore les pomme frites. J’ai toujours. Mais je ne les fait à partir de zéro, parce qu’ils étaient trop démunis. Le trempage. Buvard. Friture. Double friture. Eaiser juste ouvrir un sac de surgelés ou les ignorer complètement.
My education in Le Francais stopped about 20 years ago. If Google Translate is to be trusted…and let’s be honest, it’s to be trusted more than I am…I said that {translation} I adore French Fries. I always have. But I never made them from scratch because they were too needy. Soaking. Blotting. Frying. Double Frying. Eaiser to just open a bag of frozen or skip them entirely. {end translation}.
Why am I going all fancy with Le Francais to talk about French Fries? To demonstrate that something as unassuming as an Idaho potato can be transformed into a dish that feels indulgent and maybe just the slightest bit exotic.
I’m not going to lie, these are still a little needy. You have to slice the potato tres, tres thinly and then turn those thin slices into itty bitty matchsticks. And you can only cook so many matchsticks on a sheet pan at a time otherwise they will steam instead of roast.
But here’s the good news. A single Idaho potato will make an entire batch that can serve one happily, or two if you absolutely must share.
Curry Spiced Pomme Frites
BAH Note: Yes, I really am going to advocate that you buy a jar of coconut oil for this recipe. These frites are so delicate that I think olive oil would completely overwhelm them. The coconut oil is delightfully neutral and can stand up to the super high oven temperature. Also, if you have a smoke detector anywhere near your kitchen, you may want to remove the battery while you make these. The high temperature sets mine off. Every single time.
- 1 Idaho Russet potato (about 10 ounces)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- kosher salt
Heat the oven to 415 degrees and line a sheet pan with baking parchment.
Combine the coconut oil and curry powder in a shallow dish and set aside.
Slice the potato very thinly lengthwise, into approximately 1/8 inch slices, on a mandoline or with a sharp knife. Pat the slices dry with paper towels and then cut the slices into super fine matchsticks. Gently coat the matchsticks with the curry and coconut oil mixture.
Place a single layer of pomme frites onto the prepared sheet pan and bake for 10 to 14 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. You want them to brown but not get completely charred. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately sprinkle the pomme frites with a pinch of kosher salt.
Continue to bake the remaining pomme frites in batches and shoving them directly in your mouth.
Disclaimer: This post is being entered into a contest sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission in celebration of February being Potato Lover’s Month. I was compensated for participating but all opinions expressed are completely my own.
Bon Appetit Hon 
Okay, these have DANGER written all over them! Crispy fries without a deep frier? I’m in.
They don’t get as crisp as if they had been deep fried. But they come close enough for me.
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for a second, i had to figure out if there was a google translate button for me to click on, because my francais lessons ended some time ago too.
love the sprinkle of curry dust!
I barely knew enough francasis to pass my lessons back in the day. And I never imagined that I would one day want to use le francais to talk about food. Maybe if I had, I would have paid more attention.
The dusting of curry is completely optional but I really like it.
Crispy pommes frites–yes please! And they don’t seem all that needy to me. Your picture is divine, and has my mouth watering.
Jenna, the part that I consider needy is the precise cutting to get them into matchsticks. But that’s a small price to pay for such an enjoyable treat.
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Oh my. Yes please! I wonder if grapeseed oil would do the trick. It’s my neutral oil of choice lately and it has a pretty high smoke point, I think.
I’ve never used grapeseed oil. If you’ve got some, I say give it a try.
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Would peanut oil work? I don’t think they’d have coconut oil at the Safeway.
Surprise surprise…
Maybe not THAT Safeway in particular. I say give it a try with peanut oil and see how you like it.
Of course, this could make an excellent cooking project for us. You make a batch with peanut oil and I’ll make a batch with coconut oil and we can compare them. So now I’m basically trying to bribe you with quince apple butter and pomme frites.
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Email me and let’s try to meet up next week.
Can’t say I have ever used coconut oil. May have to give it a go!
I say go for it. Just last week I used it to make a talipia curry.
Nice picture, Wendi. And a very tempting shot too. Those fries look amazing. I have never been able to make a really good French fry. Perhaps Idaho potatoes and coconut oil is the combination that could get me there.
Thanks Jennifer. This is the combo works for me. If you give it a try, I’d love to hear what you think.
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The fries look wonderful! Good luck with the contest 🙂
Thanks, I need luck. Especially now that I’ve seen the recipe that Lan came up with. It was genius.
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Don here, Idaho Potato Commission. Thanks so much for sharing your recipe for fresh made French fries. I’ll bet the curry dust flavoring would go great with a side of dipping sauce. Loved the flat cut you did on the fries, rather than the typical wedge cut. It’s a little more work, but is a lot more interesting to the eye.
Don, this contest to promote Potato Month was a delightful challenge. I can’t wait to see what ideas you received.
A dipping sauce, even one as simple as a side of mayo (my personal favorite), would certainly fancy these pomme frites up even more. And I can see other spices working well in place of the curry dusting…a bit of Old Bay, a touch of chili powder, or even some herbed salt…all would be lovely.
Thank you for the opportunity to get creative and showcase the versatility of the Idado potato.