Best Potato Wedges Recipe

Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and deliciously chunky, homemade potato wedges are pretty hard to beat as far as comfort food goes.

If you’ve ever wondered how to make potato wedges for yourself at home, you’ve come to the right place. Recreating this delicious side at home might seem like a bit of a challenge, but with the right recipe, it’s actually a breeze.

That’s where we come in. Read on for the best crispy potato wedges recipe around. We’ve also collected some helpful tips for customizing your wedges, and achieving the perfect bake time after time.

The Recipe

Here’s our foolproof recipe for perfectly crispy potato wedges.

You’ll need:

• 4-6 potatoes
• 3 tablespoons of your preferred oil (we recommend olive)
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

To Make the Wedges

• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, line a large rimmed baking sheet with baking parchment.
• Using paper prevents the wedges from sticking, which prevents waste and makes for an easy cleanup.
• Next, wash and slice your potatoes. Leave the skin on if you want that rustic feel, and a little more flavor. Potato skin is also high in potassium!
• To slice your potatoes into wedge shapes, cut each one in half, lengthwise, diagonally, and then lengthwise again so you end up with quarters. Finally, half each of these quarters lengthwise to get 8 wedges per potato. Cutting like this ensures consistent size, hence consistent cooking.
• Soak your potato slices. Fill a bowl with hot (not boiling) water, and pop the slices in. Leave them to soak for 10 minutes.
• Next, drain the water away, and use a kitchen towel to pat the slices dry.
• Drizzle your freshly soaked potato slices with the oil evenly, before sprinkling your preferred amount of salt and pepper over them.
• To ensure the potatoes are evenly seasoned, shuffle them about in the baking pan.
• Arrange the wedges in neat columns in the pan, ensuring that each has one of their cut sides making contact with the baking parchment. This will ensure an even cook.
• If your potatoes were uneven in shape, you may need to use two baking sheets to cook them.
• Bake your wedges for 30 minutes at first, before removing them from the oven, and flipping them over with a spatula.
• Return the pan to the oven, and bake for a further 25 to 30 minutes, until your wedges are deep gold in color, crispy, and can be pierced easily with a fork.
• Remove from the oven, and serve.

Season to Perfection

This basic recipe will give you golden crispy results, but what if you want seasoned potato wedges?

To add a little more flavor to your wedges, simply sprinkle over your desired herbs and spices along with the salt and pepper in step 4 of the recipe, before they go in the oven.

If in doubt, you can try one of the following spice blends:

Warming

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons paprika (use hot or smoked paprika for a different kick)

Classic

• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• Fresh chopped parsley to serve

Add a Little Spice

If you want to make a batch of spicy potato wedges, the same logic applies: just add the right spice mix along with your salt and pepper before they go into the oven.

Spicy wedges mix

• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 minced garlic clove (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)

With more dried spices in your recipe, you’ll probably need a bit more oil to ensure the wedges are evenly coated.

It’s also a good idea to toss the chopped potato slices and spices together in a bowl, rather than seasoning on the baking sheet.

These steps will help ensure each wedge is evenly spiced, and your spices don’t burn in the oven.

Helpful Tips

To help you get that perfect crispy wedge every time, try the following tips:

• Russets are your friend

When making your wedges, always use Russet potatoes. They have a neutral flavor and fluffy, almost creamy, texture, which makes them ideal for baking, roasting, and adding other flavors.

• Parboil first

If you want your potato wedges to have extra crisp exteriors, try parboiling them before they get seasoned and hit the oven. Use salted water, and boil them on the stovetop for about 5 minutes.

Once you’ve boiled them, stir vigorously. This action will result in a slightly rough exterior where seasoning can stick.

If you choose to parboil, you won’t need to cook your wedges for as long – keep an eye out for that dark gold color to check they’re done. With a shorter cooking time, you can also turn up the heat to 475 degrees Fahrenheit, which will help even more with that crispy exterior.

• Mix it up with the fats

Olive oil is a tasty choice when it comes to making potato wedges, but it isn’t your only option. If you use a saturated fat, you can expect your wedges to much crispier, although you do sacrifice the health benefits of consuming unsaturated fats.

For a treat, try coating your wedges with a saturated fat like duck fat or chicken fat. If you’re vegetarian or vegan, coconut oil is a great alternative that will give the same effect. Saturated fats burn at a higher temperature than their unsaturated counterparts, so you can turn up the heat for a crispier wedge without fearing that they’ll burn.

• Preheat

To get your wedges golden brown more quickly, preheat the baking sheet. If you don’t have any baking parchment lying around, preheating is also a good idea, since the hot tray will help prevent sticking.

• For lower fat wedges

To make potato wedges that are lower in fat, swap out your drizzle of oil for a few spritzes of low fat cooking spray.

Sources:

1. Spiced potato wedges – BBC Good Food
2. 8 essential tips for the tastiest, crispiest roasted potato wedges – She Knows