Chipotle is my favorite flavor to pair with sweet potatoes (I can’t get enough of the sweet/heat combo!). See here, here and here for evidence. Today I have a chipotle baked sweet potato fries recipe to add to the list of evidence.
I riffed this recipe from Love and Lemons where they suggested using cornstarch to crisp up the fries in the oven. It works wonders for sheet pan tofu, so I figured it would work here as well.
A cornstarch slurry is drizzled over the fresh cut fries before seasoning and baking. The starches on the outside crispy up nicely in the oven without the need for a hot oil bath; just drizzle with a little olive oil or avocado oil.
The longer these fries sit, the less crispy they become. They are not as crispy as deep-fried, but they are much healthier and still oh-so tasty.
Tips and Tricks for the Chipotle Baked Sweet Potato Fries recipe:
- Keep your fries from steaming: Use two baking sheets if your fries seem crowded or if you cannot spread them out so they don’t touch on a single sheet pan. They will not crisp up if they steam on the sheet pan instead of roast!
- The chipotle powder is not very spicy in my opinion. It adds great smoky flavor and a little heat. Use more chipotle powder if you are looking for an even smokier version. Add some cayene pepper if you are looking for a spicier version.
- How much olive oil? That is up to you! I forgot it once and the fries were very chalky from the cornstarch without fat to “fry” in, so I do recommend using 1-2 TBS. I just drizzle straight from my spouted bottle, trying to evenly disperse as much as possible. The oil will spread as it heats, so no need to worry about getting it perfect. You can also add more oil when you flip the fries if there are dry, chalky looking spots on the fries.
- 1 lb sweet potatao, cut into matchsticks (from 1 XL sweet potato)
- 2 TBS cornstarch
- 2 TBS water
- ½ tsp each: chipotle powder, salt and garlic powder
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
- Olive oil (or avocado oil), for drizzling
- Preheat the oven to 425 F.
- Mix together the cornstarch and water.
- Mix together the salt, garlic powder, paprika and chipotle powder in another bowl.
- Drizzle the cornstarch mixture over the cut sweet potatoes in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the chipotle mixture and toss everything to coat.
- Spread out on a large parchment lined baking sheet (18x13) so that the potatoes do not touch and drizzle with olive oil (about 2 TBS). Bake for 15 minutes. Use tongs to toss, drizzle with more olive oil if they look dry and bake for another 10 minutes, or until crispy. Serve immediately.
