Home-made chips/wedgies in the oven - has anyone cracked this?

[WaahWaahWaah]

Whenever I try to make home made chips or wedgies in the oven, they come out not as nice as the shop-bought ones. Does anyone have any tips??

What potato and seasoning do you use and does shop bought mean frozen chips ?

Maris piper spuds, parboiled for 5 minutes, dry them out then rough them up, v hot oven.

I cut my potatoes into wedges, put them in a bag with a splash of oil, some salt, garlic powder and paprika and toss them around until properly coated. Then I preheat the oven to 180ish and put the wedges on a baking tray lined with baking paper in a single layer, they probably take 30-40 mins.

Drying them after parboiling is the key!
Also loving ‘wedgies’ 😀

Shop bought chips and wedges often have a thin batter coating to make them extra crispy, so homemade ones are never going to totally replicate those.

The best home made wedges I do, are when I use leftover roast potatoes from a Sunday roast - cut into wedge shapes and lightly sautéed!

Jacket potato sliced into wedges and then back into the oven

Spray oil over the top, not just the oil in the oven dish.

What do you do?

Cut potato to desired shape, cover in way more oil or fat than you think you need and a sprinkle of plain flour. Add garlic, rosemary, paprika etc depending on what you are having them with.

Pre heated oven, full whack for 20 mins, turn down to 200.

If you're after something like a McCain home style chip you need to double / triple cook them.

I chop the potatoes with skin on while oven preheats with the baking tray in the oven (this is crucial!) I haven't found parboiling necessary, but then I'm happy to wait an hour for my chips. Toss generously with olive oil, good amount of salt, handful of semolina for crunch. If I want flavoured wedges, I would do a rough teaspoon of smoked paprika, garlic powder and a pinch of chilli powder.

You should get a good sizzle from the tray when you tip the potatoes on. Make sure they are not crowded and in a single layer. Bake at 200° or higher for 40 minutes ish.

blanche only for a couple of minutes, steam dry in pay (or pat), use a 'hot' oil to roast them in the oven (eg. sunflower, groundnut)

Parboiling and proper drying is the secret imo. I parboil mine a good couple of hours early - just for 5 mins - and let them dry on kitchen roll. Then when I want them, shake them up a bit and then cook with a good coating of sprayed veg oil and salt and herbs/spices if using (rosemary or paprika usually)

Did you say "leftover roast potatoes"? That might be the most baffling thing I've ever read here!

I think I’m still making enough for 5 of us, even though 2 have left home!

Echo the comments on parboiling, makes such a huge difference. This is the recipe I use and it’s hand down the best oven fries I’ve made, though I find mine need less time than the recipe suggests. Nothing matches proper fried chips, but these are delicious.

Three get method apparently for chips is the only way for the perfect chip

Use floury potatoes like Maris Piper or King Edward.
When you cut your chips, get them straight into cold water to wash the starch off. Soak them for 2-3 minutes and then drain before putting into cold salted water to boil (change the water, don’t use the same water that you soaked off the starch). As soon as they’re boiling, switch them off, get them out and dry them with a tea towel.
Coat them in oil (I find it doesn’t really matter what type). Make sure they are evenly coated. Sprinkle with salt and/or herbs/spices and lay them out on a baking tray. Make sure they’re not piled on top of each other.
They should cook for 30 to 45 mins (at 180 fan) depending how browned you like them.

Sounds like I need to add a lot more oil and lots of seasoning!

I use bog standard cheap potatoes and tend to just put them in oven with a tiny bit of oil & salt. Lack of success perhaps not surprising in hindsight!! And yes am comparing to frozen stuff. Good restaurant chips seem even further out of reach!

Preheat oven with a big flattish tray in it.

Chop maris pipers into chips after peeling. We like chunky but you do you. Boil for about 7 to 8 mins, then drain well and allow to steam uncovered for a few minutes to dry. Shake pan to get some rough edges.
Pour over about 1 tablespoon of rapeseed oil and turn the chips in the oil, then grab the hot tray out of the oven, quickly spread the oiled chips over it and shove back into hot oven as fast as you can.
I cook for 35 mins in my fan oven at about 200 degrees, and don't often bother turning but it's nice if I remember.
I don't season till they're cooked.

Parboil chopped maris pipers for 5 mins, dry with paper towel, coat in olive oil, fine semolina, salt, garlic powder, and paprika or dried herbs, spread out sparsely on baking tray and bake

Paprika!!! Everyone loves it!! Trust me.

Olive oil, coarse salt and plenty of paprika till they turn reddish

Depending on whether you want chips more like oven chips or chip shops chips either this recipe www.slimmingeats.com/blog/how-to-cook-the-perfect-baked-oven-fries or this one www.slimmingeats.com/blog/syn-free-chip-shop-chips . As these recipes suggest the type of potato makes a big difference - if you want fluffy middles you need floury potatoes like Maris Piper's, even if you parboil them waxy potatoes won't go fluffy in the middle.

I have however, never managed to make particularly good chips in my oven. It seems to be focused around being energy efficient so the fan heater moves the air around in the oven but doesn't blow it out, so I struggle to crispen things. Now I have an airfryer exactly the same technique works perfectly, I think they are better than shop bought ones.

This, but 15 mins in air fryer.

But restaurants deep fry them, of course you’re not going to get the same thing cooking them in the oven.

I find greaseproof paper instead of tin foil works better