How to Make Carrot Fries Crispy (Sweet Potato Fries Too)

I love carrot fries, but they don't tend to get very crispy. I still loved the taste of this vitamin rich French fry alternative and my family would eat carrot fries, but they were not very excited about them. Once I learned this trick for making sweet potato fries crispy, I figured it would work for carrot fries too. Now my whole family is enjoying carrot fries as much as me. They actually really enjoy them, so it's hard to make enough. But how can I complain when they are fighting over who got more carrots?

This trick also works with sweet potato fries, but I make carrot fries the most often. The main reason I prefer making carrot fries is because one of my sons doesn't like sweet potatoes and everyone loves carrot fries. The other reasons are that carrots are down right cheap, super low in calories, and full of vitamins.

I used to only buy baby carrots because of their convenience. More times than not, a bag of full-sized carrots would go limp in the refrigerator before anyone thought to eat them. Now I buy whatever is cheapest because we eat so many more carrots. I have been making these carrot fries about once per week with dinner.

Technique for Getting Your Fries Crispy
This is more of a technique than a recipe. You can view the complete recipe here. The trick is coating the sweet potatoes or carrots (I imagine if you want to be creative, parsnips would work too) in cornstarch.

• Cut your desired tubers into fry sized pieces. Our family uses about 1 1/2 lbs of carrots (weight before peeled and trimmed). If you are buying precut carrots, make sure they are really dry.
• In a gallon plastic bag or paper bag, per pound of carrots, add about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and whatever spices you like on your fries. (You will know you have enough cornstarch if the carrots are dusted evenly white when you complete the next step. If you use too little cornstarch, the fries won't be as crispy, too much and they will be pasty.) Move the bag around to mix the spices with the cornstarch. We like our fries spicy so I add 1 tsp garlic salt, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, and several grinds of black pepper. David doesn't like his mouth on fire, so I often make his separate with seasoned salt and pepper.
• Add the cut carrots to the powder mixture and shake until thoroughly coated.
• Pile in the center of your baking sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of canola oil or high temperature oil or your choice. Mix fries with your hands until they are all evenly coated.
• Spread evenly on lined baking sheets making sure the fries are not crowded. (I use a silicone mat. If you don't have a silicone mat, you could use parchment paper.)
• Bake as directed in the carrot fry recipe. (425 degrees for 20-25 minutes, turning once.)