Potatoes are such a versatile crop. You can do almost anything with them. They can be featured as part of the main dish, such as in shepherd’s pie or along the side to support the main dish, like these wedges or the infamous mashed potatoes.
To my surprise they can even be made into desserts! We all know the notorious sweet potato (Notorious S.P.? Okay, I’ll stop. I’ve just dated myself anyway) and the wonderful desserts you can create with those. But I’ve just recently learned that potatoes can belong to that sweet dessert category too.
There are recipes for things like potato truffles, cakes, brownies and even candy! Who knew potatoes could turn into candy! That’s a new one for me, maybe I’ll have to give it a try sometime.
In tonight’s meal they fall into the support category. The venison roast was the spotlight and there’s no way it was going to share with the potato. But these potatoes earned the spot of best supporting food as wedges.
If you want to see how he made the venison roast check out this post:
Sous Vide Venison Roast with Red Wine Sauce
Before tonight, my favorite potato shape was the waffle. I can’t say for sure why I like the waffle shape so much, but seasoned with a slightly spicy rub, throw them in the fryer, and I’m a happy girl.
As of tonight, though, the wedge is surpassing the waffle. For these wedges, no ketchup is needed. In fact, any dipping sauce would have taken away from the lovely flavor these wedges had.
A bit cheesy, a bit spicy, with a punch of delicious flavor; they were trying so hard to take the spotlight away from the venison.
To make these potatoes the first step is, yep you guessed it, cut the potatoes into wedges! He used good old russets for these wedges, but I imagine any firm potato would have worked just as well.
When you’ve got your wedge shapes, place them in a bowl, cover with water, and soak them for at least 30 minutes. This is very important, do not skip this step. It allows some of the starches to be released by the potatoes and gives you a firmer texture for the final product.
After the 30 minutes are up, pat them dry with a lint free cloth or paper towel. Having extra water on the potatoes will make them a mushy mess. No one likes mushy potato wedges. Let’s reserve the mush for the mashed variety.
He used salt, cayenne, garlic powder, and thyme as the seasonings for these wedges. The cayenne was the perfect kick to the powerhouse flavors of garlic powder and thyme. The salt makes it all come alive, plus who doesn’t like a little salt on their potatoes?
Measure out the seasonings and mix together in a separate bowl. If you mix them together before putting them on the potatoes, you will get a more even spread.
Usually, I get a little cranky about my husband’s propensity for using a lot of dishes when he cooks. Mostly because I know I’ll be the one cleaning them up later. But this time, I fully support his decision.
The seasonings are then tossed onto the wedges. Use your hands to toss and evenly coat each wedge with the seasoning mix.
Now that the potatoes are seasoned up nicely, drizzle a bit of olive oil over them and toss again. The olive oil will be important in creating the crispy outer layer when you go to bite into them. Since we are using the air fryer we don’t need a lot of oil, one tablespoon will be plenty to give them a nice coating.
Heat the air fryer to 355 F, 179 C. Our air fryer will beep to let you know it’s preheated and ready for you to add food. When it beeps (or does whatever your air fryer does to let you know it’s ready), add the potatoes to the bucket in a single layer. You don’t want to stack them or the potatoes won’t crisp up evenly.
Cook for ten minutes, and then flip each wedge and cook an additional 10 minutes. While cooking you may want to keep an eye on them. I’ve only ever used one air fryer, so I don’t know if they all heat the same. I imagine them being a bit like an oven where temperatures vary slightly between machines, so just keep an eye out and make sure they don’t burn but are cooked through with a slight crisp.
You could fry these the traditional way if you choose too, but you wouldn’t want to add the seasonings before putting them in the fryer. You’d wait until after you take them out of the oil. If you have an air fryer, or the opportunity to use one for this, I recommend it for a wonderful tasting, and healthier version.
You will probably have to cook them in two separate batches, more if you decide to make a bigger batch.
When the potato wedges are cooked, slightly crispy, and ready to come out of the air fryer, it’s time for the final touches.
Sprinkle a liberal amount of grated parmesan cheese and freshly cut parsley. Let your eyes be your guide, there’s wrong way to garnish them!
Here you have the final wedges, garnished and displayed as only a chef would do.
These would pair well with any roast, or even a burger. If you decide to have them with burgers, you might want to go a little fancier instead of the standard burger. These might just end up outshining the main dish if you don’t!
Air Fried Potato Wedges
Ingredients:
- 2 large russet potatoes
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- chopped fresh parsley for garnish
- grated parmesan cheese for garnish
Directions:
- Cut potatoes into wedges
- Put potatoes in a bowl of water and soak for 30 minutes
- Pat dry
- Mix salt, paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, and thyme in a small bowl
- Put olive oil over potato wedges and toss to coat
- Sprinkle seasoning mix over potatoes and toss to evenly coat each wedge
- Heat air fryer to 355ºF, 179ºC
- When preheated, place potatoes in a single layer on rack. Cook for 10 minutes, then flip potatoes and cook an additional 10 minutes
- Take out of the air fryer, garnish with parsley and parmesan cheese
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