Appears in Cook's Illustrated January/February 2018, America's Test Kitchen TV
Roasted potato planks aren't French fries. To mimic the real deal's delicately crispy crust and rich flavor in the oven, you first have to understand what makes a fry a fry.
When traditional French fries are fried, water is rapidly driven out of the starch cells at the surface of the potato, leaving behind tiny cavities. It's these cavities that create a delicate, crispy crust. Since oven fries don't heat fast ...