Crispy Baked Potato Wedges
(par-boiled, oven-roasted, properly crunchy)
The crispiest oven-baked potato wedges I have ever made. The trick is par-boiling the potatoes whole with the skin on before slicing them into wedges, tossing them in olive oil and a simple paprika and garlic seasoning, then baking on grill setting until shatteringly crisp on the outside and pillowy soft inside. Beats any frozen oven fry. Serve with my homemade McDonald's sauce for dipping.
Crispy baked potato wedges — fluffy inside, properly crunchy outside
Why These Crispy Baked Potato Wedges Work
The single biggest reason most baked potato wedges come out limp and disappointing is that they go straight from raw to roasting tray. The outside browns long before the inside is cooked, so you end up with wedges that are either underdone in the middle or dry all the way through. The fix is the same one used in every great chip shop and most professional kitchens: par-boil first, then bake.
By gently simmering whole potatoes with the skin on for 30 minutes, you cook the interior most of the way through while keeping the structure intact. When you slice them into wedges and toss them in oil and seasoning, the surface starch is right there waiting to crisp up the moment it hits the hot tray. Add a hot oven on grill setting and you get that deeply crackly exterior with a fluffy, properly cooked centre. Same logic that makes triple-cooked chips work, just simpler.
How to Make Crispy Baked Potato Wedges, Step by Step
- Scrub the potatoes thoroughly under cold water — peels stay on, so they need to be properly clean.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil with a generous amount of salt.
- Add the whole potatoes, return to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- They should be tender but not fully cooked — a knife should slide in with light resistance.
- While the potatoes simmer, set the oven to 200°C (400°F) on grill setting.
- The grill setting is what gives the wedges that aggressive crispy exterior.
- If your oven does not have a grill mode, a regular bake works — texture will be slightly less crackly.
- Drain the potatoes and rinse briefly under cold water to stop the cooking.
- Once cool enough to handle, halve each potato lengthwise, then halve each half again.
- For larger potatoes, halve those quarters once more — aim for wedges roughly the same thickness so they cook evenly.
- Transfer the wedges to a large bowl.
- Add the olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- Toss gently with your hands or a spatula until every wedge is evenly coated.
- The par-boiled exterior is slightly fluffy and grabs the seasoning beautifully.
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper and drizzle a little olive oil on top.
- Arrange the wedges with space between each one — no touching or overlapping.
- Use two trays if needed rather than crowding one — crowding steams instead of crisps.
- Bake for 40 minutes total, flipping the wedges once at the 20-minute mark.
- They are ready when deeply golden brown with darker, almost-burnt edges.
- Watch the last 10 minutes carefully — under the grill, they go from golden to burnt fast.
- Pull them, let them rest for a couple of minutes, and serve hot with a creamy dipping sauce.
- 🥔 Use floury potatoes: White or russet potatoes have higher starch content and crisp up better than waxy varieties like new potatoes. Skin on is a must — that is where a lot of the crunch lives.
- 💧 Dry is better than wet: After rinsing the par-boiled potatoes, give them a couple of minutes to steam off in the colander before slicing. Excess surface water is the enemy of crisp.
- 🌶️ Swap the spices: Paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper is the reliable base — but flexible. Try smoked paprika for a barbecue feel, cumin and coriander for a Middle Eastern lean, or a pinch of cayenne for heat.
- 🧂 Salt twice: Salt the boiling water generously, then salt the wedges again with the seasoning. Potatoes need a lot of salt to taste right.
- 🫒 Use good olive oil: A quarter cup is a lot of oil for two servings, so use one that tastes good on its own. The flavour comes through clearly in the finished wedges.
- 🍯 Sauce is everything: A creamy dip transforms baked wedges from a side into a meal. My homemade McDonald's sauce is the perfect match.
Frequently Asked Questions
Drop a comment below and let me know how the wedges turned out — did you go heavy on the paprika? Pair them with my crispy buttermilk fried chicken for the ultimate at-home fried chicken night, or with a big bowl of coleslaw and McDonald's sauce for a takeout-style spread.