Fries will always dominate my comfort food world. It can be potato, sweet potato, zucchini, rutabaga, parsnips, you name it  I will eat them. The one I really crave for in winter is the masala carrot fries.
Carrots have this incredible natural sweetness that caramelises beautifully when you hit them with high heat. By tossing them mix of  spices you transform this bright orange root vegetable into a highly addictive snack. This dish is naturally gluten-free, vegan-friendly, and packed with fibre and whatever carrots can offer.  It strikes that perfect, magical balance between sweet, smoky, savory, and tangy. I bet you cant keep your hands off them.

Ingredients for carrot fries

Carrots: The colour of the carrots chosen to make this masala fries does not matter. you can have purple, yellow or orange carrots though orange is the most popular colour available. Choose firm and thick carrots which are fairly straight. This makes it easy to cut even batons.  

Oil: though we are not deep frying the oil helps to coat and create the crispy roasted top for the carrot fries. Any neutral oil is good enough like sunflower oil, vegetable oil or avocado oil. If using coconut oil or sesame oil, it will add the fragrance to the fries. 
Spices and seasoning: Salt and pepper remains the key seasoning for these fries. The spices that upgrade it to masala fries is cumin powder, chaat masala and the kashmiri chilli powder. Cumin powder adds a smoky flavour, the chaat masala a zing and peppiness and the kashmiri chilli powder a mild spice level. Kashmiri chilli powder is similar to paprika with a tiny bit more spiciness. If you prefer a bit more spice you can use chilli or cayanne powder. 

Lets make carrot fries

Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Prep the carrots : wash and pat dried the carrots Peel your carrots and trim the tops. Cut 1cm-thick sticks. Try to keep them all roughly the same size so they cook at the exact same rate.

Pat your carrot sticks thoroughly dry with a paper towel after cutting add them into a large mixing bowl.

Spicing the carrots: sprinkle a mix of salt, cumin, paprika and chaat masala on the carrots sticks  Drizzle with oil and give them a good toss.

Spread Out and Bake:  Spread the carrots out onto your prepared baking tray. Leave a bit of breathing room between each stick. If they are piled on top of each other, they will steam instead of roast. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, giving them a good flip halfway through the cooking time to ensure they get evenly golden and crisp on all sides. Be gentle with them at this point.
Once done the carrots turn crisp and glossy.
Remove on to a serving dish and enjoy with a dip.

Can carrot fries get crispy like potatoes ?

If you’ve ever tried baking carrots before, you know they tend to go a bit soft and limp. That is because carrots are packed with water and lack the natural starch of a potato. To beat the sogginess in the oven, use these two methods as nonnegotiable
The Paper Towel Pat-Down: Getting the carrot sticks completely dry before adding oil stops them from steaming in their own juices.
The Starch Dusting: A tiny sprinkle of cornflour  or rice flour acts like an invisible shield. It absorbs moisture and creates a crisp, micro-textured crust as it bakes. Ensure that you toss the spices in with the cornflour before dusting so it coats evenly.

Can carrot fries be made in the airfryer?

Oh yes, follow the steps of prepping and spicing. Then spread the carrots with enough gaps between them. These fries turn out more crispy. 

Stay Connected

The carrot fries are undoubtedly one of our favorite fries. We love this with a cooling dip like Cacik, hope you do too. 

These masala carrot fries have been on our blog from Oct 2018. Funnily enough I hardly looked back at it till recently when it popped up on my socials as a memory. Coincidentally it was carrots special on Sunday Funday, so both together, It was time for this update. Hope you like it and please leave your comments below of how it turned out for you.

Here are some of the other carrot recipes from fellow bloggers.

• Carrot Cake Muffins from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Carrot Pudding from Sid’s Sea Palm Cooking
• Carrot Roulade from Sneha’s Recipe
• Grilled Carrots from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Nomato Soup – a Faux Tomato Soup with Carrots from A Messy Kitchen
• Roasted Carrots with Burrata from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
• Spicy Carrot Ginger Dressing from Food Lust People Love

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