Skip to main content
LoginSign Up
Oven-Crisped Polenta Fries with Lemon-Caper Dipping Sauce

Oven-Crisped Polenta Fries with Lemon-Caper Dipping Sauce

By Hisham Ali HassanOctober 23, 2025

  • Makes
    4-6 servings
  • Cook Time
    1¼ hours
  • Active time plus cooling
    35 minutes active, plus chilling

Instant polenta makes these crisp outside, creamy inside polenta fries a breeze to “fry” in the oven. Preheating the baking sheet, generously oiling the fries and coating them with grated Parmesan helps achieve perfect crisping. If your oven has a convection function, use it. The circulation of hot air results in more even browning and crisping. If convenient, the polenta can be cooked and refrigerated in the baking dish for a couple of days. Unmold, cut and oven-fry it when ready to serve.

Tip

Don’t flip the fries until they’ve formed a nice crust on the bottom and are easily loosened from the baking sheet. This usually takes at least 30 minutes. If they stick when you try to flip them, don’t force it. Doing so will damage the bottoms. Instead, return them to the oven for a few more minutes, then try again.

Ingredients
  • For the polenta:
  • ¼

    cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for coating the pan

  • 1

    cup instant polenta

  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper

  • 2

    ounces Parmesan cheese, finely grated (1 cup), divided

  • 4

    tablespoons salted butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pieces

  • 1½

    teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

  • For the dipping sauce:
  • ½

    cup mayonnaise

  • 2

    tablespoons drained capers, chopped, plus 2 teaspoons caper brine

  • 2

    tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

  • 1

    teaspoon grated lemon zest

  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Step 1

Generously brush an 8-inch square metal baking pan or glass baking dish with oil; set aside. In a medium saucepan, whisk the polenta, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper and 4 cups water. Simmer over medium-high and cook, whisking, until large bubbles burst on the surface and the mixture has thickened, about 3 minutes. Off heat, stir in half the Parmesan and the butter until melted. Stir in the rosemary.

Step 2

Pour the polenta into the prepared baking pan; spread evenly. Cool for 30 minutes, then refrigerate, uncovered, until firm, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. If refrigerating longer than several hours, cover with plastic wrap once fully cooled.

Step 3

When ready to oven-fry, heat the oven to 500°F with a rimmed baking sheet on the middle rack. Invert the polenta onto a cutting board. Cut the square in half, then cut each half crosswise into 8 pieces to make sixteen 1-inch-thick fries. Brush on all sides with the oil, then sprinkle all sides with the remaining Parmesan.

Step 4

Carefully remove the baking sheet from the oven. Place the fries on it 2 inches apart. Bake until the bottoms form a browned crust and release easily from the baking sheet, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, capers and brine, parsley and lemon zest. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Step 5

Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Using a wide metal spatula, flip each fry so the bottoms face up (if they do not release easily, return to the oven for a few minutes, then try again). Bake until the bottoms are nicely browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a platter. Serve with the dipping sauce.