With my love for fries, as well as the spice za’atar, these healthy za’atar fries were really a no brainer.
I absolutely love middle eastern food, especially dishes that utilize this incredibly unique and flavorful spice! These were inspired by flavors I’ve seen in falafel. One of the best things about getting falafel is adding toppings, my favorite being tahini sauce. So I swapped out ketchup and I added a homemade tahini sauce, as well as toppings like parsley and garlic to really create a flavor bomb!
I’m not sure why I didn’t think to make these healthy za’atar fries before because they are absolutely delicious!
The Spice of Life
Another beautiful spice used in middle eastern food is sumac. Although sumac is one of the spices within the za’atar blend I love to add some extra to these fries.
Sumac is very unique and has a slightly sweet, tangy citrus flavor. I love adding a little bit of a sweet aspect to a savory dish. Especially to bring out the flavor in cooked potatoes that pairs to well with the savory salty components.
You can find these spices at Middle Eastern markets, as well as many grocery stores these days and online. Look for good quality spices where you can, as they are the highlight of this recipe.
DIY Tahini Sauce
Tahini was always one of my favorite sauces and it turns out its incredibly simple to make. The key is using a good quality tahini. I recommend using a Middle Eastern brand.
If you don’t have a local Middle Eastern or Asian market, they also have great products online.
Tarazi tahini is the brand of tahini I used in this dish and I absolutely love it! You can drizzle tahini on by itself and it’s still great but it will have a much stronger flavor. To make the sauce you just blend it with water and a pinch of sea salt until very smooth. You can also add some minced garlic and lemon juice to the sauce. It’s simple yet delicious!
Making Healthier Alternatives
To make these healthy fries, I steam them for a few minutes first. This allows the fries to be nice and soft on the inside and allow you to use less oil. I make these in the air fryer which creates perfect fries without the deep fryer.
Not only are all these ingredients and the toppings so yummy but also so beneficial to your health. Adding more spices to your cooking is a great way to sprinkle in extra vitamins and minerals into your food. Consuming raw garlic daily is especially great to boost the immune system.
- 1 russet potato, rinsed and sliced into thin fries
- 2 tsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp avocado oil
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp of sumac and za’atar
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- Tahini Sauce:
- 2 tbs tahini
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- Toppings:
- 1 garlic, grated or minced
- ½ small lemon
- 1 tbs za’atar
- ⅛ tsp cayenne (optional)
- 2 tbs parsley, minced
- Bring a steamer pot to a boil. Place your cut potatoes into the steamer to steam for about 3 minutes. Drain into a colander then place into a medium sized bowl. Add maple syrup, avocado oil, 1 tsp of za’atar and sumac, ½ tsp of garlic powder and ¼ tsp sea salt. Mix until well coated. Place the mixture into an air fryer at 375 for 18 minutes, tossing every 5 minutes.
- While the fries cook make tahini sauce combining and good quality tahini, water and sea salt to a personal blended and blend until very smooth. Once the fries are done place onto a plate and top with tahini sauce, parsley, garlic, lemon juice and cayenne if you like a little spice! Enjoy!
These fries make a phenomenal accompaniment to my homemade hummus recipe, check it out here!
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