By November 2025. Fall in Memphis, and I am 66, walking the neighborhood in my light jacket, watching the leaves turn on the oaks and maples that line Deadrick Avenue. The smoker is happy in fall — the cooler air holds the smoke lower, keeps it closer to the meat, and the results are always a shade better in October than in July, as if the season itself is a seasoning.
Charlie in Nashville, thriving in the way Charlie thrives — quietly, competently, with the determination of a Johnson woman and the grace of something uniquely hers.
I experimented this week — smoked pork belly burnt ends, cubed and re-smoked with sauce and butter until they were sticky, caramelized, and indecent. The kind of food that makes Rosetta say "Earl, your arteries" and then eat three more pieces, because even nurses have limits, and the limit of smoked pork belly burnt ends has not yet been found by human science.
I sat in the lawn chair next to Uncle Clyde's smoker as the dark came on, and I thought about what I always think about: the chain. From Clyde to me. From me to Trey, maybe, or Jerome, or whoever comes next with the patience and the hands and the willingness to stand next to a fire at three in the morning and wait for something good to happen. The chain doesn't break. The fire doesn't stop. And I am here, 66 years old, in a lawn chair in Orange Mound, Memphis, Tennessee, watching the smoke rise, and the rising is the living, and the living is the gift.
After an evening like that — sitting next to Uncle Clyde’s smoker as the dark came on, thinking about the chain and the fire and what gets passed down — I wanted something on the table that matched the season and the mood. Sweet potatoes have always felt like fall in Memphis to me, like the oaks turning on Deadrick Avenue. These baked sweet potato fries are simple and honest, the kind of thing you can pull together while the smoker does its slow, patient work — and they hold up beautifully next to pork belly burnt ends, if Rosetta will let you near them long enough to plate.
The BEST Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch matchstick fries
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Heat oven to 425°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Cut and dry the potatoes. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into thin, uniform 1/4-inch fries. Pat thoroughly dry with paper towels — removing moisture is the key to crispiness.
- Season. In a large bowl, toss the dried fries with olive oil until well coated. Sprinkle with cornstarch, garlic powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Toss again until evenly distributed.
- Arrange in a single layer. Spread the fries in a single layer across both prepared baking sheets, making sure no fries are touching or overlapping. Crowding causes steaming, not crisping.
- Bake. Roast for 15 minutes, then flip each fry with a spatula. Return to the oven and bake another 12—15 minutes until the edges are golden and beginning to crisp.
- Rest and serve. Remove from the oven and let rest on the pan for 3—5 minutes — they will continue to firm up as they cool. Serve immediately alongside smoked meats or your favorite dipping sauce.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 180 | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Carbs: 28g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 280mg