Easy Oven Fries Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why don't my fries get crispy in the oven? ›

Keep the oven shut as much as possible to reach cooking temperature faster. Use a perforated sheet tray. This helps hot air circulate more easily among the fries, increasing crispness. Don't thaw your fries before baking.

A: The main reasons to cut the potatoes and pre-soak in water are: To allow the excess starches and sugars to be removed from the outer surface of the fry strips AND to keep the potatoes from browning prematurely from exposure to air. Covering in water helps the potato from turning a dark color.

Add herbs and spices for extra flavor.

"Add a bit of gourmet flair to your fries by sprinkling them with some garlic powder, fresh rosemary, seasoned salt, or fresh virgin-olive [oil] or truffle oil," Koeppe said. As well as adding flavor, a drizzle of oil can also help keep fries from sticking together in the oven.

First, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Then, spread your French fries out on a parchment-lined baking sheet, making sure none of them are touching (if they're too crowded, they won't get as crispy). Heat them in the oven for about eight to ten minutes, then give them a quick toss.

And generally speaking, restaurants fry their french fries twice: once at a lower temperature to cook the inside of the fry, and then a second time at a higher temperature to brown the exterior.

Corn Starch: Adding a thin coating of corn starch to the potato fries before frying can help create a crispier exterior. When the corn starch comes into contact with the hot oil, it forms a barrier that traps moisture within the potato while also developing a crunchy crust.

You can leave the skin on for a rustic look, but in this recipe, we peel them to get a more golden-brown color! Soak the Potatoes! Secret number one in perfecting homemade french fries: soaking the potatoes removes the starch and allows the fries to become crispy and evenly brown. You don't want to skip this step!

Parboiling the fries in a vinegar solution before frying slows the breakdown of pectin in the potatoes to yield fries with tiny, bubbly, blistered surfaces that stay crisp even when cool. It also rinses off excess sugars to prevent over-browning.

Place them in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Allow them to soak, 2 to 3 hours. (You can also stick them in the fridge and let them soak overnight.) When you're ready to make the fries, drain off the water and lay the potatoes on 2 baking sheets lined with paper towels.

Blanching: The Reason Why French Fries Taste Better

Your potatoes need to take two separate dips in hot oil to reach restaurant quality. Oil-blanching is a two-part process that reduces the moisture and starch content in your fries, helping them crisp up.

Should I season fries before baking? ›

Whether or not you season the french fries before or after they are cooked depends on the cooking method that you use: Deep Fried french fries are seasoned immediately after they're finished frying. Baked or Air Fried fries are seasoned before they're cooked.

Turn up the Heat

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or with aluminum foil that's been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Try not to overlap the fries so they brown equally, and don't crowd them too tightly in the pan as you'll need to flip the fries halfway through the baking time.

The secret to getting a crispy surface on home fries is to make sure the potatoes aren't warm when you pan-fry them. In this recipe, we precook the potatoes and let them cool to room temperature before they hit the buttered pan, ensuring perfectly crusty and crispy edges.

So first soaking, then draining and drying, then you go on to the first batch of frying at the lower temperature of 266˚F and then cool them down again and move on to the second fry. If they are still not crispy you might have skipped a step or you might not have let them cool down sufficiently.

Don't overfill your baking tray and rack

Frozen fries are full of water so you definitely don't want too much steam in the oven which makes your fries soggy and limpy. Too many trays on the oven racks decrease airflow essential for crispiness, too!

Airtight, well-ventilated container: Once they are cooked, placing them in an airtight, well-ventilated container will help keep your fries warm and crispy for a longer period. Such containers keep the heat trapped while preventing moisture buildup.