Quick and Easy Home Fries Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Should you boil potatoes before frying them? ›

There are lots of recipes that call for par-boiling the potatoes first to reduce the amount of cooking time, but it's an extra step and an extra pan to wash. If you cook the potatoes over medium heat and keep them covered for most of the cooking time, the lid traps in steam, which helps cook the potatoes through.

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!

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.

The Double-Fry Method

When it comes to the actual cooking, you want to fry the french fries twice. The first round is at a lower temperature to cook the inside of the potato and the second time you'll use a higher temperature to make the fries golden brown and crispy.

A properly made fry must hit the oil twice--once at a lower temperature, and then again at 350 degrees Fahrenheit--to get the perfect creamy interior and crunchy exterior. Before all that, though, the secret is to briefly poach them in boiling water (or "blanch" them) before they go into the hot oil.

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.

By rinsing off the excess starch, you can achieve a better balance and control over the browning process, resulting in evenly cooked and beautifully golden fries. Another advantage of rinsing the potatoes is that the cold water makes the potato cells firmer, leading to crispier fries when fried.

Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes. Cold water is used because hot water would react with the starch activating it, making it harder to separate from the potatoes.

If you're pressed for time, the slightly sticky, cut potatoes should be soaked for a minimum of 15 minutes. However, a longer soak time may allow more starch to be removed. So, if you can prep the fries ahead of time, a few hours of soaking can help make them even crispier.

Only as long as you need to hold the potatoes until needed for the fry stage(s). This could be as little as a few minutes – to overnight storage in your walk-in cooler.

Why soak potatoes in salt water? ›

There's moisture naturally found in potatoes, and moisture is drawn to higher concentrations of salt. (This is a process called osmosis.) So, if you put the potatoes in a salt water bath, that will help draw out some of their moisture, resulting in crispier fries.

“They have the least amount of moisture, so when you fry them they'll be crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.” Drain the sliced potatoes on paper towels as well as you can before frying to ensure the crispiest texture. No thermometer? No problem.

If they are still not crispy you might have skipped a step or you might not have let them cool down sufficiently. Make sure to cool them in a single even layer and also make sure that the oil has the right temperature. Or maybe you've used the wrong potatoes to make them.

For a boost of flavor, try using beef tallow for your french fries. Beef tallow is made from rendered fat that has been cooked down to remove most of its impurities. Like other neutral cooking oils, beef tallow has a high smoke point at around 400 F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat.

Stack 2 to 3 potato slices at a time and cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-wide sticks. Cook potato sticks in boiling water just until beginning to soften, 3 to 4 minutes.

Boil your cut potatoes in a pot of salted water for about 5 minutes, just until they begin to soften and become slightly translucent. Remove them from the water and let them air dry on paper towels.

Fresh fries are best blanched. Get a crispier finished fry by blanching potatoes in hot oil to precook before peak periods and then finish in a final fry before serving. Fries are completely cooked during the blanching stage at a lower temperature to allow the potato to cook slowly without becoming golden brown.