How to Make Homemade French Fries in Your Oven
Determining the best fast food fries can be a delicious pursuit, but you may also want to enjoy tasty fries at home. In addition to ordering Freddy’s Fries for pickup or delivery, deep frying, air frying and baking are common methods for preparing different types of french fries at home. How do you make french fries in the oven? Find a step-by-step guide and other frequently asked questions about this process below!
How to Make French Fries in the Oven
Restaurants often deep-fry fries in oil. However, if you want an easy, convenient way to make fries at home, try making them in the oven instead. Cooking fries in the oven typically uses less oil, lets you make bigger batches in a single cook, and requires less cleanup. Below are several important steps for making perfect fries at home.
1. Pick and prepare the best potatoes for french fries.
Russet potatoes are a frequently recommended choice for fries. After cleaning your potatoes and cutting them into your preferred shape, soak them in water for about 30 minutes to help achieve crispy fries. Before seasoning, drain and dry your potatoes well.
2. Season and coat with oil before cooking.
Lightly toss the dried potatoes in oil along with your preferred spices. You can stick to simple salt and pepper, use your go-to seasoning for breakfast home fries, or try a specialty blend like Freddy’s Famous Steakburger & Fry Seasoning®. Alternatively, mix up a homemade recipe such as the one from Well Plated by Erin.
3. Separate your fries on the baking sheet before putting them in your preheated oven.
Watching fries cascade out of a bowl and onto the pan is a beautiful sight, but spreading them out provides the air circulation crispy fries need. Fortunately, you can use more than one tray if needed. Before you leave your fries to cook, set a timer for the midpoint of the cooking time.
4. Flip, watch and test.
At minimum, flip your fries halfway through the cook time. From this point on, keep a close eye on your fries to make sure they turn golden but don’t burn. Taste-testing may also help once they start to look done, so you can tell when your fries are cooked to perfection. This effort may also help you decide whether you need more seasoning or more time before serving the finished fries.
How long does it take to cook homemade french fries in the oven?
From initial potato prep and oven preheating to final seasoning, allow about 60-90 minutes to make homemade fries in the oven. After all, the soaking step alone takes at least 30 minutes if you choose to include it. Frying time also depends on fry size and baking temperature, as well as how accurately your oven maintains its internal temperature. To perfect your preferred fries, you may also want to experiment with whether a lower temperature for longer is ideal or whether a higher temperature for less time gives you the desired results. Some recipes such as this one from Spend with Pennies even recommend using two different temperatures for maximum crispiness.
Can you reheat homemade fries?
No matter what cooking method you used to make your fries, you can reheat homemade fries and other previously cooked fries. Using the oven or an air fryer, if you have one, are the best options. When the time comes to make your fries hot and crispy again, check out these tips for reheating fries.
What are some other types of fries to make at home?
From cheese sauce to chili, the best dipping sauces and toppings further enhance homemade fries. Since guests can customize the shoestring fries at Freddy’s, you can recreate some of your favorite restaurant fries at home. For example, if you love the cheese fries with the jalapeño cheese sauce on the Freddy’s menu, you may want to try out one of these cheese fries recipes. Have extra cheese curds and fries from your last Freddy’s order or an appreciation for poutine in general? Consider making a poutine recipe at home. If you love chili cheese fries, try making your own version of this dish or another type of loaded fries.
With a little time, just a few ingredients and the use of your oven, you too can make fantastic fries at home. However, if you are craving crispy shoestring fries with a choice of sauces or chili cheese fries near you, order from your local Freddy’s today!