Super Simple French Fries (Crisp & Crunchy in Just One Step)
Oh, delicious French fry, how you elude me in my own kitchen. You’re so yummy, but you’re such a pain to make.
There’s the soaking in cold water. The first fry to cook your insides. Then the second fry to crisp you up. You’re so good when you’re fresh out of the oil. But, honestly? I’d rather just order you when I’m out.
You can imagine my surprise when I came across a one-step recipe for French fries in this month’s Cook’s Illustrated.
No soaking? Only one fry? Start the potatoes in cold (yes, cold) oil? Come on. I had to try it. And man, am I glad I did. Hands down, these are the easiest, most delicious fries I’ve ever made.
The Cook’s Illustrated article explains that, because of how starch interacts with the frying oil, this method will only work well with a less starchy potato, like the Yukon Gold.
I couldn’t wait. I hit the market for some spuds.
And whaddaya know? This method really does produce a crisp French fry that’s crunchy on the outside and creamy on the inside.
I’m a convert. I’ll never make double-fried French fries again.
Super Simple French Fries
2 1/2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes (about 4-5 large potatoes)
6 cups peanut oil
kosher salt
Line a sheet pan or large plate with a few layers of paper towels. Set it aside.
Then grab your potatoes. The skins are thin, so I didn’t bother peeling them. Just give ‘em a good scrub and dry them well.
Cut out any eyes with the tip of a small, sharp knife.
Cut the round edges off the potato, so that you have a fairly solid rectangle.
Cut the long sides in three or four sticks.
Then cut the potato into fries.
You want them to be about a quarter-inch thick, which looks about like this (balanced on my 10-inch butcher’s knife).
Cut the rest of your potatoes into fries the same way.
Set a large, heavy-bottomed pot on the stove. Clip on a deep-frying thermometer, if you like—strictly for curiosity’s sake. (My oil hit about 325 degrees and held steady.) Pour in the peanut oil.
Put the cut potatoes into the cold oil. (That’s right, you heard me: Don’t turn the heat on yet.)
When all the potatoes are in the oil, wiggle them around with a pair of tongs so that they’re all submerged. (Feels wrong, doesn’t it? Just you wait.)
Now turn the heat on high. And wait. After about 3 or 4 minutes, small bubbles should start to appear in the oil. (Still feels kinda wrong, ya?)
After about 5 minutes or so, the oil should come to a rolling boil.
Fry the potatoes like this for 15 minutes, untouched. Don’t stir them at all. Just keep an eye on the pot.
After about 15 minutes, some of the fries should have floated to the surface of the oil. You should see them just starting to turn brown.
Give them a stir with a long set of tongs to loosen them up. If any are stuck to the bottom, give them a nudge to unwedge them.
Fry like this, stirring occasionally, for another 5-10 minutes, until crisp, golden, and done to your liking.
I yanked mine when they looked like this:
Fish them out of the oil with a spider or large slotted spoon. Let them drip for a sec over the pot to lose any excess oil.
Transfer to your paper-towel lined pan or plate.
Sprinkle with kosher salt when they’re hot out of the oil. (This helps the salt stick better.)
Serve and enjoy (and gobble and inhale)!
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38 Comments
wow those look so easy! do you deep fry everythingin a pot like that or do you have a dedicated fryer too?
They’re SO easy! Seriously!
I fry just about everything in my giant Le Creuset cast iron dutch oven. I’ve had the thing for years. It holds heat well (and evenly), and it’s deep enough that I don’t really worry about splatters. They’re kind of pricey, but it was an investment I’m definitely glad I made. I’ll likely have the thing for the rest of my life.
That said, any decent cast-iron pot works well for frying like this. I have a lot of Lodge cookware–it’s well made and super inexpensive.
Cheers!
+Jessie
Homeenade is best! When i was little, I never realised how good my mum’s fries were, the potatoes were from the garden….
Great post
Oh wow! Home-grown potatoes! I’ll bet those were amazing.
+Jessie
Mmmmmm, fries… You can also make these in olive oil, just not extra virgin.
http://andthenidothedishes.blogspot.com/2008/02/cooking-guru.html
Mmmm, olive oil. I’ll try that next. Love the flavor of both peanut and olive oil for deep frying.
+Jessie
That’s the Tuscan method: cold olive oil to start, but also with a sprig of fresh rosemary. I had them in Italy and they’re fantastic, but I’m too chicken to fry a branch.
Those look soooo good. I never make homemade fries, because it’s such a pain. I usually just pan fry Ore-idas in 1/2 cup of veggie oil. I think i’ll give these a try when I get back from vacation.
Oh, definitely give them a whirl! That’s just why I really don’t make homemade fries that often. This is a fabulous method!
+Jessie
Thanks for your reply! Another silly question – do you throw out the oil after each time you deep fry something or can you keep it? how long? etc.
I really want to get into deep frying but I don’t want to buy a deep fryer and I am so lost when it comes to this type of cooking. Thanks again.
Hi again!
Sorry for the delayed reply. OK. Cooking oil. (Not a silly question at all!)
Basically, you can reuse it a bunch of times. Like most things in the kitchen, use your eyes and sense of smell to tell you if the oil has gone off or absorbed too many flavors. (i.e. I usually don’t save oil that I’ve fried fish in, just because it really does wind up tasting kind of fishy.) If it looks or smells funky, toss it.
To save oil, strain it once or twice through a colander lined with a coffee filter or some cheesecloth (or even paper towels). You do that to fish out any bits of food.
Here’s the deal with frying oil. Usually, you want to fry in an oil that has a high smoke point–like peanut or vegetable oil–so you can fry at a high temperature. You want to fry at a high temperature because your food absorbs less oil (and is less greasy). Each time you heat the oil up and fry with it, it breaks down a little bit, which lowers the smoke point.
So eventually, if you keep reusing the same oil, you won’t be able to get the oil super hot, which means you’ll wind up with greasier food because you can’t get the oil super hot.
Oh, and I wouldn’t necessarily shell out for a deep fryer. You can do really well with a deep cast-iron pot with a deep frying thermometer clipped to the side. If you’re a gadget-y type person, you might like one, just because they’re more contained (so the oil won’t really have the chance to splatter on your stove).
Let me know how else I can help!
+Jessie
yummy! I love these fries, they are such a perfect pairing with burgers
That method does feel kinda weird. I guess it’s because we’re so used to deep frying when the oil is hot. The most important part is it works!
Oh, those fries look so good!!! I prefer to bake mine, but I will have to try this. Have you tried putting sea salt on your fries? YUM!
Cook’s Illustrated is the best. These fries look great. I will have to get Lisa to try these at home. We’ve been so disappointed with the fries we have made ourselves. I wonder if this would work for sweet potatoes as well.
That’s the way to kick off the month! I’ll do these on my day off. It’s about to get messy up in here!
Nice! I’ve been looking for a decent fry recipe and I think this sounds like a good one. Though, I will be using the olive oil (good to know it’ll work well) as I’m allergic to the peanut.
And nice blog, too, by the way. This is my first time stopping by. I found you via foodgawker.
Thanks!
~ Annie
Hi There,
First off apologies for contacting you through the comments but couldn’t spot an email address. Am loving the home made chips and the step by steps! I have to say I am a big fan of the thin chips like these rather than the big greasy ones we get over here in the UK
Would really love to get a few of these photos featured on http://www.foodandfizz.com our new photo sharing website and hopefully send you a bit of traffic over
Cheers
Ben
Oh fantastic, thank you! Can’t wait to take a peek at your site!
+Jessie
Oh my gosh. My wife made these the other night. I have developed an obsession with well made french fries. And these were fantastic.
Oh fabulous! So glad you liked them! Yeah, I was very incredulous when I read the recipe, but it works so well.
+Jessie
Jessie –
is that a Le Creuset pot in the pics?
Gabi.
Yep, yep! That’s my giant red Le Creuset pot. I got it on sale years ago. It still cost a small fortune, but it’s one of the best investments I’ve ever made. I use it all the time, and it’s held up really well over the years.
+Jessie
Wouldn’t cold frying cause the fries to soak up more oil?
Ya know, you’d think so.
I can tell you, though, they weren’t greasy at all. From what I gathered from the original recipe, it has a lot to do with using a less starchy potato (like the Yukon Gold).
+Jessie
Hey, Thanx for the awesome recipe..It was a hit here (=
Oh man, these look so good! I have been on the hunt for a great recipe for homemade fries… I’m going to have to try this!
Simple is the key! Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside. A big hit at my BBQ! You are evil Miss Mouse…
Wheee! So glad you liked ‘em!
+Jessie
WOW! These were completely awesome. I made them tonight after looking for a way to avoid the soggy, greasy ones I’ve been making. I read to soak them. I read to precook them. I read to toss them in flour. I read to cook them twice. Everything seemed like such a lot of work!
Them I found this. I trust Cooks Illustrated and you gave such great directions and pictures. And most importantly it sounded so EASY. Almost too good to be true.
But it was true. My fries were perfect. Perfectly crisp and not at all greasy. I’m never doing them any other way. I was lucky enough to have yukon gold on hand. I did not have peanut oil so I substituted canola with no problem. I’d be curious if anyone has ever tried it with another kind of potato?
Thank you so much.
Would this method work with a deep fryer? I just bought one today and tried the bake twice method. They were disappointingly not crisp. I’m wondering if it would be a problem after you put them in cold oil and then have to wait about 15 minutes for it to heat up to 375. I think I’ll try it. Thanks for your helpful info. Gail
Hey, Gail.
Did the deep fryer method work? If so, can you give me a run down on exactly what you did? Thanks!
Now that’s my kind of french fry! I’ve tried the baked variety too many times and they’re just not the same. Never made them like this before but I’m looking forward to a big batch of them this weekend. Now I’ll have to hide my wife’s cookie sheet.
Mike
I second Gail’s question. Is it possible to modify this to do it in a deep fryer (like a Fry Daddy)?
Would this work for Sweet Potato fries?
Amy
Absolutely loved this method of cooking the fries! They turned out golden and crisp! Thanks for the info
Tried this method for the first time at our 4th of July BBQ. My family loved them, thanks!
I tried it and I must say it worked great. No more soggy fries! I used some yellow potatoes I found at the store not sure what kind and olive oil. My fries turned out great. Thanks never thought cold oil would work but it did.