These homemade French fries are amazingly good
- Scott Daniels: We Ate Well and Cheaply
- April 7, 2023
- 382
Mashed, baked or scalloped — the three repetitive ways we usually cook potatoes, with the possible addition of home fries. Going outside these standards, there are several options in the freezer case, like tots or fries.
French fries are such a staple of fast-food restaurants that I suspect that’s how we eat most of our lifetime’s worth. Somehow, they all manage to produce a distinct product, and I can call up their differences easily from memory. Yet, as with most things, the best fries are made right in your kitchen, with just a few tricks to keep in mind.
Two other, similar potato dishes that are even easier are a potato galette and cubed spuds. Potatoes are quite starchy, and how you prepare them ahead of time is dependent on how much of that starch you want to hold onto. Do you want the end product to be separated and crisp? Or are you trying to create a single mass?
Cubed potatoes are just as they sound: unpeeled, cut into cubes and tossed in hot oil with salt and pepper until browned. It’s a great side dish, for sure, but it’s also an easy-to-prepare snack for hungry late nights. Because we are looking for crispy, individual cubes, they should get a dunk in water before cooking. Drain them well and dry them in paper towels before adding to the hot oil.
The first time I made a potato galette, it was as an accompaniment to Julia Child’s recipe for spatchcocked Cornish hens with garlic and mushrooms. The peeled potatoes are grated, then added to hot oil, spreading them out into a thin, round nest.
In this case we want them to stick together and form a single mass, so they don’t get rinsed or soaked first. This dish needs a good, heavy, nonstick pan and a brave hand to flip the nest over midway through cooking.
Homemade French fries are amazingly good, and you can season them in any way you like. Store shelves are stocked with numerous spice blends, and you can try them until you find one you like.
The first key to really great fries at home is to start preparing them early in the day. Cut unpeeled potatoes carefully into the proper shape, then drop them in a bowl of cold water. Swish them around and change the water a couple of times, then put the bowl in the refrigerator until cooking time.
Here is another instance where a good, heavy-enameled, cast-iron Dutch oven is your best friend, but any heavy-bottomed pot or deep fryer will do. Frankly, deep frying makes me a little nervous, so I want something solid, sturdy and unlikely to be bumped off its perch.
When ready to cook, heat several inches of vegetable or peanut oil to 350 F. Be sure to let the oil come up to temperature, or you’ll end up with a sodden mess. Usually, the front-left burner is the one that gets hottest; use that one.
Take the potatoes out of the fridge and discard the water. Pat them dry carefully in several layers of paper towel. You don’t want to add water to hot oil or you’ll get popped upside the head. Add the potatoes, being careful not to crowd the pan, in batches. Cook until they are tender but not yet crispy, about 5 minutes You aren’t cooking them here but just blanching them. They should be softened and glistening. You can do this first, frying several hours in advance.
Remove them from the oil and drain in a mesh strainer until they are almost cool. Meanwhile, raise the heat slightly to about 375 F. Again, be patient and be sure the oil reaches the full temperature.
Add the fries again and cook until browned and crispy as you like. When done, remove from the oil and drain again. Add salt and any other seasoning you’d like and serve.