French Fries

5 from 1 vote

Crispy, salty homemade french fries

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Total Time30

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: crispy french fries, deep fried french fries, french fries

Servings: servings

Calories: 164kcal

Author: Erin

Cost: $0.95

Heat your oil to medium high heat. You will know oil is ready because when a test fry is placed in it, it will sizzle. You may also opt for a thermometer and go for about 350 degrees. (Note: do not use olive oil, you need an oil that tolerates high temperatures.)
Peel and cut potatoes into ¼ inch fries.
Let raw, cut potatoes soak in an ice water bath at least 20 minutes. This will help to draw the starch out, and let them fry up crispier.
Once soaked, lay cut, raw potatoes out on a large towel, allowing ALL of the water to absorb, patting off the rest. It's very important that potatoes are dry, any leftover water will cause the oil to immediately boil over the pot, and that can be very dangerous. Make sure the kids are away from the stove for this.
Once dry, and oil is ready, fry the potatoes in 3-5 separate batches, for about 3 to 5 minutes, or until crispy and golden on the tips.
Remove from oil and salt immediately- so it sticks.

using a thermometer is the best way to make sure the oil temperature is accurate. If you are guessing, this is about the medium high setting, but will vary.
Use a frying oil specifically for frying, or vegetable oil. Olive oil is not a good choice, and will smoke.
If vegetable or frying oil does start to smoke, it's too hot.
Be very careful that fries are completely dry of moisture before adding to oil, as any excess water can cause hot oil to bubble over the edges of the pot resulting in serious injury.
Don't try to cram all the fries into the pot at once; work in seperate batches.
Salt immediately after removing from oil so that salt sticks.
Finished batches can remain scattered on baking sheet until the final batch is done.