Perfectly golden, with a crisp crust outside and a soft inside part, French fries can be called a staple in many families. We eat them as a side dish or as a snack, with sauces, vegetables, and even with burgers, and who can say that we don’t enjoy these golden fried yummies?!
However, since most of us are extremely busy in our lives with work and home chores, making French fries from scratch is often something too time-consuming. This is why so many people who crave for this foodstuff prefer buying frozen French fries in a store.
This is a good and very handy option indeed, only then they have another question to bother about: how to cook those fries at home so that they are crisp and soft at the same time?
This is why we decided to give you a hand and tell you in detail how to fry frozen French fries on a stove top, how to cook them in your oven, or even in an air fryer (if you have one)!
You will learn a few extra useful tricks regarding the cooking process, and also, we will share a secret of making French fries super tasty with you!
So grab a notebook with a pen, be attentive, and read on since today it is going to be really interesting!
How To Fry Frozen French Fries In A Pan?
There are many different ways of cooking frozen fries, and one of them requires using a skillet. A skillet is basically a sort of frying pan that has a long handler which is why it is very handy when you need to fry something in quite a lot of oil – like this, oil splashes will not reach you!
In addition, frying your frozen French fries in a pan like this allows you to enjoy perfectly golden, moderately fat and really delicious potato sticks!
See, when using a skillet, you can regulate the amount of time needed for frying, and also, it’s you who decides how long to fry and how strong the fire should be.
With the oven, for instance, it would be somewhat more difficult to take the process under control simply because you can’t bring down the heat there so fast as on the stovetop!
So if you decide to fry your French fries in a pan, we suggest you stick to an easy cooking method which we will describe to you step by step.
- First of all, heat oil at a depth of ¼ inch in the bottom of your skillet over medium high heat.
- When the oil is already glistening hot and when a drop of water spatters loudly,
add a large handful of frozen fries to the oil. - Cook until the amount of crispness that you prefer.
- Dip from the oil with a slotted spoon or spatula and drain on a paper towel.
- Apply salt and pepper while draining. Also, feel free to add any other seasonings that you like!
By following this simple frying guide, you will easily and quickly get your frozen fries ready for being served and enjoyed!
And if you serve them with your favorite sauces or dips, the dish will become beyond any expectations!
Do I Need to Defrost Frozen French Fries Before Frying?
Folks often wonder whether it is necessary to defrost French fries before frying them. On the one hand, such a concern is easy to understand since we are used to defrosting foods that were stored in the freezer.
But on the other hand, you need to keep in mind that there are foods that need no thawing prior to being cooked! And French fries belong to them.
So if you decide to enjoy these yummy potato sticks either fried or oven-baked, don’t hesitate to shove them into your oven or into the skillet straight away!
We only don’t recommend you microwave them since fries will not be that delicious.
What Is the Best Oil For Frying Frozen French Fries?
French fries are delicious and most of us find it more suitable to use less oil when frying so that its taste won’t affect the original taste and flavor of potato.
However, if you use regular sunflower oil, it might be a bit complicated since, when heated, it tends to eliminate quite a strong odor!
So what shall you do? What oil to use instead? We would say that neutral-tasting oils are the best solution for frying French fries.
In particular, you can try peanut, canola, vegetable, safflower, or even grape-seed oil. All of them have a smoke point pretty much above 350°F.
Of course, there are some oils, like corn, coconut and sesame, for instance, that have smoke points beyond 350°F, but they would add a lot of flavor into the finished product that you may or may not want. This is why we would say you should stick to the group of neutral oils we have listed above.
How Do You Make Frozen Fries Taste Better?
No matter the reason, sometimes you might need to improve or fix the taste of your fries a bit. For example, you might use frying oil that adds quite a lot of its taste and flavor to the fries and you don’t like that.
Or the fries might simply get a bit old (especially if they spent a night in the fridge after you fried them).
Anyway, what shall you do to fix the situation? Well, we know a few methods that can help!
- Try to pair your fries with any acidic food like hot sauce, vinegar, pickles, etc. Acid will enhance the taste of potato well.
- Try to bake your fries on an open rack to give them more airflow and thus make them more thoroughly cooked.
- For extra crispness, use an air fryer.
- Salt your fries while they are still hot from the oven! It will help you to get the best flavor.
- Add herbs and spices for extra flavor.
With these simple life hacks, your French fries will be so delicious that you can easily devour the whole pack!
How to Cook Frozen French Fries On the Stove?
If you don’t feel like wasting your time on making French fries from scratch (which is a really time-consuming thing!), you might want to opt for such an option as pan fry your frozen french fries! Like this, you will cook them much faster and the whole process will be significantly easier. No preparations needed, no peeling, washing, slicing and frying!
However, it does not mean that you can just place the fries into your frying pan and heat it up until French fries are ready.
Even cooking them in such a simple way must be done according to the instructions, otherwise, you might end up with soggy unappetizing things on your plate.
But there is no need to worry: frying French fries in a pan is not something super difficult.
The simplest and the most widely used method is to fry them in a frying pan or in a skillet as an option.
Just make sure that you follow all the recommended steps one by one in proper order, and you will see that in the end, you will get perfectly cooked golden French fries that are so mouthwashing!
- Start with taking a pan that is deep enough to hold all the oil.
- Add oil as required and preheat it until the smoke rises from the oil.
- Make sure to keep the flame at a depth of a quarter of an inch in the bottom of your frying pan.
- Now place the frozen French fries into the pan once the oil is shimmering. Don’t add too much fries at a time though.
- Let them fry until you see the perfect crispness just like in a restaurant. There must be that recognizable golden color across the fries. If so, then it is time to dip.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove your French fries from the oil. Hold the spoon above the pan to make sure that it shakes off the excess fat.
After you extract all the excess oil, transfer it into a paper towel. Then, you can add your favorite spices or garnishes to make fries taste even better.
How to Season French Fries?
Many of you might be wondering how to make frozen fries taste better. Well, in fact, it is really simple to do.
If you buy a packet of French fries in a store, you come home, cook them, and then you suddenly realize that you don’t have enough, no worries!
We will tell you what to do to get more without even going to the store again.
So first of all, start with preparing all the ingredients needed:
- 2.5 lbs of peeled potatoes
- One cup of all-purpose flour
- One teaspoon of onion salt
- One teaspoon of garlic salt
- One teaspoon of paprika powder
- Half cup of water
You need to slice your potatoes first, making them in the shape of French fries. Once you do this, place the slices into the bowl with cold water and let them soak for two or three hours.
Now, take another bowl, and mix the flour, onion salt and garlic salt, as well as paprika powder in it. You can mix them even better by flipping, by the way!
Finally, drain the potato slices that have been soaked in water, and pour them into the flour and spices mixture. After mixing it all well, you can either fry the potato sticks immediately, or keep them in your freezer in a zip lock bag to enjoy anytime you want later.
Of course, this method is rather time consuming, but if you have a few spare hours during the weekend, why not give it a try and enjoy real homemade french fries all alone or with your family and friends?
In addition, always having a batch of these homemade potato yummies at hand in your freezer is a great support in case you are starving and you don’t have enough time or desire to go to the store.
Related: 15 Hacks. How Long to Fry Frozen French Fries?
Alternative Ways Of Cooking Frozen French Fries
Cooking frozen French fries in a frying pan or in a skillet is the simplest and one of the most frequently used ways of doing this. However, this is not the only available option!
If you want to, you can also cook these delicious potato sticks in your oven or even make use of an air fryer in case you have this kitchen appliance at your disposal.
Below, we will describe in detail how you can cook frozen French fries using each of these methods. And then it is only your choice which of them to make use of.
How to Fry Frozen French Fries In the Oven?
Frying frozen French fries in the oven is somewhat better and we would even say safer for your body for one simple reason. You see, when cooking French fries in the oven, you use less oil which means the dish comes out less fatty.
Respectively, oven-baked French fries are healthier than those fried in a skillet full of oil!
In addition, there is a bonus that comes with this method: cooking frozen French fries in the oven is way less messy in comparison to frying them in a frying pan or in a skillet filled with hot oil.
No oily splashes all around on every single surface (including you!), and no greasy skillets or pans that are so hard to wash later!
Moreover, this method is very simple.
- Preheat your oven to 400 F before frying.
- Take a metal baking sheet and place a piece of aluminum foil over it.
- Keep the potato pieces into a zip lock bag and spray them with olive oil. Then, mix the oil into the potato sticks by shaking the bag.
- After you coat the fries with oil like that, spread them all over the baking sheet.
- Dust the fries with your favorite spices for better taste.
- bake until they become golden yellow.
That’s it! Perfectly golden, delicious, crispy, and, by the way, waist-friendly French fries are ready to be enjoyed!
Related: Can You Freeze Mashed Potatoes?
Frying French Fries In an Air Fryer
If you have an air fryer, this kitchen appliance can also become handy in cooking your French fries. Moreover, the process is extremely simple.
- Spray the basket of an air fryer with any cooking spray you have in your disposal.
- Put your frozen fries into the air fryer in the amount that its basket will allow in a single layer.
- Cook your French fries at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 18-20 minutes. But fifteen minutes should be about perfect!
- Shake the basket well during the cooking process at least once to distribute the fries.
- Take them out being perfectly golden and delicious!
Each of these methods is simple and rather quick, so if you are short on time but you would still like to enjoy this simple yet tasty food, you know what to do!
Related: How Long Do Potatoes Last?
Additional Tips For Frying French Fries At Home
We have already shared a handful of life hacks with you on how to cook frozen French fries and what methods to use for that purpose to get perfectly fries potato slices.
However, it is always good to have some extra tips just in case.
This is why we are sharing a few more handy recommendations so that your fries could be even better and tastier!
- When frying them in a skillet or in a frying pan, try to use stainless steel or non-stick ceramic pan. Or else, make sure to use a pan that has fast and uniform heat distribution.
- Use only vegetable or sunflower oil for frying and avoid using unclarified butter.
- Set the flame in medium-high throughout the process and never use low temperature while frying.
- Don’t cover the pan while frying as it can cause the oil to crackle.
- When frying in the oven, don’t overlap while keeping the fries over the sheet.
- If you prefer softer and less crispy fries, don’t use olive oil.
With that in mind, you will become a true French fries frying professional!
The Most Mind-Blowing Ways to Serve And Eat Your French Fries
How do we usually eat French fries? In most cases, we just serve them with various sauces or with salads, cooked vegetables, or burgers (if you are into that street food style).
But believe it or not, there are plenty of other, sometimes unexpected ways you can serve this seemingly simple foodstuff to surprise your family and guests!
So what can you do to make this simple snack an unforgettable taste experience for your taste buds?
- Sprinkle your French fries with chili powder before cooking.
- Add shredded cheddar cheese on top of your fries when cooking then in the oven.
- Use a special potato slicer to get curly spiral-like fries.
- And who said you can’t add the fries onto your pizza?!
- Cook fries in a pan with taco dressing, minced beef, and cheddar cheese on top.
- Try to make French fries with sweet potatoes instead of ordinary ones.
- Add brown gravy and any cheese to your choice to get a devouring side dish!
- Try to serve French fries with eggs for breakfast.
- French fries mixed with minced meat is the most delicious combo one can think of!
- If you prepare nachos often enough, remember to include fries next time as a topping. Yep, you read it right!
- Grilled cheese sandwiches and French fries on the side will make a perfect lunch, don’t you think?
- Sprinkle your fries with feta and greens to serve on the side.
- make hash browns with fries by smashing them and topping with cheddar or other cheese you like.
- Beef and scrambled eggs cooked with fries in a skillet can make a perfect breakfast as well.
- Finally, you can always simply wrap some French fries into your shawarma!
As you can see, this foodstuff is not only simple to cook from frozen.
It can even be made by yourself if you have enough time, and it has plenty of serving options!
The only thing you should be worried about is your waist since after all these recipes, you will hardly be able to stop and not to try all of them one by one!
Try canola oil, corn oil, or sunflower oil. No, thawing is not needed. They are most likely improperly cooked.Frequently Asked Questions
⭐ What is the best oil for frying frozen french fries?
⭐ Do I need to thaw French fries before cooking them?
⭐ Why are my French fries soggy?
