Easy Homemade French Fries

These easy homemade french fries need three ingredients: potatoes, frying oil, and salt. They take 15 minutes from start to finish and go well with burgers, kabobs, and sandwiches.

Easy Homemade Fries

Homemade french fries are a great side dish to make. The best fries are the ones that taste great and require little effort. I have been making this side dish for decades and share all my tips and tricks to get the best homemade french fries.

If you like potatoes as a side dish, check out these fried garlic and cilantro cubed potatoes (batata harra) or these oven-roasted baby gold butter potatoes.

Ingredient Notes

Fresh potatoes: I prefer Russet potatoes because they fry better than golden potatoes.

Oil for frying: I recommend an oil meant for frying foods (like vegetable oil, canola oil, or sunflower oil) because it has a high smoke point.

How To Make Homemade French Fries

Serve hot! These fries go great with grilled burgers, beef shish kabobs, chicken tawook, toum garlic sauce, or kafta kabobs.

Frying Rules

• Cut the fries into the right thickness. Peel and cut into semi-thin fries. You don't want them to be too thin that they overcook, and you don't want them to be too thick where they are soggy.
• Use a high-rimmed pot. Once upon a time, I made the mistake of trying to fry potatoes in a small pot. The oil boiled over once I added the potatoes (because they have moisture), and I set my stove on fire. If you ever encounter something similar, do not add water! Just smother the fire with a large pot lid.
• Fill the pot no more than a quarter with oil. This gives you ¾ of the pot empty, which is a safe amount for frying. Do not leave the oil unattended. Never fry any food without being present. The oil can catch on fire.
• Add the fries when the oil is ready. You can test the oil by dipping part of the fry in the oil. If the oil starts to bubble, then the oil is ready.
• Use a frying spatula. When removing the french fries from the oil, a frying spatula helps drain them before placing them on the plate.
• Don't add too many sliced potatoes into the oil all at once. It's better to cook the potatoes in small batches. The fries are done when golden brown and float to the top.
• Don't mix the french fries frequently while they are frying. This tends to cause the fries to break apart. I mix my fries once halfway through the frying process.
• Salt the fries immediately after they are removed from the oil. This helps the salt stick to the fries.

Best Oil for French Fries

My general answer is the best oil is the one you normally like for frying. I've tried different oils and compared them below:

• Vegetable Oil / Canola Oil - These oils make similar-tasting french fries. The french fry is heavier in taste and less crispy.
• Sunflower Oil - This makes a lighter-tasting french fry, like the way Inn-N-Out fries taste. Sunflower oil makes crispier fries.
• Coconut Oil - This is a "healthier-ish" option, however, you need to be careful not to exceed the smoke point of the oil. So, you must cook the fries on a lower heat and for a more extended period. These fries have an aftertaste that some people love. The downside is coconut oil makes soggy fries.
• Fractionated Coconut Oil - There is no heavy aftertaste like with regular coconut oil. These are heavier in taste as well.
• Peanut oil is what Chic-Fil-A uses, and the cooked fries have a nice flavor.
• Beef tallow is a delicious fat to fry with. McDonalds used beef tallow until 1990.

Keeping Potatoes from Discoloring

If you find that the potatoes start to turn a different color while they are waiting to be fried, you can rest the potatoes in water. However, before careful right before they go into the hot oil. I strain them for a few minutes prior to cooking them. Water and hot oil do not mix!

📋 Recipe