Grant Crilly

3-quart Saucepan

Potato ricer

Silicone spatula

1-gallon Ziplock-style freezer bag(s)

Rolling pin

Pastry brush

Parchment paper

1/2 Sheet pan(s)

Dutch oven

Digital instant-read thermometer

Spider strainer

Russet potato(es)

Water

Kosher salt

Cornstarch

Neutral oil

In a 3-quart saucepan, combine potatoes, water, and salt, and bring to a gentle simmer over medium-high heat. Cook, adjusting heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer, until potatoes are tender and offer little resistance when poked with a cake tester or paring knife, 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove from heat, strain potatoes, and return to saucepan. Set food mill fitted with plate with smallest holes over a large bowl; set aside.

NOTE: It’s important to cook potatoes at a gentle simmer. Since the potatoes are peeled and cut into pieces, cooking at a boil will cause them to break down, which will throw off the yield and affect the final texture of the fries.

Cook potatoes

Working quickly while potatoes are still hot, pass through food mill.

Add cornstarch and, using a flexible spatula or wooden spoon, gently fold together until cornstarch is fully incorporated into potatoes and mixture forms a dry, crumbly “dough.”

Pass potatoes and form “dough”

Divide potato-cornstarch dough evenly between two 1-gallon ziplock-style bags. Without sealing bags, roll mixture into a log to remove excess air and seal bags.

Press mixture into bottom corners of bags, taking care to remove any air pockets. With the bags unsealed, use a rolling pin to spread mixture into an even 1 cm-thick layer, filling bags entirely. Seal bags and refrigerate until fully chilled, at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

Shape potato mixture and chill

You can rapidly chill the potato mixture in an ice bath; just make sure to use a container large enough to fit bags without bending them.

Frying on the fly? Rapidly chill in an ice bath.

Lightly dust cutting board with cornstarch. Working with one bag of chilled potato mixture at a time, cut bag open lengthwise along seams. Carefully transfer block to prepared cutting board. Cut block in half, then cut into 11.5-cm by 1-cm batons (4.5-inch by 0.4-inch). Dust cut fries with cornstarch on all sides, using a pastry brush to evenly coat newly cut sides. Transfer to a parchment-lined 1/2 sheet pan.

Repeat with remaining bag of potato mixture.

Cut and dust fries with cornstarch

In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 inches of oil over medium-high heat to [f 375]. Line a 1/2 sheet pan with paper towels and place it next to the stovetop.

Using a spider strainer, gently lower a quarter of the cut fries into hot oil and fry for 2 minutes; fries will be very pale and will not look “done.” Using spider, carefully transfer to prepared sheet pan (fries are quite delicate, so be gentle). Repeat with remaining cut fries, letting oil come back up to [f 375] each time.
Once all fries have been blanched, discard parchment from sheet pan they were stored on before frying, and line sheet pan with paper towels.

First fry

For the crispiest fries, it’s best to let the fries cool down between each spell in the hot oil. As the starches on the outside of the fries start to cool, the starch networks settle into a more highly ordered state, and when they undergo the second fry, those highly ordered starch networks become super crispy.

(This is the same process that happens with toast! Check out our <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/starch-retrogradation-and-the-science-of-staling">guide to the science of starch retrogradation</a>.)

The batched nature of this recipe ensures that the fries will cool down sufficiently between each fry. If you scale the recipe down or are frying in larger batches, remember to let the fries cool down at least 10 minutes between the first and second fry for the crispiest results.

Cooling fries between ... fries

Bring oil back up to [f 375].

Using a spider strainer, gently lower the first batch of blanched fries back into the hot oil and fry until crispy and golden, about 2 minutes. Using spider, transfer fries to paper towel–lined sheet pan and season immediately with salt to taste.

Repeat with remaining blanched fries, letting oil come back up to [f 375] each time.

Second fry

You can level up your fries by adding fresh herbs and garlic cloves to the oil at the end of the second fry. To prevent the aromatics from burning, it’s best to add them in the final 10 seconds of frying. Be careful when adding herbs as they will splutter in the oil. Woodsy herbs like thyme and rosemary work best.

Herb and garlic fries!

Serve fries immediately with your favorite dipping sauces.

Serve

Recipe can be prepared in advance through Step 3 and sealed bags of potato-cornstarch dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.

Make-ahead and storage

Like any proud parent, we love all our french fry recipes equally. <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/thin-cut-french-fries">Thin-cut</a>, <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/thick-cut-french-fries">thick-cut</a>, <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/air-fried-frozen-french-fries">air-fried</a>—each is delicious in its own right; each one has its time to shine. But this french fry recipe ... well, we love it just like the rest, but maybe a little more.Designed to go along with our <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/ultimate-steak-frites">Ultimate Steak Frites</a>, these fries are the fluffiest of them all, thanks to the fact that they’re not made from planks of potato; they’re a combo of riced potatoes and cornstarch. They’re basically processed potatoes, a Pringles approach to our classic fries.This process gives you a leg up on time and convenience. Whereas our other french fry recipes work best with <a href="https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/finding-perfect-french-fry-potatoes">perfect french fry potatoes</a>, you can use any russets you have around for these. And the cooking process is comparatively streamlined: You just boil ’em til tender, mix them with starch, let the dough chill and set, then cut it up and get frying.In the end, we might like these french fries more than our others not because they’re quick to make, or because they’ve got a short ingredient list, or they’re dead easy. It’s because, fresh out of the fryer, they’re actually just the best fries we’ve ever made (and they stay crispy for hours).

Ultimate Crispy French Fries