Restaurant Style French Fries Recipes

PERFECT FRENCH FRIES

Steps:

• Peel and rinse the potatoes. Then cut them into sticks by cutting the potato in 4 or 5 vertical pieces, and then cutting each piece into sticks.
• Place them in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Allow them to soak, 2 to 3 hours. (You can also stick them in the fridge and let them soak overnight.)
• When you're ready to make the fries, drain off the water and lay the potatoes on 2 baking sheets lined with paper towels. Blot with paper towels to dry them.
• Heat a few inches of oil in a heavy pot to 300 degrees F. In 3 or 4 batches, cook the potatoes until soft, 4 to 5 minutes per batch. They should not be brown at this point! You just want to start the cooking process. Remove each batch and drain on new/dry paper towels.
• Once all the potatoes have been fried at 300 degrees F, turn up the heat until the oil reaches 400 degrees F. When the oil's hot, start frying the potatoes in batches again, cooking until the fries are golden and crisp. Remove the potatoes from the oil and drain on paper towels.
• Sprinkle with sea salt and dive in!

HAND-CUT FRENCH FRIES

Steps:

• Leaving the skin on, cut the potatoes into long thin strips and put in a large bowl of clean water to remove some starch, prevent them from sticking together, and stop the oxidizing process.
• In a cast iron skillet fitted with a thermometer, or a small fryer, heat the oil until it reaches 275 to 300 degrees F. Remove the potatoes from the water and pat dry. Working in small batches, fry the potatoes until they go from shiny to matte, 3 to 5 minutes (this is also called blanching). Drain well on paper towels. Re-heat the oil until it reaches 350 degrees F and fry the potatoes again, also in small batches, until they are golden brown and crispy on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside.
• Remove from the oil, drain well, and toss with sea salt and malt vinegar, or any other seasoning you prefer. You can also fry fresh herbs such as rosemary, sage, and thyme with the potatoes. Serve hot.

RESTAURANT-STYLE FRENCH FRIES

Steps:

• Prepare the potatoes and oil: In a 3-quart saucepan with a deep-fry thermometer attached, heat oil to 350 degrees F. Cut potatoes into long sticks -- about 2 inches by 1/2 inch. Lay potatoes in a single layer on paper towel. Let stand for 10 minutes until dry.
• Cook potatoes: Toss potatoes with sugar. Fry half of the potatoes in the hot oil until they begin to crisp and turn light blond -- about 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove; drain on paper towel. Repeat for the second batch and let potatoes stand for 5 minutes.
• Finish the potatoes: Raise oil temperature to 375 degrees F. Refry potatoes, in 3 batches, until golden brown -- 4 to 6 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove, drain on a paper towel, and sprinkle with salt.