French fries are traditionally cooked in a deep fryer with a lot of oil. However, in an air fryer, French fries turn out just as good. In this device you can adjust the degree of frying of the slices, use your favorite spices and a minimum of oil (or refuse it if desired!).
This article discusses the basic rules for preparing French fries, choosing the temperature and cooking time, and cooking secrets. Step-by-step recipes will allow you to get a flavorful dish with a golden crust.
How to cook French fries: modes, cooking time, how many degrees (temperature)
To prepare classic French fries, you need to preheat the air fryer. The optimal temperature is 250-260 degrees. It allows you to achieve a golden crust and a tender center. Potato bars should be laid out in 1-2 layers so that they are well baked. Next, you can place the slices in two different positions:
- On the top rack – the cooking time will be 10 minutes at maximum speed. At the same time, high airflow speed is necessary for intensive frying and obtaining a pronounced crust. It is important to turn the potatoes periodically to ensure even cooking.
- On the middle rack – cooking time will be 15-20 minutes. In this arrangement, the crust will be light golden brown, and there will be no need to turn the bars over.
Increasing the portion of potatoes proportionally increases the cooking time. However, you should not exceed the maximum serving size - it is less than 500 grams of potatoes per cycle (for a medium-sized air fryer). The cooking time depends on the thickness of the potato wedges. Thin fries are cooked as quickly as possible - their thickness is 5-7 mm.
Note! Also, the duration of cooking the dish depends on the desired result - soft slices, golden sticks or a variant with a pronounced crust. During the cooking process, you can monitor the degree of frying of the potatoes and adjust the heat exposure time in the air fryer.
After the end of the program, remove the slices immediately. If they remain inside the container for a long time, they may dry out excessively. In an air fryer, only portioned cooking is permissible - there is no point in filling the entire bowl with potatoes. Otherwise, it will not cook evenly and will lack crust and other typical characteristics of French fries.
Similar materials
Baked Potatoes with Chicken
- 45 ml orange juice;
- 30 ml sweet chili syrup;
- 600 g potatoes;
- 4 cloves of garlic;
- 45 ml honey;
- 1 kg chicken;
- 15 ml lemon juice;
- 20 ml soy sauce.
Cooking time – 3 hours.
Calorie content – 134 kcal/100 g.
Cooking principle:
- Prepare the marinade in a large bowl. To do this, take orange and lemon juice, soy sauce, chili syrup, honey and mix everything together. If there is no syrup, no problem. You can simply chop fresh chili very finely or use the dried ground version;
- Also add finely chopped garlic to the marinade. Mix everything and place the chicken in a bowl. Leave to marinate for two hours. The chicken can be whole or its individual parts, for example, legs;
- The potatoes must be peeled and then cut in half. It should be placed on the bottom grill of the device;
- Place the already marinated chicken on the middle rack;
- Set the temperature to 230 Celsius and bake everything for about an hour;
- From time to time it is necessary to turn the meat and additionally baste it with marinade. Serve immediately after cooking.
Secrets and tricks for making the crispiest potatoes
French fries are a simple and popular dish. However, there are nuances that can help in its preparation or spoil the result (if ignored). Basic rules and secrets:
- You should not use new potatoes for this dish - they have too watery a texture and don’t fry well. The best option is mature potatoes with a low starch content (frying varieties). This vegetable will not soften during cooking and will quickly brown.
- If you wish, you can not peel the potatoes, but cut them directly into the skins. If you choose this option, pre-rinse the root vegetables using a stiff brush.
- Cut the potatoes into long slices with a width of approximately 0.5–1 cm. Try to make identical slices so that they fry as evenly as possible.
- The cut potatoes must first be soaked in cold water for at least 20 minutes. Thanks to this trick, excess starch will come out of it, which interferes with high-quality frying.
- Before placing the slices in the air fryer, the potatoes should be dried on a paper towel. Otherwise, excess moisture will prevent the formation of a golden crust.
Also, when cooking French fries, the choice of oil plays a role. Add a small amount of refined, deodorized, high-quality oil to the dish: it will make the potatoes tastier. For this purpose, you can use not only sunflower oil, but also corn oil.
Useful tips
Do not leave cut potatoes exposed to air, as the cuts may turn black.
If you want to use soy sauce instead of salt, sprinkle it on the finished dish. You shouldn’t add it to the marinade, otherwise you won’t get a crispy crust.
If you don’t want to add a lot of spices and salt (for example, children will eat the dish), experiment with oils: take olive, unrefined sunflower, sesame, coconut. Unusual flavors will make the dish more interesting.
Main conclusions
Golden French fries are a flavorful dish that can be quickly made in the air fryer. With such a device you do not need a special deep fryer and a large amount of oil. The made version of the potatoes will be just as tasty, and you can adjust the degree of frying and add your favorite spices. Cooking tips:
- cut the potatoes into cubes no thicker than 1 cm;
- choose types with a small amount of starch (or pre-soak the chopped vegetable in water);
- use an air fryer temperature of at least 250 degrees to get a golden crust.
Due to the minimal amount of oil, the potatoes turn out to be completely non-greasy and delicate in taste. The finished dish can be served with ketchup, garlic sauce, mayonnaise or other sauce to taste. French fries go well with light salads of vegetables and seasonal greens.
Do you like French fries? Share your tips for preparing this dish in an air fryer!
Potato casserole with zucchini
- 1 zucchini;
- 1 onion;
- 2 eggs;
- 470 g minced meat;
- 1 kg of potatoes;
- 90 g hard cheese.
Cooking time – 1 hour 15 minutes.
Calorie content – 98 kcal/100 g.
Sequencing:
- First you need to peel the potatoes, then cut them into several parts and put them on the stove to cook until done. Lightly salt;
- At this time, the peeled onion should be finely chopped;
- Mince the minced meat twice or grind it in a blender to make it more tender. Stir in chopped onion;
- Wash the zucchini. Cut off the skin of the old fruit. Remove the stem and then cut it into thin slices;
- Puree the potatoes, then allow time to cool. Next, add both eggs to it and stir, you can season;
- Place half of the entire mass in an air fryer pan, and place all the minced meat on top. It can be drowned a little in potatoes;
- Set the temperature to 225 Celsius and bake for about twenty minutes;
- Saute the zucchini in a small amount of oil. They just need to become softer, there is no need to fry them too much;
- After the time has passed, take out the mold and place the zucchini on top of the minced meat in an even layer, then cover everything with the second half of the puree and smooth it out;
- Grate the cheese on top of the entire dish;
- Bake at the same temperature for another twenty-five minutes. A golden brown crust forms on top.
A little history
Among the Slavic peoples, potatoes are a very respected root vegetable; they are often called second bread and a variety of dishes are prepared from them. Many people generally believe that there is nothing to cook with if there are no potatoes in the house; Belarusians even call themselves Bulbash for their love of potato dishes. But it was not they who invented French fries, but the Belgians, who are still proud of their invention to this day. Today, not a single fast food outlet in the world can do without it. During the First World War, Belgian soldiers treated their American allies to these delicious potatoes, who liked them so much that many enterprising Yankees began to open eateries where they sold this inexpensive dish, and they were right. For many years now, medicine has been saying that French fries are terribly harmful to health, contribute to the rapid accumulation of excess weight, increase cholesterol levels and the appearance of cellulite, but people are unable to refuse to eat such delicious food, at least occasionally.
Before the advent of the McDonald's fast food chain, residents of the country of Soviets fried potatoes with lard in a cast iron frying pan and sincerely believed that this was the most delicious potato dish, a symbol of the hearth, since it was served extremely rarely in catering establishments, and it tasted was completely different. And after trying the American version of French fries, many people tried to cook something similar, but without success. Here you need to know certain secrets, choose the right potatoes, oil and know how to operate a deep fryer. But today we will not cook in it, but use an air fryer, as a result of which we will get a less harmful version of the dish.
French fries in an air fryer
A love of French fries doesn't have to be accompanied by remorse for not eating enough.
Rosy and crispy French fries are cooked in the air fryer with a minimum amount of oil. It’s a pleasure to enjoy these potatoes!
Air fryer French fries can be cooked with a variety of spices and seasonings to suit the potatoes. A universal option would be black pepper, as well as ready-made mixtures of “Provencal herbs” or “Italian herbs”. You can experiment with granulated garlic, paprika or curry, or try adding dried thyme or turmeric.
The main thing is that all this aromatic splendor, as well as salt, must be added before the oil, so that then a thin layer of oil seals and preserves the spicy odors and taste.
Well, now I offer you a recipe for French fries in an air fryer with photos.
| Ingredients for the recipe: French fries in the air fryer | |
| Potato | 1 kg |
| Vegetable oil | 2 tablespoons |
| Salt | taste |
| Spices for potatoes (optional) | taste |
Recipe for cooking potatoes baked in an air fryer step by step
You can bake potatoes in an air fryer in different ways. One of them is to cook the potatoes in a sleeve or in a baking bag. To do this you need a baking bag (or a sleeve), potatoes (I have 6 medium tubers), 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, salt to taste and spices according to your taste. You can choose the spices yourself to suit your preferences. Or you can use a ready-made potato spice mixture. I prefer the Herbs de Provence mixture, which is what I use.
Peel the potatoes. Then cut each tuber into 8 parts, rinse in cold water and place on a paper towel to dry the potatoes a little.
Place the drained potatoes in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt and spices. Squeeze the garlic through a press. Mix everything well.
Transfer the potatoes to a baking bag. Inflate the bag a little and close it with a clip (or tie it with food thread). The excess “tail” can be cut off. Leave the bag of potatoes for 20-30 minutes.
Then place the package on the middle grill of the air fryer (I have a Hotter-1057). It is better to place the bag with the tied side down. Close the air fryer and set the parameters: temperature - 260 degrees, fan speed - high. Cook for approximately 30-35 minutes. After the program has ended, the bag of potatoes can be removed and served. But, if you want to get a more fried crust, then... move on to the next step.
Recipe for cooking country style potatoes in an air fryer step by step
I would like to offer a recipe for an interesting alternative to French fries; unlike French fries, cooking country-style potatoes in an air fryer does not require such a large amount of sunflower oil, and it is in no way inferior in taste. And if you serve it with garlic sauce, you won't be able to tear yourself away from it until the last bite! To prepare country-style potatoes, we need potatoes, herbs and potato seasoning. For the garlic sauce you will need: sour cream, dill and garlic.
Peel the potatoes and cut them lengthwise into 4 or eight pieces. It is better to choose medium or small sized potatoes so that it is convenient to cut into pieces and place the pieces on the air fryer rack. If you take very young potatoes, then you don’t have to peel them, but just wash them well.
Wash the dill under the tap and chop finely.
Place potato slices in a deep bowl, sprinkle them with potato seasoning to taste and pour over two tablespoons of sunflower oil. Add about a quarter of the chopped dill there. Mix everything thoroughly and let it brew for 15-20 minutes at room temperature.
We cover the high grill of the air fryer with foil and make sides along the edge. Place potato slices in the resulting foil “plate” so that they do not touch each other. Close the air fryer lid and set the temperature to 200 degrees and time for 40 minutes.
While the country-style potatoes are baking in the air fryer, you can start preparing the garlic sauce for the potatoes. To do this, put the sour cream in a small deep bowl.
Peel a few cloves of garlic and squeeze them into the sour cream.
Add salt to taste to the sour cream with garlic and pour in all the remaining dill. Mix everything thoroughly. Garlic sauce is ready.
When the country-style potatoes are ready, open the air fryer lid and let them cool slightly on a wire rack for no more than 3-5 minutes. Place the potato slices on a platter and serve them with the garlic sauce. I usually cook these potatoes as a side dish for chicken chops or pork schnitzel. Bon appetit!
Recipes for cooking potatoes in an air fryer
Jacket baked potatoes
A dish for the laziest, which preserves the maximum benefits of the root vegetable.
Important! During cooking, swap the tubers in places for even baking - they fry more at the edges of the air fryer than in the center.
Country potatoes or Idaho potatoes
This is the common name for potatoes that are cut and baked into quarters directly with the skin on. An analogue of the famous McDonald's dish, only healthier due to cooking in an air fryer.
Important! The most accurate combination of spices if you want to reproduce the taste like in McDonald's: salt, turmeric, garlic, black pepper and paprika.
French fries
In an air fryer, even without deep-frying, potatoes turn out crispy and have the same crust.
Air fryers are often equipped with a special tray to simulate deep frying. The cooking scenario is the same as for country-style potatoes, but there are some subtleties:
Swedish potatoes
Preparation:
