Whereas there are countless sizes and shapes for frozen grocery retailer French fries, there’s a restricted choice of flavors. I feel probably the most branching out I’ve seen from fry firms are black pepper and the considerably tame orange seasoning on curly fries. For such a extremely regarded snack, we’ve actually taken a backseat on taste exploration. French fries are the tortilla chip of the freezer aisle—let’s give them Takis-level seasoning (or at the least kettle corn-level). Listed below are some methods to get inventive together with your subsequent batch of French fries.
Naturally, I make my frozen French fries within the air fryer. Certain, you can use your typical oven however when you’ve got an air fryer, don’t rob your self of time and crunch. Air fryer French fries are persistently superior and take a fraction of the time of oven roasted fries. It’s even the greatest strategy to revitalize soggy, chilly, leftover fries the subsequent day. In case you’re procuring round for an air fryer, check out my roundup and critiques of my prime air fryer picks for this 12 months.
Finest seasonings for air fryer French fries
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann
To use dry seasoning powders, I often add the recent fries to an enormous mixing bowl and shake the powder extensively across the floor. Then use the bowl to toss the fries round and coat them extra evenly. In order for you the powder to stay even higher, think about using an oil sprayer to provide the fries a light-weight coating earlier than they go within the air fryer. They’ll retain a few of that further oil whenever you toss the seasoning mud on later and the powder will stick in a thicker layer. The ratio of powder to fry is private, however I discover that erring on the aspect of more-is-more works out higher for me.
Bouillon powder
In case you thought savory French fries meant including salt, boy are you lacking out. You may make your french fries a bit of meatier with a shake of bouillon powder. I exploit the Maggi rooster flavored bouillon powder that comes as a unfastened powder. You should utilize the dry cubes (not the semi-hydrated stuff) and crush these right into a powder when you can’t discover the unfastened stuff.
Ranch dressing powder
No surprises right here however ranch dressing is a crowd pleaser, even when it’s dry. I feel it’s the buttermilk. Use the identical technique of dusting the powder over your bowl of freshly air fried French fries and toss.
Tajin
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann
I don’t love Tajin rims on my cocktails however I do love Tajin powder on my French fries. In case you haven’t stored up with the Taijn craze, it’s a shiny crimson powder that blends spicy seasonings with citric acid. It’s a pop of bitter with a spicy end, and the prickly combo is irresistible on French fries.
Tajin is powder nevertheless it’s a bigger granule measurement than one thing like ranch dressing powder. I’ve two techniques for serving to it stick with the fries. I like to recommend utilizing a spritz of oil over the fries earlier than frying so the powder sticks higher later. Along side that, use a mortar and pestle to grind the Tajin down into a fair finer powder. In case you can’t discover Tajin, you’ll be able to duplicate the flavour profile with a heavy squeeze of lime juice and a combination of salt and cayenne powder dusted over the fries.
Buldak (or different) ramen seasoning packet
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann
It’s virtually like the previous three options all rolled into one. Savory, spicy, bitter, and a bit creamy, Buldak ramen packets have dry seasoning packets nestled inside with the noodles. They’re primarily bouillon powder, however the Buldak and Shin model on the spot noodles all the time embody a spicy aspect, or have an optionally available spice packet. My Buldak was “quattro” cheese and got here with a savory cheese powder that I dumped over my straight reduce fries.
What do you assume to date?
Cinnamon sugar
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann
Persist with me on this. Cinnamon sugar French fries are literally nice. If we’re all okay with one thing like candy and bitter rooster and fastnachts (doughnuts made with potatoes) then you’ll be able to settle for the concept of including sugar to your french fries.
I’ll add a pair teaspoons of sugar, a pinch of salt, and a heavy shake of cinnamon to my mortar and pestle, and grind it down right into a high quality powder. You should utilize powdered sugar and cinnamon as an alternative when you don’t have a mortar and pestle. Mud this over your frites and luxuriate in a potato-y model of funnel cake.
Salt and vinegar
I do know this isn’t precisely new, however consider this as a reminder which you can add salt and vinegar to your French fries at residence. I did this to oven-roasted French fries a short time again, nevertheless it works simply as effectively within the air fryer. Do that as a pre-treatment or put up. In case you don’t like moist fries, drizzle vinegar over your frozen fries first, then add them to the air fryer to prepare dinner. After they arrive out, rapidly toss them with salt. The vinegar chunk is rather more gentle this fashion. In case you just like the sharp vinegar expertise, use a spritz bottle or simply drizzle malt vinegar over your fries after they arrive out of the air fryer, and end with salt.
These are my favourite fry seasoning experiments to date, however remember that you’ll be able to take the essential technique and run with it to fit your tastes. The important thing, like with including seasoning to popcorn or tortilla chips, is utilizing a high quality powder so it sticks to the floor, or creating a light-weight “adhesive” with a mist of oil or a sprinkle of liquid (like lime juice or vinegar) so the dry seasoning can stick with that.
