French fry lovers, this recipe is for you! Our air fryer homemade fries are ready in 30 minutes or less, use just four ingredients, and come together in under 10 steps. If you want deliciously crispy homemade fries, you're in for a treat!
Jump to:
- What You'll Learn about Air Fryer Homemade Fries
- Homemade French Fry Ingredients
- Watch the Video
- How to Cut a Potato for Fries
- How to Prepare Cut Fries for Air Frying
- How to Air Fry Homemade Fries
- Recipe Tips
- Notes from Our Extensive Testing
- More Air Fryer Fries
- How to Store Leftover Fries
- How to Flash Freeze French Fries
- Air Frying Homemade Fries from Frozen
- What to Serve with Air Fryer Fries
- Air Fryer Homemade Fries
- Feedback
We're big fry fans. We have recipes for every variety of fry you can think of in our guide to store-bought air fryer frozen fries, but nothing beats homemade! With that in mind, we tested making homemade fries in the air fryer extensively until we made the perfect batch. That's the recipe we're sharing with you now!
What You'll Learn about Air Fryer Homemade Fries
- How to cut potatoes into fries. We'll guide you through cutting a potato to use for this french fry recipe.
- How to prepare your homemade fries for air frying. Some guides will insist you need to soak the fries to get rid of excess starch, but in our testing we found a much easier way that works just as well.
- How to make air fryer fries. Making air fryer french fries is easy with the right recipe - so trust us, this will be easy!
- How to flash freeze fries. Flash freezing and then air frying results in the best, crispiest fries. Not sure what flash freezing is? We'll get into that, too.
Homemade French Fry Ingredients
- Russet Potatoes: We're using just one large russet potato for this recipe. That will make you about two servings worth of fries. Fries are better eaten the same day they're cooked, but you can flash freeze them, so if you want to make a bigger batch of cut potatoes and freeze them, you can. You can also use yukon gold potatoes, but keep in mind that the size of the fry changes the cook time.
- Avocado Oil: This is our favorite oil for air frying crispy fries. It has a neutral flavor and a high smoke point, so it's perfect! If you prefer olive oil, make sure to use light olive oil, as it has a higher smoke point than other varieties. For any other type of vegetable oil, see our guide to air frying oils for more info.
- Kosher Salt: We recommend you use kosher salt or sea salt rather than table salt. Our favorite is kosher salt.
- Black Pepper: Freshly cracked black pepper is great, but you can also use ground black pepper.
Watch the Video
How to Cut a Potato for Fries
Note: Before you start cutting, preheat your air fryer to 400°F. That way, you don't have to wait for it to preheat later.
- Carefully slice the potato lengthwise into four sections. This will give you nice thick slices that aren't too thick.
- Slice these four sections into fourths lengthwise. Make sure all of your cuts are even. Some pieces will naturally end up shorter. That's okay!
How to Prepare Cut Fries for Air Frying
Step 1
Rinse french fry slices in cold water. We're using a bowl and a mesh strainer to do this. You don't need to soak them. We extensively tested making homemade fries, and found that there was very little difference between soaking and simply rinsing them to remove the starch.
Step 2
Thoroughly pat the fries dry using a towel. We're using a clean hand towel, but you can also use a paper towel.
Step 3
Place your cut french fries in a large bowl. Toss with avocado oil, salt, and pepper. Mix to coat the potato slices completely with the seasoning. Now you're ready to start air frying your fries!
How to Air Fry Homemade Fries
Step 1
Spray the air fryer basket with avocado oil. Make sure to use natural oil in an oil sprayer, and not a cooking spray with additives. See our guide to air frying oils for more info. Then, arrange the fries in the basket in a single layer as much as you can. A little overlap is okay, but the more space you leave them, the crispier they will get.
Step 2
In your air fryer preheated to 400°F, air fry fries for 15-18 minutes or until crisp to your liking. Be sure to shake the air fryer basket halfway through cooking to ensure they cook evenly. IMPORTANT: If your air fryer is a toaster oven style air fryer with a tray, air fry the fries for 18-20 minutes instead. Stir the fries around halfway through the cook time.
NOTE: If the french fries stick to the basket when you try to shake them, put the basket in and continue air frying for another 3-5 minutes. They should release fairly easily. You might have to encourage them to release using a spatula to gently lift under them. Don’t force them though or they will stick to the air fryer basket. Make sure not to use a metal spatula, which could damage your air fryer (see: air fryer tools).
Step 3
Carefully remove your homemade fries from the air fryer basket. Toss them with more salt if needed, then serve with your favorite dipping sauces and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Use an oil sprayer filled with your preferred oil. Avoid using pressurized cooking sprays with additives, as they might damage the air fryer's non-stick surface. For more information, see our comprehensive guide on what oils to use for air frying.
- Cook time will depend on the size of the french fries and the space they have in the air fryer. Bigger french fry cuts will take longer to cook. Additionally, a crowded air fryer will result in less crispy french fries and uneven cooking.
- Typically, one large russet potato will amount to two servings of french fries. For more servings, we recommend cooking in batches.
- Just like oven baked or fried french fries, you’ll want to serve air fryer french fries immediately as they do lose their crispness if they sit too long after cooking.
- Cook time may vary depending on your specific air fryer, as all models are different. As always, use the cook time and temperature as a guide until you are more comfortable with your specific brand of air fryer.
- If cooking in multiple batches, be sure to check on the remaining batches early, as they may cook more quickly.
Notes from Our Extensive Testing
- We tested making homemade french fries in the air fryer extensively. In our testing, we found there was very little difference between just rinsing the fries and soaking them in ice cold water. Rinsing is enough to get rid of the excess starch.
- Drying the fries thoroughly and not crowding them in the air fryer will make the biggest impact to whether or not your fries are crispy.
- To help dry the fries out even more, you can spread them out on a rack set inside a baking tray and refrigerate them for 30 minutes to an hour before air frying.
- We highly recommend using a french fry cutter such as this one (non-sponsored) for cutting perfectly sized french fries. This is pretty good quality, and makes quick work of cutting fries. We love how evenly the fries are cut!
- The absolute BEST fries from our testing were the ones we air fried from frozen. They held their shape and were the crispiest overall. We highly recommend cutting your own fries and flash freezing them and storing in a zip top bag in your freezer. When ready to air fry, just remove what you need and store the remainder in the freezer for up to six months.
- Just like oven baked or fried french fries, you’ll want to serve air fryer french fries immediately as they do lose their crispness if they sit too long after cooking.
- Air fry a few minutes to reheat, but please understand they will not be as crispy when reheating.
How to Store Leftover Fries
Just like oven baked or fried french fries, you will want to serve air fryer french fries immediately as they do lose their crispness if they sit too long after cooking. However, you can store leftover fries in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and reheat them in the air fryer for 3-5 minutes to crisp them up slightly again. Alternatively, you can freeze them before cooking if you know you'll have leftovers. See below!
How to Flash Freeze French Fries
- Scrub the potato clean, or peel it if you prefer peeled fries.
- Cut the potato into fries following our directions above.
- Rinse the french fly slices under cold water to remove excess starch.
- Dry the fries thoroughly using a clean hand towel or paper towel.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and lay the french fry slices on the baking sheet in a single layer.
- Place the baking sheet in the freezer until the fries are frozen. This takes about one hour.
- Store the frozen fries in a zip-top airtight freezer bag until ready to use, up to six months.
Air Frying Homemade Fries from Frozen
- Without thawing, toss frozen homemade fries in seasoning and oil.
- Spread the seasoned fries out in the air fryer basket (or tray) in an even layer. Try not to overlap the fries.
- Air fry for 18-20 minutes, or until crisp to your liking, at 400°F. Shake the basket halfway through the cook time.
- Serve with your favorite dipping sauces, and enjoy!
What to Serve with Air Fryer Fries
- Air Fryer Chicken Sandwich
- Air Fryer BLT Sandwich
- Frozen Turkey Burgers in the Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Steak Tips
- Big Mac Sauce
Leave a comment and review for us below if you enjoyed this recipe, or if you have questions about any of our air fryer recipes!
Air Fryer Homemade Fries
Equipment
- Air Fryer
- Cutting board
- Chef's knife
Ingredients
- 1 large russet potato
- ½ Tablespoon avocado oil
- ½ to 1 teaspoon(s) kosher salt
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400°F.
- Cut potatoes into french fries by carefully slicing the potato into four sections lengthwise, then cutting those sections into fourths lengthwise (see video).
- Rinse the potato slices in cold water. No need to soak.
- Thoroughly pat the fries dry using a clean hand towel or paper towel.
- Place cut, rinsed, and dried fries into a large bowl. Toss with avocado oil, salt, and pepper. Mix to coat completely.
- Spray the air fryer basket using avocado oil in a spray bottle (not a cooking spray). See our guide to air frying oils for more info.
- Arrange the fries in a single layer as much as you can. A little overlap is okay.
- Air fry at 400°F for 15-18 minutes if using an air fryer model with a basket, or 18-20 minutes if using an air fryer model with a tray. Shake the basket halfway through the cook time.
- If the fries stick to the basket or tray when you try to shake/stir them, continue frying for another 3-5 minutes, then try again.
- Carefully remove your homemade fries from the air fryer basket. Toss with more salt if needed, and enjoy.
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