These are the easiest, best homemade Air Fryer French Fries ever!
Turn a few potatoes into a batch of crispy, crunchy, delicious fries that are just like your favorite deep-fried restaurant favorites, but healthier because you made them yourself in your air fryer.
The Best Air Fryer French Fries Recipe
If there was ever the perfect reason to turn on your air fryer, this is it! You can make French Fries in the Air Fryer using just russet potatoes, your favorite seasonings, and only 1 tablespoon of olive oil!
Forget about the deep fryer, and make these air fryer french fries ASAP! After a little bit of prep work, they cook in under 15 minutes to perfection, with tender insides and crisp outsides.
Your family will love how crispy they are, and you’ll feel better about feeding them fresh food without any unnecessary additives or oils.
These go perfectly with a juicy, perfectly cooked Air Fryer Steak, or a big plate of Air Fryer Chicken Wings.
Need a shortcut? No problem! Learn how to make frozen curly fries in the air fryer instead, or try air fryer frozen sweet potato fries.
How to Air Fry French Fries
The air fryer makes delicious food that is just as crispy as fried, but it’s not actually fried at all!
If you need proof, go try our recipes for air fryer boneless wings, air fryer onion rings, or air fried ravioli. These are fried food favorites, made healthier in the air fryer too!
Technically when using an air fryer we are baking these fries in a countertop appliance that is basically a small convection oven.
The little bit of oil (seriously, it’s hardly any oil at all!) that we’ll add to the potatoes is quickly heated and as hot air moves around the fries, it creates the crispy, crunchy result that we want!
You can make this recipe for air fryer french fries in a basket style air fryer, a toaster oven style air fryer, or in your Ninja Foodi. Don’t stress about which machine you should use – any air fryer will work.
Ingredients In Air Fryer French Fries
Potatoes – Russet potatoes make the best air fryer french fries. You should either wash and scrub them really well or peel away the skin before cutting them into sticks to make fries.
Olive Oil – While we aren’t deep frying, we do need some oil to make crispy fries in the air fryer. Just a tablespoon of oil is plenty.
Seasonings – You can season your french fries any way you like, but we love this simple blend of kosher salt, garlic powder, and black pepper.
If you have any questions about making air fryer french fries, please leave a comment below and I will get back to you ASAP
How to Make French Fries in the Air Fryer
- Prep the Potatoes: Wash the potatoes well, then slice lengthwise into sticks that are all 1/4-inch wide.
- Soak: Add the potatoes to a bowl and cover them with cold water. Allow them to soak in the water for at least 30 minutes.
- Dry: Drain the potatoes, then dry the fries completely with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. Then place them into a dry bowl.
- Season: Add olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to the potatoes, and toss to be sure that the fries are evenly coated.
- Air Fry! Add the fries to the air fryer basket in a single layer, making sure that there is some room between each piece of potato.
- Cook air fryer french fries at 380°F/190°C for a total of 10-14 minutes. Start with 5 minutes.
- Shake the basket, and continue cooking for 5-9 minutes, or until the fries are crispy.
- Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and serve with ketchup or your favorite fry dipping sauce (I like these with barbecue sauce or ranch dressing!).
These numbered steps match the numbered photos above and are for illustration purposes. For the complete list of ingredients and instructions for making french fries in the air fryer, please see the recipe below.
Air Fryer French Fries Recipe Tips
- You don’t need to peel the potatoes. Make rustic hand-cut fries with the skins still attached! Just be sure to wash the potatoes really well first.
- Slice your fries evenly. To be sure that every fry cooks in the air fryer at the same rate, it’s important that they are all the same thickness. You can eyeball this, measure with a ruler or use a slicer like a mandoline. You don’t have to cut them perfectly – just do your best!
- Soaking is key! Please don’t skip this very important recipe step. A soak in cold water allows the sliced potatoes to release some of their starch, and potatoes with less starch will cook up crispier.
- Cook in Batches. As with all air fryer recipes, it is important in this one too that there is room for hot air to circulate around the food. Be sure to keep the potatoes in a single layer, and shake them often for even crisping. If you need to cook the fries in two batches, that’s ok! You will have a better outcome that way than if you tried to overfill the air fryer with potatoes.
- After you’ve cooked all of your batches, put all of the cooked fries into the basket at the end to reheat them for 1-2 minutes. This way every fry is hot and crispy!
- Want super crispy air fryer french fries? You may need to add a few extra minutes to the cooking time.
- Try other seasonings either before or after you cook the fries. Truffle salt is one thing that I love to add to french fries – it reminds me of my favorite restaurant.
- A fresh garnish of chopped parsley is optional, but it really takes these air fryer french fries to the next level, making them just like your favorite restaurant fries. A sprinkle of grated parmesan is also delicious.
What To Serve With Air Fryer Fries
Air Fryer French Fries will go with anything!
Do you like burgers? Serve these with air fryer burgers or veggie Beyond burgers.
I already mentioned that french fries are delicious with any of my air fryer steak recipes, and you should definitely try them with air fryer pork chops and air fryer chicken breast too.
As an amazingly satisfying snack, serve your homemade air fryer fries with a row of yummy dipping sauces for everyone to enjoy. Try ketchup, honey mustard, garlic aioli, or any of your favorite french fry dipping sauces.
I’m not going to namedrop here, but if you are looking to replicate an ultimate fast food feast at home, serve up some Air Fryer Fried Chicken and Air Fryer Corn On The Cob with your Air Fryer French Fries!
FAQs
It’s a personal preference whether you flip, toss, or shake your food in the air fryer! With french fries, I like to give the basket a shake rather than physically flipping over every fry. It’s just easier.
Go see our post with instructions for reheating french fries for all of the details! The short version is that you should add cold fries to the air fryer and cook them at 400°F/200°C for 3-4 minutes, or until they’re crispy again.
Russet potatoes (aka Idaho potatoes) make the best air fryer french fries. They are dense and low in moisture, which makes them wonderfully crispy when cooked correctly. Starchy Yukon Gold potatoes can also be used to make fries. Avoid waxy potatoes like red potatoes.
if you’re cooking russet potatoes that are sliced 1/4-inch thick, they will take between 10 and 14 minutes to cook perfectly in the air fryer. You will need to adjust the time if your fries are cut thicker or thinner.
Pro Tips
More Air Fryer Potato Recipes
The air fryer does amazing things with fresh potatoes. Aside from making french fries, try these other tasty air fryer potato recipes:
Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes are small creamer potatoes, coated in oil and seasonings and air fried until they are super crispy. They are the perfect side dish for almost any meal.
For a hearty breakfast, cut your potatoes into cubes and make Air Fryer Breakfast Potatoes (aka, air fryer home fries!). I like mine with ketchup and hot sauce.
Instead of cutting your potatoes into thin fries, slice them into wedges instead to make Air Fried Potato Wedges!
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Air Fryer French Fries
Equipment
- Large Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 pound russet potatoes washed and scrubbed to remove any dirt (about 2-3 medium russet potatoes)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley finely chopped, optional
Instructions
- Slice the russet potatoes lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices.
- Place the potato slices into a bowl and cover them with cool water. Let them soak for 30 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes and dry completely. This will remove the starch from the potatoes, which will help the fries crisp up in the air fryer. Place the dried potato slices into a dry bowl.
- Toss with olive oil, salt, garlic powder, and black pepper.
- Place the fries in the basket of the air fryer in a single layer, making sure there is space between each one to help air circulate around the fries. If needed, cook the fries in two batches.
- Air fry at 380°F/190°C for 10-14 minutes, or until the fries are crispy and golden. Be sure to shake the basket every 5 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh parsley before serving with ketchup or your favorite french fry dip.
Video
Notes
-
- You don’t need to peel the potatoes. Make rustic hand-cut fries with the skins still attached! Just be sure to wash the potatoes really well first. You can peel them if you prefer though, it’s up to you!
-
- Slice your fries evenly. To be sure that every fry cooks in the air fryer at the same rate, it’s important that they are all the same thickness. You can eyeball this, or use a ruler to make sure that the fries are all 1/4 of an inch thick.
-
- Soaking is key! Please don’t skip this very important recipe step. A soak in cold water allows the sliced potatoes to release some of their starch, and potatoes with less starch will cook up crispier.
-
- Cook in Batches. As with all air fryer recipes, it is important in this one too that there is room for hot air to circulate around the food. Be sure to keep the potatoes in a single layer, and shake them often for even crisping. After you’ve fully cooked all of your french fry batches, add all of the fries to the air fryer and cook for 2 minutes to warm everything back up.
Nutrition
Air Fryers can vary greatly. Please take the time to learn your specific air fryer. You may need to adjust times and temperatures based upon your air fryer. All though this website attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, the information should only be considered an estimate. Varying factors such as different product types, different brands, etc. can change nutritional information. It is your responsibility as a consumer to read all labels to make sure the ingredients fit your dietary needs as well as calculate your own nutritional information as a double check.
Thank you Cindy!
I had been looking for a homemade fry recipe when I came across yours. All I could find were frozen fries though!
Don’t get me wrong – I do love air fryer frozen fries, but sometimes you want homemade. I also wanted to use my new mandoline! I think I’m getting old LOL.
Well thanks again, these air fryer french fries were a hit!
Thanks for letting us know you loved the recipe, Polly! 🙂
can you make frozen French fries and tater toys
Yes you can heat up frozen french fries and tator tots 🙂