Our homemade air fryer french fries are just the tasty dish your quick dinners are looking for! We put a lot of trial and error to find the best method for making perfect homemade french fries, and dare we say, we found it! Air frying in under 15-minutes, and seasoned simply with fine sea salt and black pepper, our air fryer hand cut fries are a WHOLE LOTTA YUM.
French Fries in Air Fryer
There is something almost nostalgic about a homemade french fry. Maybe it's taking you back to a simpler time, reminiscent of a county fair, or even a reminder of time with a grandparent, but hand-cut french fries are simply memory-inducing.
And for whatever reason, one dreary afternoon we got the hankering for homemade fries.
With nothing but time on our hands, we set out to the kitchen to see if we could perfect the hand-cut french fry, but we had our eyes set on a healthier preparation: the air fryer. We have been successfully using our air fryer for a couple of years now to make a variety of recipes and many tastes just as good, if not better, than their deep-fried counterparts.
The path to the perfect homemade air fryer french fries was not a straight one as we had to try different techniques, but the effort was worth it as we figured out the perfect french fries in air fryer recipe that will yield crispy and crunch outsides and soft, warm, insides.
Create a classic combo when you combine our homemade air fryer french fries with air fryer burgers or air fryer turkey burgers. Or, go for bold when you serve your hand cut french fries with some delicious baby back ribs.
Why You'll Love This!
- Make restaurant-quality hand-cut french fries right in your own home.
- Opt to make crispy air fryer french fries by starting with a cold-water bath (optional) or you can make your homemade air fryer french fries in as little as 30-minutes.
- Our french fries in air fryer recipe is perfect for those who are trying to follow vegan, gluten-free, paleo, and dairy-free eating plans.
- The whole recipe needs just 4 ingredients!
Are you looking for more air fryer potato, or potato-like, sides to serve with your dinners? Look no further than our potato skins air fryer recipe and our air fried radishes (a low-carb potato alternative that tastes just like potatoes)!
On Keto? Grab our FREE keto foods list here OR Snag our Keto Binder HERE
Ingredient Notes
Your homemade air fryer french fries needs just four ingredients - potatoes, salt, pepper, and oil. It's a super simple recipe that is going to make you wonder why you never made homemade fries before.
- Russet potato - skin on
- fine sea salt
- black pepper
- olive oil
Variations
- Seasoning - We are sticking with the basics here for our homemade french fries, but feel free to get creative with garlic, seasoning salt, herbs, and even parmesan.
Equipment
An Air Fryer- We have a Cosori XL basket style air fryer, an Omni Plus oven style air fryer, and a small 3.2L Farberware basket style air fryer. The Cosori was used in this recipe.
Step by Step Instructions
Homemade air fryer french fries are much easier to make than you may think. We are going start by cutting a nice, thin shoestring style fry (just like McDonald's), give them a soak (optional, but worth it), then season and air fry to perfection.
Prep Ingredients
Cut the potato into ¼" pieces by either hand cutting the fries or using a mandoline.
To get the fries as crispy as possible, add the raw fries to a bowl and cover them with cold water. Let them sit for 1 hour. Drain the water and blot the fries dry with a paper towel.
***NOTE: Soaking the fries in cold water can be skipped if you're in a hurry but you'll still want to blot any moisture from the fries.
In a small bowl, combine the potato sections with the fine sea salt, ground black pepper, and olive oil. Toss the ingredients together to coat the fries.
Air Fryer French Fries Tempertature
Preheat the air fryer to 380 F for 5 minutes. Most air fryer units have a preheat option, but if yours does not you can easily turn the unit on and allow it to run for at least 5-minutes prior to cooking.
Air Fryer Fries Cooking Time
Spread the fries in an even layer in the air fryer basket, making sure the french fries do not touch. Cook them for 12-14 minutes, flipping the fries halfway through cooking.
If your potato made more fries than you can cook in one batch, cook in multiple batches rather than overcrowding your air fryer.
Serve your homemade air fryer french fries hot with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Air fryer models can vary. Our Cosori air fryer cooked the french fries in 12+ minutes however yours could cook hotter or slower. We do recommend you keep an eye on the fries the first time you go to cook them.
- If the fries are cut larger than ¼" you can still air fry them using this recipe, but they may take slightly longer to cook.
- The potato can be peeled if preferred, but we found that cooking air fryer french fries with the skin on makes them more crispy.
- For optimal crispiness, we do recommend soaking your air fryer hand cut fries for one hour prior to air frying them.
- Whether you soak your potatoes prior to cooking or not, do blot the potatoes dry before seasoning to help remove any moisture from the outside of the potato. The dryer the potato the crispier the french fry.
- Overcrowding your air fryer will cause your air fryer french fries to not cook in the timeframe. For best results, leave ample room for the air fryer air to circulate around the potato pieces.
Common Questions
Create a classic combo when you combine our homemade air fryer french fries with air fryer burgers or air fryer turkey burgers. Or, go for bold when you serve your hand cut french fries with some delicious homemade baby back ribs.
There are several reasons your air fryer french fries are not crispy. Too much oil on the fries before cooking, air frying the homemade french fries too close together, not allow the fries to air fry for at least 12+ minutes in a properly preheated 380F air fryer, or not blotting them dry before seasoning.
Add the leftover fries to the air fryer in a single layer, turn it on 400F, and air fry for 1-2 minutes until crispy.
Yes, you can skip soaking in water, but know that soaking your fries prior to air frying reduces the starch content of the potato and makes your fries extra crispy.
More Air Fryer French Fries Recipes
Looking for more air fryer french fry recipes?
- Air Fryer Frozen French Fries
- Frozen Sweet Potato Fries in Air Fryer
- Frozen Waffle Fries in Air Fryer
Come connect with us on Instagram! Be sure to tag us (wholelotta.yum) when you make a recipe. You can also find us on Facebook, and Pinterest.
Homemade Air Fryer French Fries
Make quick and easy french fries in an air fryer that are healthier than fast food and cook up in less than 15 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 Russet potato, 12 oz, skin on
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Cut the potato into ¼" pieces by either hand cutting the fries or using a mandoline.
- To get the fries as crispy as possible, add the raw fries to a bowl and cover them with cold water. Let them sit for 1 hour. Drain the water and blot the fries dry with a paper towel. NOTE- this step can be skipped if you're in a hurry but you'll still want to blot any moisture from the fries.
- In a small bowl combine the potato sections with the fine sea salt, ground black pepper, and olive oil. Toss the ingredients together to coat the fries.
- Preheat the air fryer to 380 F for 5 minutes.
- This varies based on the air fryer model and size, but only ½ of the french fries will fit in an air fryer at a time. You'll need to cook the fries in batches for the best results.
- Spread the fries in an even layer in the air fryer basket, making sure the french fries do not touch. Cook them for 12-14 minutes, flipping the fries halfway through cooking. Serve hot and enjoy! cook the remaining fries.
Notes
Air fryer models can vary, our Cosori air fryer cooked the french fries in 12+ minutes, yours could cook hotter or slower so keep an eye on the fries the first time you go to cook them.
For seasoning variations, garlic salt can be swapped for sea salt or sprinkle Johnny's seasoning salt. Adding a dried herb like rosemary adds a nice touch. To add parmesan, sprinkle it on the fries in the last minute of cooking.
If you have regular table salt like Morton's instead of fine sea salt, cut back on the salt slightly since it's stronger than sea salt.
If the fries are cut larger than ¼" they'll still work in the recipe, they'll just take a little longer to cook.
The potato can be peeled if preferred, but we found that cooking air fryer french fries with the skin on makes them more crispy.
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