1teaspoonneutral vegetable oilor more as needed (do not add too much oil, or the fries can turn out soggy)
¼teaspoonground paprika
¼teaspoongarlic powder
⅛teaspoonground black pepper
saltto taste; I use about ½ teaspoon in total
Instructions
Prep/soak: Scrub potatoes clean. Peel if desired (I never do), slice into ¼ – ½ inch thick fries (½ inch is closer to steakhouse fries, ¼ inch is closer to french fries). Place in large bowl and cover with ice cold water. Soak for 30 minutes.
Dry and season: Drain and rinse potatoes, then pat very dry with paper towels. Place potatoes in large bowl and add just enough oil to coat them all, do not add too much oil. Combine ground paprika, garlic powder and pepper in a small bowl, then toss with fries.
Air fry: Preheat air fryer on highest setting for 5 minutes. Then, place a single layer of potatoes into hot air fryer basket. Air fry at 385°F for 15 minutes, shaking basket once every 5 minutes. Check on fries, then add 2-5 more minutes to the cooking time, depending on how done the potatoes already are and how crisped up you want them.
Salt and serve: Once potatoes are done, imemdiately remove to a bowl and toss with salt to taste. Serve immediately! Cook remaining potatoes in batches in the same way.
Notes
Potatoes: Russet potatoes work best, but Yukon Gold are also fine. The size/length of the potatoes determines the length of your fries, so if you like long fries, you need to buy long potatoes.
Seasoning: Feel free to use any seasoning you like for the potatoes. Cajun seasoning is really nice, and so is Old Bay or taco seasoning, if I’m being honest.
Do not skip the soaking! I have tried several batches of fries with shorter soaking times or no soaking, and they ranged from barely crispy to soft and limp.
Pat the fries very dry once you have drained them, else the residual water will make them steam in the air fryer vs crisp up.
Make sure to salt the fries after air frying, the salt draws out water and, again, makes the potatoes steam/soften in the air fryer vs crisp up, especially in the second or third batch.
Do not overcrowd your air fryer, you’ll get best results by air frying in 2-3 batches.
Serve the fries hot from the air fryer (you can reheat in batches on the highest setting for 2-3 minutes if you do all the batches first, then serve). They do soften once they cool, as with most fries.