Take Mediocre Frozen Fries To New Heights With One Simple Step

While there's nothing like biting into juicy, warm, crispy french fries from your favorite fast-food joint, sometimes you don't want to leave the comfort of your house to indulge in this side. If that's the case, an equally easy way to get your hands on this snack is to pop some frozen french fries in the oven.

The only catch is that often these fries don't have the same boost of flavor as your favorite restaurant's do. To get around this, there's one easy trick you can try to really boost the flavor — pre-season your fries before popping them in the oven. Seasoning your fries before you bake them helps the potatoes release their starch and sugar, causing a tastier and crispier bite.

On top of that, to pre-season your fries, you'll want to toss them in oil, which can also add unique tasting notes of its own. Plus, it helps the seasoning stick better than if you season them out of the oven, leading to a more flavorful fry.

There are tons of different seasonings that you can add to frozen fries to really elevate their taste. While salt is the classic go-to, it's far from the only option. For one thing, you can mix in additional seasonings to your salt to give it extra oomph. Paprika can add smoky notes to your fries, for instance, while garlic powder can add a savory, pungent touch to them. You could also go with fresh herbs to introduce earthy flavors to your meal.

Beyond sticking with some of these savory flavors, you can also go for some more unique profiles. For instance, try using cocoa powder to add dark chocolate notes. Cocoa powder is unsweetened, and adds bitter flavor to your fries, which can work well against the salty, oily taste of the side. You can also add cinnamon powder to give them a woody, piney flavor. This can work particularly well with frozen sweet potato fries, bringing out some of the sugary touches of the tuber.

Speaking of sweetness, another option is to actually add sugar to your seasoning. You don't have to go the whole hog and use only sugar, but adding a dash helps improve browning and crunch.

Beyond just playing with the seasoning, one super simple way to upgrade frozen fries is by adding a drizzle of oil to them. Olive oil can add fruity notes, while coconut oil gives a tropical sweetness that can work well on fries with cinnamon or cocoa in the seasoning. You could also drizzle on peanut oil for a dash of nuttiness to your side. Plus, the oil can also keep your fries from sticking to the tray and tearing off that crispy exterior.

Beyond the oil, another tip is to avoid the common french fry mistake of overcrowding your pan. If you overcrowd, the oil temperature might not get as high, which can lead to fries that don't brown up the way they should. Plus, you can get an oily, soggy mess instead of crispy, crunchy goodness. Worse yet, they can create steam that leads to extra moisture, which also causes a soggy bite.

Lastly, make sure to preheat your oven. Preheating makes sure your fries get up to full temperature, giving you a dish that has a good texture and preventing sogginess. With these tips and tricks, you can easily make your frozen french fries taste almost as good as oven-baked fries made from scratch.