The trick to making the fries perfectly is to blanch them first. I know this is an extra step, but it is worth it. Blanching the potato sticks for 4 minutes helps par-cook the fries to just the right stage so that the air fryer can crisp up the exterior, but keep the interior moist and tender.
Do you need to parboil chips before air frying? No you do not. In this easy air fryer chips recipe you simply peel, cut, oil and season them before tossing straight into the pan. And they're still ready in just 35 minutes!
Firstly, if your potatoes are still wet before being placed into an air fryer, this can cause your potatoes not to crispen up. You can avoid this by thoroughly patting dry your potatoes before you place them in the air fryer. Secondly, you might be putting in too many potato chips so they aren't cooking evenly.
There is no need to parboil potatoes before air frying. You can if you want to, and you may get slightly crispier potatoes. However, I find that pre-soaking them is enough to get them crispy (without the added effort).
Your air fryer French fries could come out mushy or soggy if you don't air fry them at the right temperature. Follow my directions and you should be fine! Another thing to look out for is an overcrowded basket. If the hot air is unable to pass between the potatoes, they won't get crispy.
Soaking the potatoes after they're cut draws out some of the starch which is naturally present in potatoes. This will result in a crispier fry. A thirty minute soak in cold water does the trick but you may soak them longer if you want. After soaking, be sure to dry the potatoes before you fry them.
Oil temperature
If the oil isn't hot enough, this sealing process takes longer. Meanwhile, the moisture that's meant to stay in the body of the chip is excreted, making what is supposed to be a crispy outer layer, damp and steeped.
If your air-fryer chips are soggy, throw them back into the fryer to cook a little more. Because air-fryer temperatures vary, so do cook times. That's why our air-fryer recipes have wide time ranges. You may need to cook your chips a little longer than suggested.
By using an air fryer, you can make delicious and perfectly crispy chips without having to heat up the oven or use a lot of oil, meaning healthier chips!
While the deep fryer wins on texture, the air fryer definitely delivered a better taste. Because my potato had cooked in all of my flavor and seasoning, it had absorbed it far better than the deep fried fries. This resulted in an almost-caramelized taste which was incredibly delicious.
Do you need to parboil homemade chips? For a quicker fry, and to gurantee extra crispy fries, we'd recommend parboiling your cut potatoes until a fork goes into them easily (not to the point where they break easily once you check doneness with a fork).
Without the extra starch they'll crisp up easily in the fryer. Drain the water from the fries and dry them thoroughly with a dish towel. If any water is left on the fries they will come out soggy instead of crispy.
While you would typically add oil to a pan before adding your food, the case is not the same when using an air fryer. In a bowl, toss your food in a few teaspoons of vegetable oil or olive oil along with your seasoning before putting it in the air fryer. This method works best for cooking fresh meats and vegetables.
Soaking the potatoes is critical to the best results for a great recipe. This will remove excess starch from the potatoes, which in turn yields crispier fries. Just make sure that you properly dry them afterwards, before tossing them with seasonings and baking them.
Allow them to soak, 2 to 3 hours. (You can also stick them in the fridge and let them soak overnight.) When you're ready to make the fries, drain off the water and lay the potatoes on 2 baking sheets lined with paper towels. Blot with paper towels to dry them.
When taking a recipe from oven to air fryer, the general rule is to reduce the temperature by 20ºC – 30ºC, and cook for 20% less time.
The soaking, Mr. Nasr said, is the secret to the crisp texture of the fries. It draws out the starch, making them more rigid and less likely to stick together. The cooks fry them twice, first blanching them until slightly limp in peanut oil heated to 325 degrees, and again in 375-degree oil to crisp and brown them.
A: We usually recommend no more than 24 hours. You can keep the potatoes from absorbing the water by making sure the water is not salted, and is chilled (you can even add ice to the water). To keep the potatoes from turning black from oxidation, add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white wine vinegar to a gallon of water.
Soak the potato strips in water with a dash of apple cider vinegar. Soaking the potatoes draws starch to the exterior of the potato. This prevents fries from sticking together and helps them get crispy. Vinegar delays potatoes from turning brown and also speeds up the starch extraction.