Best Seasoning For French Fries
Published Mar 11, 2024
Updated Mar 21, 2024
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Here is the Best Seasoning For French Fries, whether homemade or store-bought frozen fries made in the air fryer or oven. You only need 7 ingredients and 5 minutes to make this simple homemade seasoning!
Elevate your French fries to restaurant quality by adding this tasty seasoning! You can use it on my Loaded French Fries, Plantain Fries, or Super Crispy Yuca Fries! But don’t stop there – you can also use it as a finishing salt for Easy Roasted Potatoes, Plantain Chips, or Sweet Fried Plantains.
The seasoning blend is incredibly versatile, so there are countless ways to use it. Whether you’re adding delicious toppings to your fries or simply dipping them in ketchup, this seasoning blend is guaranteed to take your food to the next level. It pairs perfectly with any type of sauce you can imagine!
Table of Contents
Why Season French Fries?
There are a few reasons why:
- Taste. This is the clearest and most obvious reason! When the right seasonings are used, they enhance and complement the natural flavor of the potatoes and give them a deeper and more complex taste.
- Texture. The added texture makes for an elevated eating experience, whether it is the salt granules or the refreshing parsley flakes.
- Appearance. French fries with seasonings surely have a more appetizing look to them. Remember, we eat with our eyes first!
My seasoning blend has been crafted to perfection so that it tastes delicious whether you enjoy the fries plain or dip them in sauces.
Check out this recipe for Frozen Fries In Air Fryer.
Spices In Seasoning For French Fries
Here are the spices and herbs you need for the best-seasoned French fries:
- Garlic Powder: Garlic and potatoes are a wonderful pairing, so using garlic powder in the seasoning blend will make the fries taste amazing no matter how you serve them.
- Onion Powder: This seasoning provides savoriness to the blend. The flavor of onion powder is much more concentrated than using fresh onions.
- Paprika: Paprika’s sweet yet smoky flavor is the perfect addition to French fries plus it gives the seasoning an attractive red or orange hue.
- Dried Basil: Basil is both sweet and earthy and pairs perfectly with the garlic and onion.
- Dried Parsley: Although parsley has a subtle taste, it still provides earthiness and also helps to give the fries an appetizing presentation.
Make sure to check out the exact measurements in the recipe card below so you can have the correct ratios.
What Other Spices Work In The Seasoning Blend?
You can certainly customize the blend to make it more suitable to your preferences.
- Thyme and Oregano: Add these for an earthier taste.
- Cayenne Pepper or Chili Powder: Add these for a spicy variation.
- Dry Mustard: This gives a sharp yet pleasant undertone. You don’t need much!
- White Pepper: Substitute the black pepper with white, which provides its own distinct peppery taste that is slightly smoother.
How To Season French Fries
Here is the simplest process to season your French fries:
- Mix all the seasonings until thoroughly blended.
- Sprinkle seasoning evenly on fries.
- To start, use one tablespoon of my seasoning blend for every pound of fries!
- If you want them more heavily seasoned, you can adjust to taste.
In my experience, seasoning the fries while they’re still hot helps the seasonings stick. However, this depends on the method of cooking. With some methods, it might be more beneficial to season the fries before cooking them!
Examples would be when you are baking or air-frying the potatoes, and the fries are not being submerged in oil. The seasoning doesn’t have much to hold on to without the oil, so you can coat them with some beforehand. I will explain this in further detail below!
Expert Tips
- Be cautious and avoid overseasoning your fries. I recommend following my guidance regarding how much seasoning to use. Dumping on too much seasoning can make the flavor too strong and overpowering. Remember that the seasoning blend contains salt, so it’s important not to make the fries too salty. It’s best to start with a small amount and gradually increase it until you get the desired taste.
- Feel free to get creative and experiment with different spices of your choice! You can create your unique blend using the spices you and your family love.
- Prepare the spice blend beforehand to have it ready for making fries. Since it’s shelf-stable, you can keep it stocked up for several months.
- When storing the French fries seasoning, make sure to keep it in a sealed container in a cool, dark place, such as your pantry. If it is exposed to too much moisture, it can become clumpy, which reduces its quality and makes it difficult to sprinkle on food.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can season fries either before or after cooking them. There isn’t necessarily a right or wrong way, but your cooking method might affect how the seasonings stick, so you should take that into account.
The most important thing is to season the French fries directly before or after cooking them. If you wait too long and they slightly cool, the seasonings will likely just fall off.
If you’re not deep frying them, the lack of oil might stop the seasonings from sticking after you cook them. So, when using the air fryer or oven, I suggest tossing them in a small amount of oil first. You can add the seasonings immediately after the oil or wait until the fries are cooked to do so. It is up to you!
However, if you use the traditional method of deep frying them, do not season them first! All you need to do is fry them as usual and sprinkle the seasonings on afterward! The residual oil from frying will help the seasonings to adhere.
There are plenty of secrets to making amazing French fries. The type of potato you use, whether you soak your potatoes or not, and the cooking method you choose all play a huge role in creating perfect fries.
However, the seasonings you use are also a critical factor as they determine their ultimate taste. That’s why I recommend using a seasoning blend instead of simply sprinkling salt or pepper on your fries!
Recipes To Go With French Fries Seasoning
Sprinkle this French fries seasoning on the the following for more flavor:
More Homemade Recipes
If you make this recipe please leave a star rating below. Your rating helps others find the recipe plus I love hearing from you! Thank you!
Best Seasoning For French Fries
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients together.
- Sprinkle seasoning evenly on fries to taste. A good rule of thumb is to use one tablespoon of seasoning per one pound of fries.
- Store leftovers on an airtight container in the pantry for up to 6 months.
Notes
- Use this seasoning on other dishes such as roasted potatoes, meat, or vegetables.
- Store in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 6 months.
- Other seasonings you could add include thyme, oregano, and dry mustard.
- For some heat, add cayenne pepper.
