DAE think frozen fries beat fresh potatoes in the air fryer?

I tried making fries from scratch with russet potatoes and they came out soggy, but a bag of Ore-Ida crinkle cuts from my freezer got perfectly crispy in 12 minutes. Is it the coating or just my technique that's the problem?

3 comments

3 Comments

jordanblack1mo agoOG Member

Hold up, you're missing the whole point of an air fryer! It's for making real food, not just reheating factory stuff. Fresh potatoes have way better flavor and you control the salt. You probably didn't dry the russets enough after cutting, water is the enemy of crisp. A quick soak in cold water and a really good pat dry with paper towels makes all the difference. That frozen coating is just starch and oil you could add yourself for a better result.

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leo_fisher1mo agoMost Upvoted

Forget about the potatoes for a second. What about the energy bill? Running an air fryer from raw takes way longer than heating up a frozen thing, so you're using more power every single time. Is that "real food" worth the extra cost on top of the prep work?

lucasschmidt1mo ago

Okay but my last electric bill looked like I was trying to power a small city, so maybe he's onto something. I'm just out here trying to make a decent potato.