Garlic parmesan fries are hot, buttery, and full of flavor–and
made with frozen fries! The fry sauce is flavorful & tangy. It’s an
awesome snack or side when you want restaurant-quality fries without
any fuss!
Inspiration
There’s a shop in my hometown that I frequent whenever I’m there. They sell giant cookies, rich brownies, thick waffles with caramelized edges. In the winter there’s raspberry hot chocolate and icy, fruit sodas with cream in the summer. But what I go for is the fries, hot and thick-cut and served in big paper cartons. Every time a friend visits from out of town, I take them there. I went right before I moved—my dad and I sat in the parking lot and ate them in the car while the snow fell outside. I’ve spent countless hours there with friends or on dates, or in the drive-through whenever my roommate or I needed cheering up or we didn’t want to cook and decided to eat fries for dinner.
My family always gets them tossed with garlic parmesan seasoning, and that’s what these are based on. The natural pairing for fries, to me, is fry sauce. It’s a Utah classic, but if you live outside the Western US, you probably don’t know what it is. Traditionally, it’s a creamy pink sauce made of one third ketchup to two thirds mayonnaise, mixed with some spices. Fry sauce essentially has a cult following in Utah, a long-beloved quirk that other states don’t quite understand.
Why I love this recipe
Garlic parmesan fries and fry sauce is a restaurant-quality snack without the cost or effort. As always, we use frozen fries to cut down on the time and the effort—there’s nothing more tedious than peeling a potato, so let’s skip it where we can!
My fry sauce has different proportions than the tradition one: I use two-thirds ketchup to one-third mayo. Though I also love traditional fry sauce, mayonnaise can have a strong flavor and I prefer to keep my fry sauce a little more tomato-based. Some people use vinegar, but pickle juice adds the same punch with just a little bit of sweetness. Plenty of ground pepper adds a little bit of bite.
Garlic parmesan fries and fry sauce are fast, easy, and addictive—I ate the whole batch in one sitting without even clearing away my photo setup.
Details
First, we’ll toss the fries with oil, salt, and garlic powder. You’ll want to use crispy fast-food style fries for this one. The proportion of salt, garlic and parmesan won’t work on thicker fries because the same weight will yield less surface area. It’s also a good idea to use your hands to toss the fries with oil and salt. Your hands will get oily, but you’ll have a better idea of when the fries are well-coated.
Next we’ll bake them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I always recommend using a light-colored baking sheet because dark ones burn food more easily. Follow the directions on the bag, but you might have to cook them a little longer since we’re tossing them in oil. Bake them until they’re gold brown.
While the fries are in the oven, mix together the fry sauce. It’s very straightforward—just stir all the ingredients together until well-combined. This fry sauce will be darker than the traditional recipe because it has different proportions. Don’t be alarmed if it smells (or tastes) a little pickly at first. Let it sit for a while and the flavors will blend.
When the fries come out, toss them with melted butter and ground parmesan. Don’t use your hands this time, as they’ll be very hot! The parmesan and butter form these little flaky, golden clumps, and that’s where all that awesome flavor comes from. Serve them with the fry sauce.
FAQ
Can I use the parmesan in the green can? This is one of the rare times that the answer to this question is yes, absolutely! That’s what I used.
How can I make sure the fries are crispy? Bake them on an oven-proof cooling rack, if you have one. The air flow helps keep them crispy.
Can I use olive oil? You can, but it’ll give them a different flavor, so it’s up to you!
Do I have to flip them? Nope! You can if you feel like it, but I never do!
Can I use oil instead of butter? You can, but that might result in an oilier fry and a different flavor. It also might make the parmesan a little soggier than butter would.
garlic parmesan french fries & fry sauce
Ingredients
Method
- Toss fries with oil, salt, and garlic powder. Bake on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet according to bag directions. Mine took about 15 minutes. Because you’re tossing them in oil, they might take a little longer than the bag says. Cook them until they’re golden brown.
- Make the fry sauce. Stir all ingredients together and set aside.
- When the fries come out, toss with melted butter, ground parmesan, and parsley. Serve with fry sauce.
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