I really and truly did not think this was going to work, but canning French fries is one of my finest canning accomplishments (ok, it’s an accomplishment I copied off other people who tried it first.) Knowing Russets can easily become mealy and cloud everything with starch, I was a doubter. But when I found the potatoes for 19 cents a pound, I had to try.
You know, some people get a little prissy about deep frying at home because they say it isn’t healthy, but then go out the next day for fast food fries. I’m just going to own it, knowing I eat fries when we occasionally go out anyway, so why not make them at home? It’s not like I’m making them often, but when we don’t have $60 to throw down for burgers and fries at the local restaurant, we can still have the experience at home.
First, you need to scrub the potatoes clean. Then cut and peel the potatoes. The peeling doesn’t have to be perfect, but I use my apple peeler to get the job done.
Then I cut the potatoes into fries. I bought this handy fry cutter to make quick work of it, and to have nice even fries. To determine how many potatoes I will need, I cut the fries, then stuff them in the jars, and plunge them in the cold pot of water. I do this seven times for seven quarts as a way of measuring.
The trick with homemade fries is to soak the potatoes in cold water to release the starch. I do two soaks, about an hour each time. Make sure to change the water in between.
I put 1 tsp salt and potatoes into each jar.
I then fill with water, fasten lids and rings, and pressure can for 40 minutes. Here is how they look after canning.
When you go to fry, lay the canned fries on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels and dry off.
I deep fry until golden – it doesn’t take long. While the fries are still hot, I sprinkle them with seasoned salt. My family has declared these fries the best they’ve ever had, and I agree. The outside is crispy and the inside fluffy. Next experiment, canned hamburgers maybe?
Do you can Yukon gold potatoes the same? We only use those instead of russet potatoes as the girls in my house don’t like the russets.
Can you water bath can french fries? I’ve not tried pressure canning and to be honest it terrifies me.
No, potatoes need to be pressure canned. Acidic foods and jams and jellies can be water bat. If your food is not acidic it can not be water bathed
Yes, but do your research first. Only the US seems to feel that pressure canning is necessary. Many countries don’t even have pressure canning tools available.
Has anyone tried dry canning the French fries?
I have, they are superior to canning in water.
So how do you dry can them?
Can I use white potatoes to make these canned French fries?
I think most people use Russets for fries because of the texture but I don’t see why white potatoes wouldn’t work!
I know I just changed to a different post, but these are newer comments. When PC beans, can I add chunks of chicken too?
Can you do water bath on everything?
Any reason can’t can with the skin still on the potatoes? Thanks! Can’t wait to try it out!
You can leave the skins on, just make sure they are scrubbed really well to make sure dirt and bacteria are cleaned off. I also just dry canned French fries (which means no water) but haven’t fried them up yet. I’m going to amend this blog post with instructions and a comparison of canning the fries with water vs. no water.
i bought some frozen french fries, can i can them, do i have to thaw them first and how long to can them
Ok, I’m intrigued! Once the fries are in the quart jars, so I cover them with boiling water? Otherwise, have you had issues with jars breaking? I’ve been canning for close to 30 years, but I’ve shied away from potatoes…until now. Thank you! Any extra info would be great.
It doesn’t have to be boiling water. Also, I just experimented with dry canning potatoes they are great. Canning Diva hired a lab to test the safety of dry canning potatoes and it passed the test. It’s not an “approved” method but that’s because the government didn’t test it specifically. I want to try and dry can fries this fall.
How did you do dry canning French fries
I haven’t yet, but I plan to very soon! My dry canned diced potatoes turned out perfect.
Do have to do anything to the fries before dry canning or do u put anything in the jar and can for what amount of time.
I dry can french fries and they are delicious. I melt some butter and lightly coat the french fries before putting in my quart jars. I cook for 40mins with 11 PSI.
Yes, I tried it and they are so much better than using water!
Do you soak fries first to get rid of starch when dry canning?
I know you said it doesn’t have to be boiling water. I am new to the canning of stuff and I am canning fries so is it just hot water then.
The water has to be about the same temperature as the water in the canner, that’s all that matters.
Do the potatoes change color? Mine have a yellow tint after canning
If I used a half gallon jar would I need to increase the time?
Air frying these fries are amazing. I use spritz of olive oil and seasoning salt with cracked black pepper. Cook on Fries setting !!! Simply amazing!!!
I just did Yukon golds and they were awful never crisped up deep frying what did I do wrong
You should use Russets, Yukon Golds are more creamy.
Did you get any information on half gallon time. l would appreciate if you would pass it to me . It’s my first time to try ,thanks in advance
The only times for half gallon jars are juice, but I wish the government would test more things for half gallon jars!
Do you need to use russets? It seems like waxy potato like a red skinned potato would hold up better. Thanks
Yes, I do Russets for these fries and they hold up well. I drain them after opening, pat them off carefully and fry. I do like the waxy ones for doing roasted potatoes.
What a terrific idea! Thank you
Thank you Denise!
We opened the one ones I canned and they smell funny are they good to eat
As they say, when in doubt, throw it out. That said, you can’t smell botulism.
What size jars did you use?
Quarts.
I wonder how these would come out in an air fryer? I got one for Christmas and am still learning what can and can’t be done! Lol
Mary, I don’t have an air fryer, but if you try it this way would you report back on this thread for others to see? Thanks!
I have found there are three tips for successful air-fried French fries:
1. Patience
2. Patience
3. Patience
They take more time than pan-frying or deep-frying, and I had to learn to get used to it. The tradeoff is you use less oil. That is not insignificant. I am intrigued with the idea of pre-canning the sliced potatoes, and I surely intend to try it. I am guessing that pre-canning would reduce the air-frying time considerably.
Mary, healthy oils are essential for our overall health. I melt Tallow, toss the uncooked potatoes in it and pop them in the air fryer. We prefer our deep fryer due to the quickness of cooking the fries. Once upon a time fast food fries were cooked with Tallow. The health benefits of Tallow are so significant I wrote a blog about it https://havit.care/why-beef-tallow-surprisingly-improved-my-dry-eyes/.