Super Quick and Easy Fried Potatoes
My family loves fried potatoes and onions, but I've always found them annoyingly labor intensive. I admit, I can be a lazy cook at times! These are the result of having items on hand and craving fried potatoes. They're not exactly the same as what my good, Southern Grandma makes, but hey, for "super quick and easy", I'll take 'em!
My family loves fried potatoes and onions, but I've always found them annoyingly labor intensive. I admit, I can be a lazy cook at times! These are the result of having items on hand and craving fried potatoes. They're not exactly the same as what my good, Southern Grandma makes, but hey, for "super quick and easy", I'll take 'em!
- Carbohydrate 0.0108016666666667 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 9.33387666666667 g
- Fiber 0.00441666666666667 g
- Protein 0.001825 g
- Saturated Fat 0.607856666666667 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (9g)
- Sodium 0.00733333333333333 mg
- Sugar 0.006385 g
- Trans Fat 0.41069 g
- Calories 83 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat.
- Add thawed french fries and begin to break them into pieces using a wooden spoon.
- Stir to coat with oil and saute briefly.
- Add frozen onions and drizzle all with the remaining 2 tbsp. of cooking oil. Stir again and continue until some browning of the edges of the potatoes starts to occur.
- Once you see the browning, cover and reduce heat to low and allow to cook for approximately 30 minutes or long enough for the onions to be cooked through and the potatoes to be completely heated.
- Sprinkle with pepper to taste, stir and serve. No salt is necessary because the frozen potatoes are lightly seasoned.
Traditional skillet potatoes require peeling, raw cubing, and lengthy parboiling to achieve tenderness before the exterior can brown. This method bypasses those tedious preparation steps by utilizing commercially frozen steak-cut fries as a reliable shortcut. Thawing the potatoes beforehand removes excess surface frost, which prevents dangerous oil splatters and ensures the fat stays hot enough to sear rather than steam.
Thermal control dictates success when combining starchy potatoes and high-moisture frozen onions in a single skillet. Maintaining a medium-high heat initially allows the oil to establish direct contact with the exterior potato surfaces, producing crisp edges. Breaking the thawed fries apart with a wooden spoon creates irregular surface areas that catch additional oil and promote varied textures.
Covering the pan after the initial browning phase traps internal moisture, converting the low heat into a gentle steam bath that cooks the interior completely. Letting this covered process run for approximately 30 minutes ensures the frozen onions soften thoroughly without burning their delicate sugars. Adjusting the batch size requires proportional pan space adjustments to prevent overcrowding, which causes steaming instead of frying.
Seasoning should always occur at the very end of cooking to prevent drawing out moisture prematurely from the softened starches. Commercial frozen fries frequently contain pre-applied sodium, so tasting before adding pepper avoids over-seasoning the finished dish.
