Frozen chips are a freezer staple for a quick and easy evening meal, but one simple ingredient can make all the difference to the texture and flavour
Frozen chips are a freezer staple for a quick and easy evening meal, but one simple ingredient can make all the difference to the texture and flavour(Image: Rizky Panuntun via Getty Images)
If there’s one item many homes keep stocked in the freezer for a quick and simple weeknight dinner, it’s a packet of frozen chips. There’s something truly enjoyable about biting into a perfectly crunchy fried potato, especially when accompanied by your go-to sauce.
While preparing chips from scratch is simple enough, having frozen chips on hand is perfect for those evenings when ease is paramount. Though it’s appealing to merely throw them directly into the air fryer or oven, spending a little additional time to add a particular ingredient can significantly enhance both the texture and taste of the dish – and one ingredient in particular proves superior to all others.
According to cookery enthusiast Chloe Edges of recipe blog Feast Glorious Feast, the key to obtaining “extra crispy” frozen chips lies in applying a light coating before air frying.
Writing on her blog about how to cook frozen chips in the air fryer, Chloe said: “Not all oven chips are created equal, and you’ll likely have a preference for ones you prefer. You will find that many oven chips have a light coating, which is designed to make them crispy.”
This is why you don’t need to double-fry them, as you do with homemade chips to achieve that crispy crunch.
Nevertheless, she observed that “if you want extra crispy chips”, you can spray them with a little vegetable oil. Chef Mark Slutzky, director of culinary at McCain Foods, also suggests coating frozen chips with oil prior to cooking.
He told The Takeout: “If you’re looking for an extra crispy finish, you can give your fries a spritz of your favourite cooking oil before baking.”
Oil works just as well for seasoning chips, as the fat assists in binding herbs and spices to the potatoes.
Mark also advises using oil to revitalise soggy, limp chips. To give them a new lease of life, lightly coat them with oil to help bring back that crispy texture, then pop them in your air fryer at 190°C for five minutes.
He assured that the chips will be “hot and crunchy once more, ready for you to enjoy”.
How to make frozen chips crispier in the air fryer
Start by preheating your air fryer to 200°C for five minutes before adding your frozen chips to the basket. Lay out the frozen chips in a single layer, being careful not to overcrowd them.
Coat the frozen chips in vegetable or olive oil before putting them in the air fryer to cook for 10 minutes. Following this, shake the basket or use tongs to flip the chips over.
Air fry for an additional 10 minutes, depending on how thick the chips are, until they turn golden and crisp.
Move the chips to a wide bowl, season straight away with salt, and serve piping hot with your chosen sauce.
Frozen chips can lack flavour, so a good pinch of salt makes all the difference.
