Affordable and easy to make, these steak fries are extra crispy and are the perfect accompaniment for steak or burgers. Top with fresh herbs and serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

One of the first recipes I learned as a child was extra-crispy steak fries. I read about a technique that removes a lot of the starch from the potatoes which helps make a crispier outer crust.

Today, some 30-years later, I’m still making steak fries the same way. And guess what? They’re still delicious!

Every. Single. Bite. Is. Crispy.

Another thing I love about these fries – they’re so cheap. We’re dealing with very affordable ingredients including potatoes, oil, and spices. This is a great example of an incredibly cheap recipe that tastes great.

Keep this appetizer/side dish recipe in mind if you’re looking to cut back on food costs and still eat deliciously.

What Are Steak Fries?

Steak fries are a thick fries cut directly from a potato.

Steak fries are similar to potato wedges – and some will argue that they are the same thing – but the difference is in the cut of the potato.

Steak fries are longer and thinner than potato wedges. Potato wedges are, as the name suggests, cut into wedges from smaller potatoes and the edges tend to be quite thick. They are shorter and stouter than steak fries.

Steak fries are usually deep fried at restaurants, but you can make them at home in the oven and they turn out extra crispy with the technique I’m sharing.

What You’ll Need

The ingredient list is pretty short here. Here’s what you’ll need to make homemade steak fries:

• Russet potatoes: You’ll want to use standard russet potatoes – the large potatoes used for baked potatoes. Keep the skin on, scrub them up, and cut them into large planks. Russets have high starch content but the soaking process detailed below removes a lot of it.
• Oil: You can use avocado oil, coconut oil (melted), vegetable oil or canola oil. If you’re trying to avoid seed oils, stick with coconut oil or avocado oil. Conversely, you could coat the potato slices in bacon grease or beef tallow. Avoid olive oil for this recipe as its smoke point is low, and the fries are baked at a high temperature.
• Spices: The spice mixture used to season these steak fries is flexible. I used a mix of kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper. You could use another spice blend such as Montreal steak seasoning, other meat seasoning blend or chili powder.
• Fresh herbs: After the steak potatoes are baked and crispy, I like to sprinkle on a generous handful of chopped parsley and green onions. This adds a fresh element and more flavor – but this step is totally optional.
  • Also consider sprinkling on some fresh Parmesan cheese for the best steak fries ever!

The Secret To Making Extra Crispy Steak Fries

The original recipe I followed back in the 80s involved cutting the potatoes into the desired shape, soaking them in cold water, rinsing them and changing the water up to 3 times to remove as much of the starch as possible.

Why cut back on starch? Starchy potatoes make for soft, crumbly potatoes. Soaking them and rinsing them several times removes much of the starch – so your baked steak fries have a nice crispy outer layer.

The Process

Scroll down for full recipe. But here’s the process to get you acquainted:

• Prep potatoes: Take your large russet potatoes, rinse them and give them a good scrub to remove any dirt or debris.
• Cut potatoes: You’ll want to cut your fries into large planks the length of the potato. The easiest way to do this is to cut the potato in half the long way, place the cut side down on a cutting board, and cut halves at an angle to get 8 to 10 slices of potato per half.
• Rinse and soak: Rinse cut potatoes in cold water. Place in a bowl of cold water and let sit for 20 minutes. Drain, rinse, and return to bowl filled with fresh cold water to soak for another 20 minutes. Repeat up to 3 times if time allows. The water will be cloudy after each soak.
• Prep potatoes for baking: Line a large baking sheet pan with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Blot potatoes dry with a paper towel. Place potatoes in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle on spices, and toss to evenly coat. Place potatoes in a single layer on prepared baking sheet. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need two.
• Bake: Preheat oven to 425F. Bake potatoes for 20 minutes in preheated oven, remove from oven and flip. Return to oven and bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, until potatoes are golden brown and crispy. Voila – perfect steak frites!

Don’t Forget The Dipping Sauce

Every French fry or steak fry needs a good dipping sauce. Use your favorite dipping sauce or try one of these ideas:

• Herbed sour cream: Mix sour cream with chopped parsley, green onions or cilantro, a pinch of salt and garlic powder, and a spoonful of mayo (optional)
• Honey mustard
• Ranch dressing
• Spicy mayo
• Hollandaise sauce
• 25+ dipping sauce ideas for fries

These homemade fries go great with steak – as the name suggests – as well as chislic, hamburgers, sloppy joes, turkey burgers, sliders, and sandwiches.

Heck, I like to make these fries and just eat them on their own with a side of ranch. I hope you enjoy these delicious steak fries as much as I have throughout the years!