Oh me. There are few things as dangerous as a plate of bacon and blue cheese French fries. If ever there was something that causes my self-control to go totally out the window, this is it. It all starts with perfectly crispy, delicious French fries. Homemade. Hot out of the deep-fryer. Then comes the blue cheese sauce. That wonderful funky cheese flavor. Creamy with hints of garlic and shallot. Delicious. And finally, bacon. Crispy, smoky, perfectly-cooked bacon. These are the fries dreams are made of.
If I’m cooking these bacon and blue cheese French fries for a crowd, I’ll break out my big deep fryer. But, if it’s just the two of us, I’ll fire up my Fry Daddy fryer. It’s the perfect size for both of us. It fries everything perfectly. And as an added bonus, it doesn’t use a lot of oil, which saves me money.
If you’d rather not make fries from scratch, you can use frozen ones instead. Just bake the fries per the package instructions, making sure you get them good and crispy While they’re baking, make the sauce and cook the bacon. Serve hot-out-of-the-oven.
These fries were the perfect side dish for my pub sauce smash burgers.
Bacon and Blue Cheese French Fries
Ingredients
For the fries
- 2 large Russet potatoes cleaned, peeled if desired
- 4 cups vegetable oil for frying
- kosher salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- blue cheese fry sauce from below
- 3 slices bacon cooked, chopped
For the blue cheese fry sauce
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ cup shallot small diced
- 2 cloves garlic diced
- 1 cup blue cheese crumbled
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
For the blue cheese sauce (make first and keep warm while making the fries)
- Add butter to a small skillet over medium heat.
- Add shallot and garlic. Saute for 4-5 minutes or until just starting to soften.
- Add the cheese, milk and pepper.
- Stirring constantly, raise the heat to medium-high and let the mixture get to a simmer. The cheese should be melted and the sauce will start to thicken.
- Remove from heat and cover until ready to use.
For the fries
- Fill a large bowl with cold water.
- Slice the potatoes into thin, 1/8″-1/4″ sticks. Try to keep them the same thickness.
- Place fries into the water. Add more water if needed to keep them full submerged.
- Add the oil to the fryer and plug it in according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Drain the fries. Refill with more cold water. Stir the potatoes. Repeat this step (draining, refilling) until the water is no longer cloudy. This usually just takes me two times.
- Drain the potatoes well and transfer to a large kitchen towel. Pat dry. Make sure you get them dry or they will splatter when you add them to the hot oil.
- Working in batches if needed, fry the potatoes until just starting to turn a light brown. You are not cooking them fully, you do not want them to be golden brown yet. Do not over-crowd the fryer.
- Remove the fries from the fryer using the slotted spoon that comes with the unit. Place on a wire rack over a baking pan to drain. Spread them out evenly.
- Let the fries cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes.
- Working in batches if necessary, return the fries to the fryer and finish cooking them. You want them nice and lightly golden brown. I’ve found that you can actually crowd the fryer a little more than usual for this step. The fries are mostly cooked, you’re just crisping them up and giving them some color so a little extra potatoes in there isn’t going to hurt. Just don’t over-fill the fryer.
- Remove the fries to the wire rack again to drain. Season well with salt and pepper. I prefer to transfer the fries from the rack to a large bowl, sprinkle them with the seasonings, and toss to season evenly.
- Transfer the fries to a serving dish and top with the cheese sauce and sprinkle with the bacon.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.
