Takeaway loaded fries

Name: Takeaway loaded fries
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 3 large (1 2/3 lb) russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 7 mm (1/4-inch) fries; about 5 tbsp absorbed peanut oil, from about 8 cups (2 litres) in the pot; only what the fries absorb is counted; 3/4 tsp salt; 10 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled; the weight is the cooked bacon; 1 cup cheese sauce, homemade or a jarred cheddar sauce, warmed; 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese; 1/4 cup sour cream; 6 tbsp ranch dressing; 2 green onions, sliced; 1 jalapeño, thinly sliced

Loaded fries the way the takeaway makes them: twice-fried russet fries, golden and crackly, drowned in warm cheese sauce, a melt of sharp cheddar and crumbled crisp bacon, then finished with ranch, sour cream, green onion and jalapeño. Shown here as the comparison for the loaded and chili cheese fries rebuilds.

Want a more filling version?Loaded fries with chicken, bacon and ranch 58

Time: 55 min (20 prep + 35 cook)
Servings: 4
Per serving: 716 kcal
Protein: 23 g

Servings4

Ingredients

Fries

3 large (1 2/3 lb) russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 7 mm (1/4-inch) fries
about 5 tbsp absorbed peanut oil, from about 8 cups (2 litres) in the pot; only what the fries absorb is counted
3/4 tsp salt

Toppings

10 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled; the weight is the cooked bacon
1 cup cheese sauce, homemade or a jarred cheddar sauce, warmed
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

To finish

1/4 cup sour cream
6 tbsp ranch dressing
2 green onions, sliced
1 jalapeño, thinly sliced

Steps

Soak the cut potatoes in cold water for 30 minutes to rinse off the surface starch, then dry them thoroughly in a clean towel. Wet fries spit in the oil and never crisp.
Heat the oil in a heavy pot (no more than half full) to 320°F. Fry the potatoes in batches for 5–6 minutes, until soft but still pale, and lift them onto a rack. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a dry pan until crisp, drain it on paper and crumble it.
Raise the oil to 375°F and give each batch a second fry of 2–3 minutes, until deep golden and crackly. Drain and toss with the salt while they are still glistening.
Heap the fries in a warm ovenproof dish, pour the hot cheese sauce over them and scatter with the cheddar and bacon. Slide under a hot grill (broiler) for a minute, just until the cheddar melts.
Dollop on the sour cream, zigzag the ranch over the top, scatter with the green onion and jalapeño and serve at once, before the fries soften.

Good to know

How is the oil counted?

Only what the fries soak up, about 9 % of the raw potato's weight, not the two litres in the pot. Strain and reuse the rest once or twice.

Why fry them twice?

The first, cooler fry cooks the potato through; the second, hotter one builds the crisp shell that stands up to the sauce for a few minutes.

Alternatives

Per

Calories: 273
Protein: (13%); 9 g
Fat: (65%); 20 g
Carbohydrates: (22%); 15 g
of which sugar: 1 g
Fiber: 1 g
Sodium: 519 mg

More meals

Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How

As written, 2863 kcal goes into the pot and 1391 g of ingredients comes out as about 1050 g of food: 273 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.

Takeaway loaded fries