How to Revive Leftover Fries with Water: A Step-by-Step Guide
Dry, stale, leftover fries are a thing of the past. This simple kitchen hack uses the power of rehydration to get perfectly crispy fries that can be even better than fresh.
Why use water for reheating fries?
Water is the most important factor when reheating food. This goes for most things but is especially true for fries.
Fries tend to lose a lot of moisture when stored as leftovers, becoming dry and hard when reheated. Here’s how water helps:
Adding a bit of water will rehydrate the fries from the inside out by creating steam.
As they absorb moisture from the steam, the starches within the fries swell up, creating a fluffy interior.
Then the water evaporates off of the exterior leaving you with perfectly crispy fries.
For this technique to work though, you must use high heat and keep the cooking time short. The fries won’t hang on to that moisture for long.
Read on to learn how to do this step by step, with pictures.
What you’ll need
Water
Spray bottle - ideally, mist food with a spray bottle. Being able to evenly spray water on your food before reheating is life-changing. Firstly, it allows you to add as little or as much water as needed with precision, and secondly, it creates a mist that coats the food evenly.
Alternative - if you don’t have a spray bottle, sprinkle water by hand. However, I highly recommend having a spray bottle for better results. I keep a small one in the door of my fridge and regularly change the water to keep it fresh.
High heat source
This can be a high-temperature oven, toaster oven, air fryer, or stovetop. I’ve tested this method out with all of these and the results are great.
Non-stick surface
For ovens and air fryers, use a tray lined with parchment paper or non-stick aluminum foil.
For stovetops, use a non-stick frying pan or cast-iron skillet.
Avoid regular aluminum foil as fries tend to stick to it.
How it Works
Step 1
Preheat oven and prep fries.
Preheat your conventional or toaster oven, or air fryer to 450F.
Place leftover fries on a parchment or non-stick foil-lined tray.
If using a stovetop, place your pan on medium-high heat and add fries to it.
Step 2
Mist fries with water.
Using a spray bottle filled with water, spray the fries liberally until they’re well coated with water - about 10 spritzes.
Alternatively, drizzle some water on the fries with your hand until they’re well coated. They shouldn’t be in a pool of water, but you should be able to see large water drops forming on the surface beneath them.
Step 3
Heat fries until crisp.
Place the tray on the middle rack of your preheated oven and heat for 6 minutes, giving the fries a turn and shaking halfway through.
If using an air fryer this could happen more quickly so keep an eye, checking the fries and turning every 2 minutes.
If using the stovetop, toss the fries frequently to ensure even browning.
Step 4
Rest, reseason, and serve.
They’re done when they look golden brown and crispy, if not, heat them a little longer.
Depending on which method you’re using, this could take about 4-10 minutes.
They tend to leach out a bit of oil when reheated so place them on a paper towel-lined plate or tray to absorb any excess oil when they’re done.
Taste them and reseason with salt if necessary.
Top Tips For Reheating Fries
Avoid the microwave - this will just lead to soggy fries. It’s just not possible to get crispy fries in the microwave.
Why refrying is unnecessary - there’s no need to refry leftover fries in oil, it just makes them excessively greasy. Using water and a high heat method rehydrates and crisps them perfectly, restoring their original texture without adding more oil.
Avoid overcrowding - spread the fries in a single layer to ensure even reheating for crispy results.
Don’t overdo the water - they should be misted or lightly sprinkled, not drenched.
Use this method for other foods - this method works wonders for anything crispy or fried such as leftover pizza, bread, fried chicken, and more.
Enjoy your perfectly crisp fries!
That’s all there is to it, and they can honestly be better than fries when they are fresh. Every single fry will be consistently crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, which isn’t necessarily common.
I also like this method when I get takeout or delivery fries since they’re usually soggy by the time they get to me. Follow the same method but don’t use as much water if the fries are still somewhat fresh.
Crispy fries with a little ketchup are great, but if you want to jazz them up, here’s a little inspiration for your next reheat, try adding a fun topping such as:
Chili con carne, green onions, and sour cream
Grated parm, garlic, and thyme
Gravy & cheese curds
Tzatziki & feta
Cheese sauce & pickled jalapenos
Tahini & zhoug sauce
There’s no limit to what you can add, so have fun with it! Let me know in the comments if you’ve tried this method and your favorite toppings.
Enjoy!
