The Best Way To Reheat Leftover Fries (2 Easy Methods)

Two pictures of a woman savoring the taste of freshly made french fries.

Revive Old Fries To Hot And Crispy Perfection

For the most part, I try to avoid wasting food. When I go out to dinner with my boys, we often bring home a box of whatever didn’t get eaten to save for later. Generally these leftovers are gone within a a day, but one restaurant leftover that seldom gets eaten is french fries!

My boys are definitely “microwave chefs”, and try as they might to microwave those leftover fries, they never turn out very good! The fries get hot, but they’re also mushy and tasteless. So despite my efforts to avoid food waste, into the trash they go.

But after doing some research to determine the best way to reheat french fries, I made a couple of great discoveries. I learned there’s not one, but two easy ways to transform sad fries back into hot, crispy goodness!

We’ll start with the stove top method before moving onto the air fryer method.

How To Heat Up Leftover French Fries: 2 Easy Methods

A woman pouring oil into a pan of freshly made french fries.

1. Stove Top Method

Start by adding a neutral-flavored cooking oil to the bottom of a large skillet, just enough to coat the bottom in a thin layer. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until hot.

When the oil is sufficiently hot, place the leftover fries in the pan in one layer. If you have more fries than will fit in one layer, reheat them in batches.

When the bottoms are crispy and golden brown, flip the fries over and cook for another couple of minutes until they’re crispy and golden brown all over. Remove the fries from the pan and place them on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil.

Add salt and seasonings, if desired, and serve immediately with the dip of your choice! (Fry sauce anyone?)

An individual using an air fryer to cook carrots, enhancing their taste and avoiding the need to reheat leftover fries.

2. Air Fryer Method

Another easy way to revive old fries? Toss them in your air fryer! It works just as well and you don’t have to add any extra oil.

Simply set your air fryer to 325°F and let it heat up for a few minutes. When it’s nice and hot, arrange your leftover fries in an even layer in the basket, then put them in your air fryer for 3-5 minutes.

Depending on how thick the fries are, they could crisp up very fast (like shoestring potatoes), or they might take longer (like steak fries). Just to be safe, check them every couple of minutes until they’re hot and crispy.