Cajun Baked Steak Fries Recipe

For many, the sides at a steakhouse are nearly as important as the steak itself, and steak fries are among the favorites of any meat-and-potatoes lover. The secret to steak fries lies in their thick shape and their texture, which strikes the ultimate balance between a soft interior and a crispy exterior. Seasoning, cooking, and providing a dipping sauce for steak fries is an art form in itself, and this recipe manages to hit all the spots using a few handy tricks.

It starts with the cooking technique. For this recipe, Ksenia Prints of At the Immigrant's Table starts by par-boiling the perfect starchy potatoes. The potatoes are then drained, dried, sliced, and seasoned with a mix of spices and cornstarch, which helps dry out the outside of the fries even further. The fries are then tossed in oil and baked without touching each other at a high heat, thus completing the multi-layered cooking cycle.

With this recipe, you end up with restaurant-quality Cajun-spiced steak fries with a crispy, golden brown exterior that shatters satisfyingly with each bite. It belies a pillowy soft, fluffy interior that melts in your mouth, while holding its own against the heavy seasoning and the smoky, spicy aioli.

For the fries themselves, you'll want to use russet potatoes. Other potatoes will also work, but for the best soft on the inside, crispy on the outside texture, you'll want potatoes with a high starch quotient, which are usually yellow potatoes like Yukon Golds or Idaho potatoes. For dressing the potatoes, you'll need olive oil, Cajun seasoning, salt, and cornstarch. For the smoked paprika aioli, grab mayonnaise, minced garlic, lemon juice, smoked paprika, salt, and cayenne pepper.

Boil whole potatoes in salted water 12-15 minutes until just fork-tender (not fully cooked).

Drain thoroughly and cool the potatoes for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Place a rimmed baking sheet in the oven to heat.

Cut the potatoes into thick wedges.

Pat the potatoes completely dry with paper towels.

Toss the wedges with cornstarch, then olive oil, Cajun seasoning, and salt.

Arrange the fries on a hot baking sheet in a single layer, cut-side down.

Bake the fries for 20 minutes, flip, then bake for 15-20 minutes more until deep golden and crispy.

To make the aioli, whisk mayonnaise, garlic, lemon juice, smoked paprika, salt, and cayenne together until smooth.

Serve the fries immediately with the aioli.

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The easiest adaptation to these steak fries is to change up the seasonings. If you replace the Cajun spices with garlic powder, dried rosemary, and thyme, you'll end up with a more classic garlic-and-herb steakhouse flavor. You could also use Italian seasoning with paprika and Parmesan for a more Italian twist — and generally, adding Parmesan to these fries really takes them up a few notches. Make sure to add it in the last five minutes, though, or you may end up with burnt and bitter cheese granules.

Another way to change up these steak fries is to try a different flavoring for the aioli. Horseradish aioli is another classic, or you can add chipotle peppers from a can for a smoky kick. And finally, another thing you can change up is the oil you use to dress the fries. For a rich and intriguing kick of flavor, you can use beef tallow or melted duck fat as your oil of choice.

You can absolutely cook these steak fries using different methods, but we urge you not to leave out the step of parboiling the potatoes before you turn to frying, grilling, or whatever other approach you want to take. This is what is going to guarantee your fries have the best possible texture inside and out, so don't skip on this step.

The approach most often used by steakhouses is to deep fry your fries. If you want to try this approach, you'll fry the wedges in 375 F oil for 4-5 minutes in total, until they are golden brown. The most important consideration here is not to crowd too many fries in the oil at once — no matter how eager you are to eat them — as it'll drop the oil temperature and prevent them from cooking evenly.

Another alternative cooking method is to follow Bobby Flay's advice and grill them on high heat for about three minutes per side. If you own an air fryer, you could also air fry the potato wedges at 400 F for 20 minutes, flipping them to the other side halfway through the process. And finally, you can also pan fry the spuds in a cast iron skillet with a shallow ¼-inch of oil or duck fat added to the bottom.

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