Frozen fries from the grocery are cooked in the air fryer then smothered with cheese sauce, browned crispy bacon and thinly sliced scallions. Serve as a family snack or as finger food to go with cocktail drinks.
Cook’s notes
The dish has three components — potatoes, cheese sauce and bacon. Greens are optional but they do add a freshness that only fresh leaves can provide.
Given that all three components need to be cooked, how is this a fast and easy recipe? Let’s start with why it’s fast. The trick is to cook two components at the same time. The fries will need 20 to 30 minutes in the air fryer and, in that time, you can brown the bacon and make the cheese sauce.
Pre-fried frozen fries
Why is it easy? Because using frozen fries from the grocery means you don’t have to peel and cut the potatoes. And because frozen fries are pre-fried, they will turn perfectly crisp in the air fryer. No deep frying, no draining. You don’t just save time on prep but on clean up too.The exact cooking time for the fries depends on their size. Thin regular-cut cut fries will cook faster than thicker crinkle-cut fries.
But what cheese is ideal?
The kind that melts fast. American cheese and all its iterations, especially. They are processed cheeses so they melt fast in hot liquid. I like a combination of Monterey Jack and cheddar.How much milk you need to melt the cheese in depends on how thick you want your sauce. Use half a cup for a thick sauce or three-quarters cup for a more pourable sauce. Note, however, that the cheese sauce thickens as it cools.
Fast and easy cheesy bacon fries
Equipment
- Air fryer
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 350 grams frozen French fries (12.3 oz) do not thaw
- 250 grams belly bacon rashers (8.8 oz) cut into thin strips
- ½ to ¾ cup full-fat milk
- 200 grams cheese (7 oz)
- salt
- 2 tablespoons finely sliced scallions
Instructions
- Spray the air fryer basket with oil, spread the frozen fries evenly and spray the potatoes with oil.
- Cook the potatoes at 200C stirring them once halfway through.
- While the potatoes cook, spread the bacon in a thin layer in a frying pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring after a minute or two, until browned and crisp. Drain on paper towels.
- Heat the milk in a sauce pan.
- Break the cheese into small pieces (or use a shredder) and drop into the hot milk. Cook, stirring, until the cheese is fully melted.
- Spread half of the fries in a shallow bowl, drizzle half of the cheese sauce over them and top with half of the bacon. Repeat using the remaining fries, cheese sauce and bacon.
- Sprinkle scallions over the cheesy bacon fries and serve immediately.
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