French fries (known as chips in British English and other varieties), finger chips (in Indian English), french-fried potatoes, or simply fries, are batonnet or allumette-cut deep-fried potatoes of disputed origin from Belgium or France. They are made by cutting potatoes into even strips, drying them, and frying them, typically in a deep fryer. Pre-cut, blanched, and frozen russet potatoes are commonly used and sometimes baked in regular or convection ovens. Air fryers, which are small convection ovens, are also marketed for frying potatoes.
French fries are served hot, either soft or crispy, and are usually eaten as part of lunch or dinner, or as a snack. They are frequently found on the menus of diners, fast food restaurants, pubs, and bars. Fries are often salted and served with condiments such as ketchup, vinegar, mayonnaise, or tomato sauce. Heavier toppings can also be added, as seen in dishes like poutine, loaded fries, or chili cheese fries. Additionally, fries can be made from sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes. A baked version called oven fries uses little to no oil.
In the United States and most of Canada, the term "french fries," sometimes capitalized as "French fries" or shortened to "fries," refers to all dishes of fried elongated pieces of potatoes. Variants in shape and size have specific names, such as curly fries or shoestring fries.
In the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, and New Zealand, the term "chips" is generally used. However, thinly cut fried potatoes are sometimes called "french fries" or "skinny fries" to differentiate them from thicker-cut chips, which may be referred to as "steak fries" in the US and Canada. In North America, the word "chips" is more often used to refer to potato chips, known in the UK and Ireland as crisps.
Thomas Jefferson served "potatoes in the French manner" at a White House dinner in 1802. The term "french fried potatoes" first appeared in print in English in Eliza Warren's 1856 book "Cookery for Maids of All Work": "French Fried Potatoes – Cut new potatoes in thin slices, put them in boiling fat, and a little salt; fry both sides to a light golden brown colour; drain." This referred to thin, shallow-fried slices of potato. The exact origins of the now-familiar deep-fried batons or fingers of potato are unclear. By the early 20th century, "french fried" was used to describe deep-frying foods like onion rings or chicken.
One story about the name "french fries" suggests that American soldiers in Belgium during World War I thought the local chips were a French dish because the Belgian Army spoke French. However, the term existed in English long before that and did not become widely popular until decades later. The term was in use in the United States as early as 1886. An 1899 article in Good Housekeeping referenced the French method of frying: "The perfection of French fries is due chiefly to the fact that plenty of fat is used."
In 1673, Chilean Francisco Núñez de Pineda mentioned eating "papas fritas" in 1629 and noted that women sent fried and stewed potatoes to the chiefs. These were likely cubes fried in butter, a customary method, though the cane shape of fries originates from Europe. Fries may have been invented in Spain, the first European country where the potato appeared from the New World colonies. Professor Paul Ilegems, curator of the Frietmuseum in Bruges, Belgium, believes Saint Teresa of Ávila of Spain cooked the first french fries, citing her familiarity with potatoes through her South American family. She reportedly fried small potato figures in hot oil, which sometimes broke into strips resembling fries.
The Belgians and French dispute the origin of fries. Belgian food historian Pierre Leclercq traced the history of the french fry and concluded that fries are of French origin, becoming a popular Parisian dish in the 19th century. Bavarian musician Frédéric Krieger learned to cook fries in Paris in 1842 and brought the recipe to Belgium in 1844, where he opened a business selling "Paris-style fried potatoes."
From the Belgian perspective, the popularity of the term "french fries" is attributed to "French gastronomic hegemony," with Belgian cuisine assimilated due to a shared language and geographic proximity. Belgian journalist Jo Gérard claimed a 1781 family manuscript documented deep-frying potatoes as a substitute for fish when rivers were frozen,
but this manuscript was never produced, and the story's historical value is questioned. The potato did not arrive in the region until around 1735, and given the economic conditions of the 18th century, it is unlikely that large quantities of fat would have been used for cooking potatoes. At most, they were sautéed in a pan.
