The Best Way to Reheat French Fries
Cold fries appear to be one of the few leftover foods that cannot be disposed of. As soon as the roast begins to cool down, the water inside the fluffy starch granules moves towards the crust, making the inside of the roast grainy and the outside soft. This is a really dire situation.
Trying to heat them up in the oven doesn’t help much – they just taste like warm cardboard rather than cold, and re-frying requires a lot of oil for mediocre results. The best and most elegant way to reheat potatoes and maximize their crispness is to toss them into our favorite handy appliance: the waffle iron.
I must emphasize that these waffles will not be the same as truly fresh potatoes as there is no easy way to rehydrate these starch granules. But breaking them in a waffle iron will chase away moisture that soaks the outer surface and also creates crispy and crunchy nooks and crannies (extra surface area) with a texture very similar to homemade breakfast potatoes.
Simply heat the waffle iron to maximum temperature, place a handful of cold, sad fries in the center, and break it between the burners. As soon as you see the dark golden brown pockets of the waffle potatoes, eat them right away. They are good to be dipped in ketchup or spicy mayonnaise, but they are especially pleasant as a platform for a fried egg, and their unusually crunchy character makes them ideal for topping on gravy.