How to make In-N-Out Burger’s famous off-menu loaded fries

Around 6pm on most weeknights across our great nation, there is a specific kind of “doing our best” energy. You open the freezer, stare into the icy abyss and realise that “best” actually means frozen chips.

We’re not pretending these are hand-cut thrice-fried pommes frites from a tiny bistro in Paris. This is a glow-up of frozen fries, pure and simple. We are elevating. We are accessorising. We are doing the absolute most with a $4.50 staple, so naturally, there are some ground rules.

First: the fries. You can use any kind you like, but I do draw the line at wedges.

We need them golden and audibly crisp; if they don’t crunch, we cannot build.

Once we’ve chosen the foundation, let’s talk about accessorising. The secret to a successful chip glow-up is knowing where to hold back and where to go overboard.

You need a crisp base. A generous topping. Acid somewhere (pickles, vinegar, hot sauce). Something creamy. Something crunchy.

Then, we get technical. Spread ’em. Give them space – the anti-social kind. High heat, no overcrowding, ever. Chips deserve airflow and ambition. If you have an air fryer, this is her moment. We need them golden and audibly crisp; if they don’t crunch, we cannot build. Now, let’s load them up and hail the chip fry for dinner-time glory.

Those animal fries

If you’ve ever fallen down a late-night internet rabbit hole, you’ve seen the copycat versions of the off-menu loaded fries from California’s In-N-Out Burger. And yes, I am making them at home, in Brisbane, with frozen chips and zero shame.

Cook the fries according to the packet instructions until they’re aggressively golden. Meanwhile, cook 2 finely diced onions low and slow in a heft of butter and oil with a generous pinch of salt. You are not saute-ing. You are committing. In a bowl, whisk together Kewpie mayo, a few tablespoons of tomato sauce, a pinch of sugar and at least 2 tablespoons of finely chopped pickles.

When the chips hit peak tan, scatter over some grated burger cheese. If you can’t find any, a mix of cheddar and red Leicester gives you much the same look and flavour. Let it melt indecently for the final minute or two of cooking.

Transfer to a tray and top with the jammy onions and generous dollops of the burger sauce. For the true burger effect, scatter over a few slices of pickle. Serve with forks, consume with appetite.

Leftover bolognese fries

This is the kind of after-school “hero mum” moment I live for.

Cook the fries until golden and crisp. Meanwhile, heat your leftover bolognese and spoon it generously over the hot chips. Top with a blanket of mozzarella and return to a hot oven until bubbling and melted. Finish with fresh basil or oregano and season at will. It’s a lasagne-adjacent joy, minus the time commitment or the roux-related stress of a bechamel.

’Nduja, hot honey and feta chips

Spicy, sweet, salty, crispy: the holy grail of weeknight satisfaction.

Whack your fries in the oven and bake until golden. Cook some ’nduja in a frying pan until it’s crisp and has released its vibrant oils.

While that’s sizzling, heat ¼ cup honey in a small saucepan until warmed through. Remove the chips from the oven and pile them on a large serving plate. Top the chips with the ’nduja and drizzle the hot honey over the top. Scatter with ½ cup crumbled Persian-style feta, plus a few oregano leaves, if you have them, for a touch of “fance”. Serve piping hot.

Furikake fries with curry sauce

The key here is to embrace the supermarket Japanese curry hit. Those packet curry roux blocks – like the classic S&B Golden Curry – are perfection and, frankly, taste even better with chips.

Get your fries in the oven and secure yourself some superb furikake, the Japanese seasoning that typically features seaweed, sesame seeds and dried fish.

While the chips crisp up, finely dice and sweat an onion in a saucepan with a few tablespoons of olive oil. Add the curry roux and a splash of water, or low-salt chicken stock, simmering and stirring regularly until thick and glossy.

Once the chips are done, toss them with the furikake until they’re well coated. Serve with the curry sauce for dipping heaven.

If curry sauce isn’t your thing, a quick spicy mayo will do the trick. Whisk together gochujang paste, miso, soy sauce, honey, hot sauce, rice vinegar and Kewpie mayonnaise. You can also swap out regular chips for sweet potato if you want to keep the “spicy” vibes going.

Steak frites ’n bearnaise butter baguette

I had a version of this in Paris at Christmas and it made me believe in Santa – a surprise gift I still think about.

You’re going to need an epic baguette. This is a butter-based take on bearnaise sauce because, let’s be honest, if we’re in bag-of-chips territory, we are definitely not in emulsion territory.

Bring 150g of butter to room temperature. In a bowl, combine one very finely diced French shallot (eschalot), a grated garlic clove, and two tablespoons each of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, chervil and tarragon. Add the butter and 1 teaspoon of white wine vinegar, stirring thoroughly to incorporate (or just whiz the lot in a blender for a few seconds). Set aside.

Get your fries on a tray and into the oven, cooking until golden. Meanwhile, cook your steak to your liking, rest it, then carve it into slices. Layer the steak along the baguette, pile high with fries, and top with generous slices of the herb butter.

Return the baguette to the oven ever so briefly – just until the butter melts and pools over the chips. Eat immediately, right when the fries hit that perfect precipice between crunch and softening into the glorious, herby butter.