Curly or crinkle, waffle or wedge—a french fry charcuterie board can contain any and all of your favorite fries. Don't forget the dipping sauces!
How to Make a Fun French Fry Charcuterie Board
Updated Dec. 16, 2022
With modern charcuterie boards going well beyond cured meats and cheeses, you can put any food on a board if you’re creative (or brave) enough. Believe us—we’ve tried everything from a hot chocolate board to a taco board! Up next is a french fry charcuterie board.
This masterpiece includes all of our favorite types of fries and plenty of fry dips to go along with them. Here’s how to put together the french fry board of your dreams!
What Is a French Fry Charcuterie Board?
It’s a shareable spread with multiple kinds of french fries and dipping sauces. Simple as that! Start with at least three different kinds of fries, like potato wedges, shoestring fries, waffle fries, crinkle-cut fries, curly fries or sweet potato fries.
Some french fry boards (including ours) include Tater Tots even though they’re not technically a fry. They’re still a form of poppable potato goodness, and we find they fit in perfectly.
You’ll want to encourage your guests to eat their fill while the fries are hot. Nobody wants cold, floppy french fries!
How to Make a French Fry Charcuterie Board
Foods to Include
Fries: We included five different kinds of fries on our french fry charcuterie board: sweet potato fries, shoestrings, curly fries, crinkle-cut and waffle fries (plus Tater Tots). Including a variety of spuds makes the board more playful and fun.
Dipping sauces: You can’t have fries without some kind of dipping sauce! My personal go-to is ketchup, but we also put out bowls of fry sauce and ranch. And we served guacamole, sour cream and nacho cheese dip so guests could make cheese fries.
Toppings: Take advantage of being at home by serving toppings for the fries that you can’t get at the drive-thru. Green onions, chopped bacon and shredded cheese are safe and savory bets for any of the fries on the board.
How to Build a French Fry Charcuterie Board
Since this is a board full of piping hot fries, you’ll need to build time into your schedule to bake them right before assembly. If you don’t have enough oven space, rely on an air fryer or toaster oven to help you out. Otherwise, heat up a few trays at a time in the oven, and rewarm them at 200°F if necessary before putting everything together.
Don’t forget to make the dips ahead of time, too!
Step 1: Prepare the condiments
You’ll need to heat up the nacho cheese dip on the stovetop or in the microwave. While it’s reheating, grab bowls for the french fry dip, guacamole, ranch and ketchup, and transfer them over. Use the biggest bowls for the condiments you think people will need the most of!
Step 2: Arrange the bowls
Spread out the bowls of condiments sporadically across the empty board.
Step 3: Put the fries on the board
Transfer the hot fries from the oven, air fryer or toaster oven to the board. It doesn’t matter where you put the fries on the board—no matter how you group them together, the differences in size, cut and texture of the fries will visually pop.
For our french fry charcuterie board, we put the shoestrings and sweet potatoes fries near the ranch dip on one side of the board. The Tater Tots fit right between the nacho cheese and guacamole, while the curly fries and crinkle-cuts contrast each other nicely in the middle. The waffle fries cover the other side of the board, nestled near the ketchup and fry sauce.
Step 4: Serve the finished french fry charcuterie board
Once you have all of the fries, dips and toppings on the board, let your guests know that it’s time to dig in!
Make sure you have spoons in each of the condiment bowls so that no one is tempted to double dip. We served our board with lined trays so everyone can fill them up without having to worry about fries falling off of a plate.
Tips for Making a French Fry Board
What else can you put on a french fry charcuterie board?
Other types of fries, of course! You could add homemade steak fries, potato wedges or even potato smiley fries. Other dip options include mustard or honey mustard, your favorite barbecue sauce or aioli, chimichurri, steak sauce and more. If you want to get creative, you could even serve gravy to make poutine.
If you want to include other fried foods, think of onion rings, cheese curds, mozzarella sticks or even fried green beans.
How many fries should you make per person?
While typical serving sizes of french fries range between 12-14 fries, let’s be realistic: No one is going to stop there. Especially since you’re putting so many possible combinations to try, your guests may want to eat more than usual—so plan accordingly!
The Best Recipes for French Fry Fanatics
BBQ Chicken Waffle FriesThis is one of those dishes that sounds so wrong but tastes so right! Trust me—barbecue chicken leftovers are fantastic with the fries. We like it with lettuce, tomato and pickle, but you can add almost any toppings you like. —Janet Telleen, Russell, Iowa
French Fry CasseroleCheeseburger-inspired french fry casserole is a playful take on a hot dish. Who wouldn't smile when presented with a toasty platter of fries crowning a cheesy, beefy tumble? As with a burger, you can customize yours with any toppings you like.
Cheese FriesQuick, easy and a surefire hit at your next gameday potluck or family gathering, you need just 20 minutes and six ingredients to whip up a large batch of these cheese fries.
Loaded Waffle FriesMake any dinner fun with my Loaded Waffle Fries, topped with a savory blend of cheese, scallions and bacon. I copied this family-favorite recipe from a local restaurant, and it's great with hot dogs, burgers or by itself. —Jeffrey Viccone, Decatur, Illinois
If you're a fan of loaded fries you can also try making animal style fries from In-N-Out.
Parmesan Potato WedgesHere's a simple way to serve potatoes that has big flavor: cut into wedges, coat generously in garlic, paprika and Parmesan cheese, and bake until tender inside and crisp outside.
Baked Chops and Cottage FriesConvenience items like frozen vegetables, cottage fries and a jar of cheese sauce make it a snap to assemble this comforting pork chop supper. It's a simple one-dish meal. —Gregg Voss, Emerson, Nebraska
Baked Sweet Potato FriesWhen you want a super-simple, crispy, flavorful side dish, turn to this baked sweet potato fries recipe. It takes only a little seasoning to create an oven-baked fry dish that will become one of your favorite ways to eat sweet potatoes.
Waffle Fry NachosMy husband and two grown sons really enjoy these fun nachos—they can devour a platter of them in no time. They're also fun to make when friends come over. —Debra Morgan, Idaho Falls, Idaho
Reuben Waffle Potato AppetizersI love Reubens, so I turned the classic sandwich into a fun appetizer with corned beef and sauerkraut on waffle fries. —Gloria Bradley, Naperville, Illinois
Ultimate Pastrami SandwichesThis peerless pastrami sandwich was adapted from a menu favorite at Primanti Bros. Restaurant in Pittsburgh. We took the basic ingredients—grilled cold cuts, cheese, fried potatoes and tomatoes—and created a tasty replica that includes our version of their secret coleslaw topping. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen
Oven FriesCheck out this super-healthy twist on fries: the secret is that they’re baked French fries.
Cheesy Chili FriesMy family is all about chili fries, but restaurant versions pile on the calories. For a healthier approach, bake the fries and serve them with green onions and avocado. —Beverly Nowling, Bristol, Florida
Potato Wedges with Sweet & Spicy SauceI'm a small-business owner, so most of my recipes are a result of not having time to run to the store, and doing with what's on hand. Here's a perfect example. Dip these wedges in anything. —Dana Alexander, Lebanon, Missouri
Two-Tone Potato WedgesBetter than french fries, these tasty potatoes have just the right touch of garlic and Parmesan cheese. This is the only way my daughter will eat sweet potatoes, and she loves 'em!. —Marie Nicolau Schumacher, Larchmont, New York
Parmesan-Romano Potato WedgesI taught my nieces to make these easy, cheesy oven-baked potatoes. When the whole family comes over, we triple the recipe—and have no leftovers. —Ann Brown, Niles, MI
Originally Published: December 16, 2022
