Animal Style Fries at Home {In-N-Out Copycat Recipe!}
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Bring everyone’s favorite side dish into the comfort of your own home with these Animal Style fries! Ready in just 20 minutes, these In-N-Out-inspired fries rival the original. With melty cheese, a secret sauce and caramelized onions, everyone will be heading over to your house for these.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Fast food at home: one thing I hate about drive thru fries is by the time you get home, they lose their crispiness and become soggy. This way, you can enjoy the in n out animal fries straight from the oven, for the ultimate texture and taste.
- Healthier: while this recipe is nutrient dense, we use freezer fries that are baked in the oven, which requires far less oil as we are not deep frying. Reducing the fat content means we can eat out favorite side more often! Wohoo!
- Don’t live near an in-n-out: if you live anywhere that isn’t the west coast of the US, you probably have fomo from everyone digging into their in and out animal style fries- this way, we don’t have to get a plane ticket to grab ourselves some!
- Family favorite: the ingredients are for a crowd- everyone loves the secret sauce, melty cheese and caramelized onions so I love to whip these up for a movie night or a family style spread.
Add a tasty main dish to go with these Animal Style Fries! Try my Healthy Air Fryer Turkey Burgers, Easy Turkey Steak Recipe (10 minutes or less!), Tender Braising Steak with Gravy
What are animal style fries?
Where they started: Animal Style fries originated at the popular fast-food chain In-N-Out Burger, which started in California in 1948. The “Animal Style” concept is part of their “secret menu,” known for adding unique twists to classic items.
Why they are called that: According to the Independent, the name is based on the people who would order them. They would act crazy, honk their horns, and leave trash everywhere.
In-n-out ingredients: Grilled onion, melted cheese, skinny-ish fries and their secret sauce which I’d say is a hybrid between burger sauce and thousand island sauce.
What type of fries to use
I chose to use French fries for this recipe which weren’t too skinny. You don’t want to use ultra thin French fries/shoestring fries as they wont hold up to the toppings.
Bigger chunky fries/chips wouldn’t be authentic but they’d still be delicious. Some even like to shake things up and use crinkle fries/waffle fries for their Animal style fries in n out.
Ingredients
The main ingredients that make this Animal Style Fries recipe fantastic are the following:
American cheese: It’s cheap, delicious and the perfect addition to get the melty/cheesy topping.
American mustard: In order to get the secret sauce right, use American mustard (I love French’s) rather than any other mustard for these in and out animal fries.
Onion: Any onion will work but I like to use a yellow onion to get the most authentic animal style fries end result.
Variations/ Adaptations
- Add meat: I personally LOVE to load these up with a protein like crispy bacon/chorizo bits, ground beef or shredded chicken. This is a great way to make this more of a substantial meal/keep you fuller for longer.
- Customize the toppings: Get creative and add things like jalapenos, pepperoncini, banana peppers, crispy onions, or your favorite fresh herbs.
- Dairy free/vegan: Use vegan cheese or no cheese at all to make these animal fries suit your dietary needs.
- They are already gluten free and vegetarian so no need to adapt these in n out fries!
How to make animal style fries
Preheat oven to 205°C/400°F.
- First place the frozen French fries on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 20 minutes or for the time stated on the package minus 5 minutes (Image 1).
- While the French fries cook, add the diced onion, salt, and pepper to a pan with olive oil and begin to sauté (Image 2).
3. In the meantime, make the sauce by placing the mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, and pickle juice into a bowl (Image 3).
4. Mix the ingredients well (Image 4).
5. Pull the fries out of the oven 5 minutes early and add salt, pepper, and the cheese slices. Then pop the tray back in the oven for the last 5 minutes (Image 5).
6. Finish cooking the caramelized onions and set aside (Image 6).
7. After the last five minutes of baking, pull the cheese covered fries from the oven and add the animal-style sauce (Image 7).
8. Finish them off by topping with the caramelized onions and immediately (Image 8).
For a more filling meal, try serving these yummy dishes with your Animal Fries: Italian Sausage Stuffed Peppers, The BEST Crispy Chicken Wrap, The Best Garlic Prawns
Tips for the best result
- Don’t use really thin fries, they don’t hold up under the toppings.
- Season your fries evenly and generously with salt just before adding the melted cheese.
- Drizzle the sauce over the in and out animal style fries evenly to ensure everything is coated/ areas don’t get overly drenched.
- Enjoy immediately/ when cool enough to eat so that you get the crispiest fries!
FAQs
Although the name is misleading, Animal Style fries are vegetarian, topped with cheese, grilled onions, and special sauce—making them meat free.
Yes, just add the onions and special sauce. I do personally love the texture that the American cheese provides, so if you can, I’d keep the cheese!
To make ahead, make the caramelized onions and secret sauce beforehand. Then, when it’s almost time to eat and the fries are in the oven, reheat the onions for 30 seconds in the microwave.
Satisfy any cravings for comforting meals when you make one of these satisfying meals; Healthy Kraft Inspired Mac n Cheese, Easy Cheesy Mashed Potatoes Recipe, Creamy Bacon Pasta
If you tried this Animal Style Fries Recipe, it would be mean so much to me if you could leave a review & a star rating to let me know how you found it! I love hearing about your experiences – it motivates me to keep creating more and more recipes for you guys 💛 Let’s get cooking! – Mimi x
In-N-Out Animal Style Fries
Ingredients
- 650 g frozen fries £2.50/2
- 1 onion, finely diced (£0.15)
- 4 slices of American cheese £0.60
- Optional fresh parsley to garnish
Cupboard Essentials
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
- 5 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1.5 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp pickle juice
- 2 tsp American mustard
Method
- Preheat your oven to 205°C/400°F.
- Add your frozen fries to a parchment lined baking sheet and evenly distribute. Pop in the oven for 20 minutes, or the time stated on the packet minus 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add the diced onion and olive oil into a pan. Season with salt and pepper and saute for around 10-15 minutes, until browned and caramelized. Add the worcestershire sauce for the final 2 minutes of cook time.
- Prepare the sauce by mixing the mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard and pickle juice together. Season with salt.
- When the fries are 5 minutes away from being done, season with salt and add the american cheese slices to the tray and pop back in the oven for 5 minutes to melt.
- Top the fries with the animal-style sauce and caramelized onions. Optionally finish with a sprinkle of fresh parsley for colour.
Notes
- Avoid thin fries: Use thicker fries to ensure they can support the toppings without becoming soggy.
- Season fries generously: Evenly sprinkle a generous amount of salt on the fries just before adding melted cheese.
- Drizzle sauce evenly: Pour the sauce over the fries evenly to ensure all areas are coated without excessive sogginess.
- Serve immediately: Enjoy the fries as soon as they are cool enough to eat for the best crispy texture.
Nutrition
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