Crispy, fluffy funnel cake fries are a fun and easy recipe that taste just like a regular funnel cake, but easier to prepare and serve. The dipping options are endless and the best parts is that it’s a quick dessert and you don’t have to have a deep fryer.
Homemade funnel cakes are so much fun to make and taste just like the ones you would find at the county fair. We turned our regular ones into funnel cake French fries, which are a little less messy and make for a tasty sweet treat. You can share with a crowd and just eat a few or eat a whole bunch!
If you are obsessed with fair foods, you have to try my fried ice cream, caramel apples, deep fried cheesecake and cinnamon sugar churros. Each bite will remind you of your favorite amusement parks and total nostalgia.
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🎡 Ingredients:
- Vegetable or canola oil or shortening – for frying
- all-purpose flour – gives the classic funnel cake texture.
- salt – enhances the other flavors.
- baking powder – makes the dough puff up nicely. Baking powder reacts with the wet ingredients and again with the heat, so mix your batter together right before cooking the funnel cakes/fries for the best texture.
- granulated sugar – sweetens the batter.
- salted butter, egg, heavy whipping cream, whole milk – adds richness and moisture so the fries stay together.
- vanilla extract – adds a subtle hint of vanilla but makes a big difference.
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
Funnel cake fries are fantastic with sweet dipping sauces like our easy brown sugar caramel recipe, chocolate, and strawberry. Like traditional funnel cakes, you can dust them with powdered sugar or regular sugar.
Substitutions and Variations
- Pancake batter: use pancake mix in place of the homemade batter. Just be sure that it is smooth and thick enough to form ribbons when drizzling into the bowl.
- Gluten-free: swap the all purpose flavor with a gluten free all purpose flour.
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: Fill a large pot or Dutch oven with 2-3 inches of oil and clip a thermometer onto the side. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350°F.
Step 1: Make the funnel cake batter while the oil is preheating by first whisking the dry ingredients together.
Step 2: In a large bowl, whisk the egg until frothy. Then add the butter, milk, cream, and vanilla, stir to combine.
Step 3: Mix the dry ingredients into the wet just until combined.
Step 4: Transfer the batter to a piping bag, squeeze bottle, or plastic bag (snip the corner with scissors).
Pro Tip: Use a pair of scissors to “cut” the stream of batter to make it easier.
Step 5: Squeeze the batter in a straight line into the hot oil. Pipe as many fries as you can without overcrowding.
Step 6: Flip the fries once the bottoms are golden brown, and cook on the other side. The whole cooking process takes just a minute or two.
Step 7: Use a slotted spoon to remove the funnel cake fries and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat for the remaining fries.
Step 8: Dust with powdered sugar.
SERVE: Serve with your favorite dipping sauce, marshmallow fluff, or whipped cream.
Recipe Tips for Funnel Cake French Fries
- If you have a deep fryer, use that instead of the pot. It makes deep frying easier and you don’t have to worry about monitoring the temperature with a thermometer.
- Reduce to medium heat if necessary. Just be sure the temperature stays around 350 degrees while frying.
- The fries can be long or short; it’s a little hard to stop the stream, which is why I recommend scissors.
- As long as you pipe 1 inch away from the fries, they have plenty of space to start cooking and will not stick if they get close.
- Once you have enough fries to fill the pan, they will be ready to flip. Once all of them have been flipped they will be ready to be taken out of the oil. The entire cooking process is quite quick.
Fun Fact
The funnel cake is one of the first American fried foods associated with the Pennsylvania Dutch and German immigrants in the 17th century. – Silverwood Express
Recipe FAQs
We do not recommend storing, as they lose their crispness after about 15 minutes. They are best when served immediately. If you must store, keep them in an airtight container for up to 2 days and reheat in the oven or in the air fryer to make them as crisp as possible again.
Because the batter is squeezed through a bottle/funnel into the oil to make the swirly shape of the cake.
Be sure to maintain the proper temperature. If the temperature drops, it takes them longer to cook and they soak up too much oil in the meantime.
More Delicious Fried Desserts
If you tried this Funnel Cake Fries Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
Funnel Cake Fries
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil or shortening for frying
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons salted butter melted
- 1 egg
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 ½ cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Clip a food or candy thermometer onto the rim of the Dutch oven. Fill at least halfway (at least 2-3″ deep) with vegetable oil or melt shortening to this depth.
- Heat over high heat until oil reaches a precise temperature of 350°F (about 15 minutes).
- While oil is heating, prepare the batter. Begin by whisking together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk egg until frothy. Add in butter, cream, milk, and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
- Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined.
- Transfer the batter to a squeeze bottle, a piping bag, or a plastic bag (snip the corner off when ready to add the batter to the oil).
- Squeeze the batter in straight lines into the hot oil. You can use your finger or a pair of scissors to “cut” the stream of batter, if desired. Pipe as many “fries” as you can fit in the oil.
- As soon as the bottom side of the fries turn golden brown (about 20-30 seconds) flip the strips over to cook the other side.
- Remove the cooked funnel cake fries from the oil with a slotted spoon. Place fries on paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
- Continue cooking the funnel cake fries.
- Serve funnel cake fries hot, dusted with powdered sugar, granulated sugar, whipped cream, and/or sliced strawberries/strawberry sauce. Caramel or chocolate sauce are other popular dipping sauce choices.
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