The Best Store-Bought Fry Seasonings Have A Secret Ingredient You Need To Try At Home (And It's Not MSG)

Ever been chowing down on french fries and wondered what made them so difficult to stop eating? It might have been a nice golden color and crisp texture, but it's also the flavor. It's not just salt, but something a little more. It's likely these fries have been doused with fry seasoning, a tried-and-true blend of salt and spices. There's one secret ingredient that really boosts the crave-worthiness: not MSG, but sugar.

Sugar may not be the most obvious ingredient to add, but it's in most fry seasonings that can be purchased, including Lawry's. Some popular fast food french fries, such as Wingstop and Freddy's, are also noticeably coated in such a fry mix. This doesn't mean french fries, or any food you use fry seasoning on, actually tastes sweet. If anything, sugar enhances the taste of the salt and spices, such as garlic, pepper, cayenne, and paprika. When salt and sugar are both present in a seasoning or dish, they work harmoniously together to reduce bitter flavors, balance each other, and also calm down spice levels.

If you think about it, sugar appears in a lot of other savory seasonings, sauces, and dishes where spices and salt are also present. Many meat rubs, poultry seasonings, taco spice blends, and Cajun seasonings contain sugar. Barbecue sauce needs sugar to temper the loaded mix of tomato, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and chili powder, and the acidity of tomato and pizza sauce finds a more mellow balance with sugar.

The surprising addition of sugar in fry seasoning already does a lot for flavor, but it also contributes to color and texture. Aside from the obvious use for french fries, fry seasoning is an amazing addition to roasted vegetables, air fryer tofu, potato wedges, and any fried or grilled meat. Color and texture are both important to the eating experience of these foods. You want homemade fries to be extra crispy and golden brown, tofu to have a perfectly browned exterior, and roasted vegetables to have a slight char. Guess what? Sugar can help with all of this.

When foods containing sugar, starches, or protein are cooked, a chemical process called the Maillard reaction occurs. This is rather complicated chemistry, but, long story short, the exposure to high heat causes the proteins and sugars to create new flavors, color, and aroma. Aka, the golden-brown hue of french fries, the desirable char on a burger, or the beautiful caramelization of sugar. When sugar is added to food, such as in a seasoning, sauce, or marinade, the Maillard reaction can be amplified further. Although potatoes are naturally high in starches and brown when cooked without sugar, a generous sprinkling of fry seasoning before they are cooked can enhance the browning effect. As fast food restaurants do when salting french fries, add the seasoning right after pulling them out so it sticks to the hot oil.