Summary Light microscopy was used to study changes in cell size, blister formation and crust evolution during potato frying. Frying experiments with both French fries and crisps of different thickness (1–5 mm) were performed at temperatures of 140 and 180 °C. Thickness, volume and density changes were also measured. The formation of crust in French fries starts after the potato surface reached approximately 103 °C, and then the crust thickness increased linearly with the square root of frying time, this increase being faster at 180 °C. The potato volume decreased during frying, although in the late stages the volume may increase because of oil uptake and cell separation caused by entrapped water vapour. Shrinkage was adequately described by the Weibull model with a residual value, with shrinkage rate increasing with temperature and decreasing with potato thickness. The residual volume was not affected by temperature (65% for French fries and 59–30 for crisps, depending on thickness). Volume appeared to decrease mainly as the result of water loss, except for very low water content, and thus potato density changes were very small.