5 THINGS YOU MUST KNOW TO
MAKE THE PERFECT FRENCH FRIES
© Copyright
Chef’s path © 2015 First published by Chef’s Path Publishers, 2015. FIRST EDITION
TABLE OF CONTENTS 05
POTATO SELECTION
06
OPTIMUM STORAGE
07
VEG-WASHING FORMULA
08
HOME-COOK MISTAKES
09
HOME-MADE PERFECTION RECIPE
Introduction French fries have proved to be an important and ever progressing delight on the American dining table. What looks like a simple cooking procedure for a simple meal, has turned out to be an art of some form. The art of making French fries stands at the heart of today’s culinary practices, with a lot of tweaks, twists and turns. So simple it might look, but great care has to be taken in the preparation of this intricate meal. The taste, texture and the pleasure derived from the chips depends on a number of factors. As part of our commitment to complement our amazing potato cutter bundle with amazing information that will help you best utilize our product and create memorable, delicious memories with your loved ones, we are introducing the “5 things you must to know to make the perfect French fries” e-book. This e-book contains 5 important points that will lead you to the perfect French fries. These 5 points stress the following: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Potato Selection Optimum Storage Veg-washing Formula Home-cook mistakes Home-made Perfection Recipe
I really hope you have an amazing time making French Fries
Waleed Chef’s Path
1 Potato Selection
Choosing the right potatoes is the first and most important step towards making the perfect French fries. Potatoes come in a variety of shapes, sizes and types. However, when making French fries, not all potatoes can be used and two important factors need to be taken into consideration:
1. Starch content of the potato
2. Moisture level of the potato
The starch content is the major determinant of the ‘crispiness’ of the chips or the fries. When the starch content of the potatoes is taken into consideration, potatoes can be grouped into three different types: floury, waxy and all purpose.
After establishing the best type of potatoes for your French fries, we will look into the second factor which many home cooks fail to consider and which drastically derails our quest for the perfect French fries; the moisture level of the potato.
The potatoes most suited for frying and baking are the floury type; • Russet • Snowden • Burbank • Desiree • Idaho
Depending on the moisture level, the potato is classified as either “wet” or “dry”. The perfect French fries needs a balance; not too wet {soggy, waxy texture when fried}, nor too dry {too hard and crunchy when fried}. The salinity test will help you in determining the best potatoes:
i. Prepare two tubs of brine (water with salt content). Tub-A has weak brine [dissolve 90 g of salt into1 kg of water]. Tub-B has strong brine [dissolve 120 g of salt into 1 kg of water]. ii. Place the potato in Tub-A followed by Tub-B iii. The ideal potato should Sink in Tub-A then Float in Tub-B iv. Potatoes that float in Tub-A are too wet, Potatoes that sink in Tub-B are too dry.
2 Optimum Storage
In most instances, we purchase potatoes when we are not ready to use them. This brings up the issue of storage. The proper storage conditions are vital for the longevity of your potatoes. Knowing the ins and outs of proper potato storage is essential for getting the most value out of your potatoes. As such, we have summarized the most important factors for optimum storage into the following:
1. Sorting
3. Temperature
Sorting the potatoes you have is vital. The ones which have bruises, visible damage or broken skin will rot faster and may spread it to the undamaged ones. They need to be used within a day or two or “cured�.
The temperature should be less than 50degF. A cool dark room like a cellar usually works. However, please avoid putting them in the fridge as it will give the potatoes an unwanted sweet taste and discoloration.
2. Storing Store healthy potatoes in a dark, dry place. Light and moisture can cause greening and/or rotting. Good examples include basements, cellars, and kitchen cabinets. Additionally, the potatoes need to stay well-ventilated, you can either store them in the mesh bag you bought them with or place them in ventilated boxes with a newspaper between each layer.
i. Rotting: visibly decaying, smelling or covered with mold. These need to be thrown and their storage medium be cleaned/changed
ii. Greening: This is caused by exposure to light, where the potato gains a subtle green color. If
4. Periodic Checks As having perfect storage conditions in your home is not always realistic, periodic checks of your potatoes for spoilage are required, this is determine which potatoes can no longer be stored and need to be used and to remove the rotten potatoes which can spread to the others around it. The symptoms are:
it is slight, cut away the green portions before cooking.
iii. Sprouting: bud-like sprouts which are usually accompanied by greening start to grow out of the potato. If the potato texture is not too soft you can just cut it away before cooking.
3 Veg-Washing Formula “Who doesn’t know how to wash potatoes?” this may be the question on the lips of many. If you are one of those that ask such question, the fact is, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 46 percent of foodborne illnesses are linked to fruits and vegetables. Washing produce thoroughly is critical and your potatoes are no different The following tips will greatly help you in reducing that risk considerably: 1. Do NOT wash the potatoes till you are ready to use them. Washing potatoes greatly reduces the storage shelf-life and make them much more vulnerable to rot.
3. Do NOT only wash the potatoes with running water. Experts found that a white vinegar and water wash kills 98% of bacteria and removes pesticides.
2. Do NOT use the rinse cycle of the dishwasher as an alternative as there might be residual soap in it’s system which can be absorbed inside.
4. DO use vegetable scrub before/after rinsing the potato, as using it is essential for getting into the nooks and crannies of the potato. Our 3in1 potato brush is ideal for this step.
• Place the potatoes in the bowl.
In order to put all the tips into action, we have compiled our “Veg-washing Formula” for your potatoes or any vegetable:
• Fill a bowl with water and add 1/8 to 1/2 cup of vinegar, depending on the size of your bowl. A simple rule is 3:1 [water:vinegar]
• Scrub the potatoes under running water using the vegetable scrub.
• Soak for 15 to 20 minutes. • Rinse & scrub under running water • Place the cleaned potatoes on dish-drying rack or dry them with a towel
4
Home-cook mistakes Making French fries is a simple but delicate process. So far, we have highlighted the necessary steps required to prepare the perfect potatoes for your French fries. Before discussing the final recipe, let’s take a step back and discuss the most common mistakes made by an average home cook. The focus will be on the cooking technique as much emphasis has been put in choosing, storing and cleaning the potatoes. 1. Prepping your potatoes too early Once you wash and cut the potatoes too early in an attempt to save on work later, oxidation and nutrient loss begins as does wilting and spoilage. Clean & Cut your potatoes directly before you use them. 2. Immediately Frying your cut potatoes When you cut the potatoes into tiny strips or batons, you have to make sure that they remain covered in water for at least an hour, this increases crispness. However, make sure you dry them thoroughly before dropping them in the oil to avoid burning oil splattering from your pan. Soak the cut potatoes for at least 1-2 hours before frying 3. Uneven Cut potatoes The method by which you cut your
potatoes for fries matters a lot, some people like hand cutting or other cutting methods, this has the tendency to produce pieces of a wide range of sizes. And these require different cooking time, and because they are fried together, they cook differently and unevenly. Our potato cutter will force your potato through a uniform sized grid to solve this problem Always use a potato cutter for uniform sized potato strips
4. Overcrowding your frying pan Crowding the pan results in the potatoes steaming rather than getting crisp. Plus, when you add food into the oil, it drops the temperature of the oil, so it isn’t even cooking at its optimal temperature when it’s overcrowded and you won’t have room for the potatoes to rise, and you end up with soggy fries. Only put as many potato strips as you can fit in a single layer with some room to spare around the pieces 5. Not having a thermometer while frying Always have a thermometer on hand while frying. The oil temperature is the key to your French fries and is integral to the double frying method that you will need for crisp tender French fries. It also helps you in
monitoring the temperature to avoid the oil’s smoking point. If the oil is not hot enough, your potatoes will be very greasy, and if it’s too hot, the potato strips will cook too fast and burn. Always know your oil’s temperature before frying 6. Not enough oil Always make sure there is enough oil to cover the surface of your potato strips entirely to allow uniform frying of the potato strips. This is very relevant when using the same oil repeatedly without topping up the oil or frying when the oil is not hot enough allowing the potato to absorb the oil. Maintain a 6:1 ratio of oil to potato strips 7. Re-using the oil excessively Re-using oil for a long period of time will degrade the quality of your French fries. This is due to the fact that the oil eventually breaks down. To avoid this from happening, always replenish the oil, skim through any old crumbs after frying. After 4-5 days change the oil entirely. For healthy re-using of oil, top-up and skim daily, but change it after 4-5 days.
5 Home-made perfection recipe Making restaurant type French fries requires a lot of skill and attention to details. Our home-made perfection recipe combined with tips mentioned earlier will complete the path for the perfect French fries.
Ingredients: serves 3 • 3 russet potatoes • 1/4 cup sugar • 1 tbls corn syrup • 1 tsp salt 1. Peel the outside of the potato using our 3in1 peeler brush
9. Before removing the plate from the freezer make sure that the oil is hot enough (325 degF)
2. Use our potato Cutter to get perfectly cut fries
10. Place the strips in the hot oil taking care not to overcrowd them, fry them for 3 min then pull them out of the oil and pat them dry with a paper towel until all oil is drained. Let them cool on the plate for 10 min at room temperature
3. Get a pyrex baking dish or and any container and fill it with cold water 4. Place the cut strips directly into the cold water for 1 hour. The water will turn cloudy, we want to remove the excess starch from the potato 5. Remove the strips from the water and place them in another dish to dry 6. Discard the water from the first dish and replace it with boiling water, add 1tsp sugar and tbls corn syrup. Mix the sugar and syrup till it dissolves. 7. Put the fries back in the first dish and then leave it for 10 min the dry thoroughly them using a paper towel 8. Put the plate in the freezer for 20 min
11. Heat up the oil to 350-375 degF 12. Place the par-cooked strips in the oil and fry for 4-5 min in the oil or until they are golden and crispy 13. Tap dry the French fries and drain any excess oil then season them with salt while they are hot. (preferably use a couple of spoons to mix the fries with salt) 14. Your fries are ready to be served 15. Lastly don’t forget to share your fries
We have tried our best to compile and provide you with all the necessary information required to make the Best French Fries. For any further information please do not hesitate to contact me at
waleed@chefspath.com