How to Make Homemade French Fries Making your own french fries is an opportunity to experience deep-fat frying at its best and easiest. You dont even need a fryer to turn out crisp, golden fries, but you will need real potatoes! How to Make French Fries 1. Prepare the Potatoes The ideal french fries have a crisp, golden exterior and a light, mealy interior. Russet or Idaho potatoes (high-starch potatoes) will give you the best results, although Finnish yellow, Yukon gold, or other all-purpose potatoes will work. Low-starch potatoes, such as round red or white or new potatoes, are the least preferable. For four to six servings, start with 4 medium baking potatoes (or sweet potatoes), or about 1-1/2 pounds. Usually the potatoes are peeled, but you can leave the peel on. To prevent peeled potatoes from darkening, immerse them in a bowl of ice water. The trick for uniform fries is to first cut the potato into a rectangular shape by cutting off both ends. Next, cut straight down one side to make a flat surface. Repeat on the other three sides so you end up with a rectangular potato. Next, cut the potato into 1/4- to 3/8-inch strips. If you prefer, you can cut the potato into thin wedges. Try to cut them so they are about 1/2 inch wide at the widest part of the potato. 2. Heat the Oil for Frying Its important to use an oil suitable for deep-frying when making fries. Some oils, such as olive and flaxseed, are not appropriate because they have low smoke points (325°F and below) and will smoke, discolor, and break down at low temperatures. Oils with a higher smoke point (396°F to 414°F) that work well for deep-frying include canola and peanut. One of the secrets for deep-frying foods is to keep the fat at a constant high temperature. This is best done by using a heavy, flat-bottom pan and a deep-fat thermometer to monitor the oil temperature. In a heavy deep 3-quart saucepan or fryer, heat oil to 365°F (the pan should be no more than half full). 3. Fry the Potatoes Preheat oven to 300°F. Drain the potatoes well. Using paper towels, pat the potatoes thoroughly to dry. Fry the potatoes, about one-third at a time, until tender in the centers and edges are crisp and golden, about 5 to 6 minutes, turning once. Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the fries from the hot oil and transfer to clean paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with salt, if desired. Keep the cooked fries warm on a baking pan in the oven while frying remaining potatoes
Posted on: Tue, 13 Jan 2015 04:36:01 +0000
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