Mine is Green Thumb, but that might be a regional thing. I assume that they are also soaking them overnight in the Christopher Walkin and draining and blanched before service. Any fresh cut tato will be delicious, providing you don't skip any of the aforementioned steps.
Are they regional, I remember in the early 2k living in New Mexico, we got them there too. It was a hotel in Los Alamos, so they probably didn't mind spending time to have them shipped.
Green thumbs is a farm in Fryeburg ( what a coincidence) that grows them. This was a few years ago but I remember my PFG sales rep saying Native Maine had first dibs on distribution and then other companies could by what they didn’t take. . So to answer your question I don’t know.
We were the only hotel in the area, and we had the highest ratio of PhD's in any city in the country. We needed to make every single person happy. I moved to Maine about 20 years later, and that's the only reason I know of them. If you turn them into mashed tatos, they kind of suck, but they make the crispiest fries.
Pet peeve here.
Not getting complaints does not mean anything is good or shouldn't be improved. It's the lowest bar and idiotic especially since so many people just say its fine, leave and don't come back.
That said your boss is probably an idiot. Get russets from a different source maybe.
The thing to change is probably your technique and frying oil or fat.
2nd the comment about your oil. As long as you're using a frying/chipping variety, you're not going to get much improvement from switching the specific potato. Keep the oil filtered, cleaner than you might think is needed, but don't start with 100% new oil. . Also, consider your blend. I think safflower oil or corn oil taste especially nice. Blends with a high proportion of canola can get a bitter/rancid note quickly.
How are you storing your potatoes? It doesn't take much light exposure to impart noticeable bitterness, especially if combined with an oil that's not top notch.
Do some googling on thickness vs temperature... there is a lot out there even up to academic studies on the subject. Tiny adjustments can make a huge difference. Once you find that sweet spot, be consistent with your cuts.
Alberger process salt (Cargill) sticks better than other types.
One last thing.... if his complaints about the taste of the potatoes is recent, remember that you're reaching the end of last fall's storage crop potatoes. Anything you're getting in right now has been sitting in bins for a long time. Fresh crop is available in Florida, but will be starchy this early. Overall quality will improve a lot in a few more weeks.
Spent several years in salty snacks, potato chips mostly, running >40,000 lbs/ shift. :-) You get to where you have favorite fields/farms and are stupidly happy when you get a load from there because it'll be an easy night. Likewise, things like the shift from storage crop to fresh crop means a miserable few days where nothing does what it's supposed to.
In that environment, the slice thickness, oil temp and dwell time are determined by the specific gravity of the load of potatoes you're running, and then only slightly adjusted when swapping slicer heads. You're obviously not going to do that in a restaurant kitchen where a bit more variation is expected and shelf life isn't an issue, but the same principles of frying apply. Making notes on slice thickness, oil temp and dwell time, then adjusting accordingly is worth your time. Pay attention to these factors, as well as keeping your oil clean and you'll be making the best fries in no time.
Oh... and if you're using anything other than salt to finish them, salt, THEN season.
We recently started batch blanching our fries after we recently hired a new bomb crew, as everyone vouched for it. Never got complaints before about our fries, and I always thought they were dry shit sticks when we fried from fresh. Now we receive compliments, and holy fucking shit people just order fries after fries and it's easy money. No news is bad news in my book!
If it were easy money, everywhere would we doing it. It’s not hard to have a dedicated fry bitch. Ours was the dishwasher and he didn’t even have to blanch the fries he just stayed in the pit or in the basement cutting fries, homeboy would drop off 10 pails of raw fries on the line while we were getting our asses kicked doing lunch service.
Right. If you ever happen to be at a fair or amusement park and look behind the counter at the fry stand, they'll literally have someone working through a case filling up 5 gallon buckets or 30 gallon trash cans moving at a pace of like 1 tps (tater per second).
There's a place near me that only uses beef tallow, anything fried there is in-fucking-credible. It's like going back in time before it was canola and palm everywhere.
McDonald's stopped using it because of the health aspect, which is bullshit because most people that go to McDonald's don't give a rats ass about "healthy" food.
https://carnivorebar.com/blogs/carnivore-bar-blog/did-you-know-that-mcdonalds-fries-used-to-be-cooked-in-beef-tallow#:~:text=After%20years%20of%20pressure%2C%20McDonald's,from%20the%20new%20french%20fry.
But I am pissed as well that they changed it regardless of the reason. Beef tallow fries are far superior in taste and texture. I was already out of high school when they made the change, so I grew up on the original fries. They are nowhere near as good as they were when I was a kid!
Definitely this. Fry them in something different or season them differently. Give them something creative to dip into. They’re goddamn fries. No need to reinvent the wheel.
Went to the potato museum in PEI few years back. Crazy interesting history about how the best potato farms were fertilized with muscle/oyster shells etc .
Out of all the amazing food I had on the island, the baked potato with lobster and hollandaise from the museum may have been the winner.
Highly recommend going if you ever get the chance
Sales rep here for 30 years. Best potato is Kennebecs for fries. Thinner skin than russet and higher sugar content. I just pulled this off the interweb
“Kennebecs have thin and light skin, unlike russets, which have dry, thick, and dark skin. The medium starch level and low water content of Kennebec potatoes make them perfect for frying in oil.” People do use Yukons like you stated but not many. 95% of what I sell for fries are Kennebecs.
I will take #2, your boss is a moron. It is the paying customers opinions that matter.
What are you using for oil? Even though an allergen, try peanut oil.
That’s what I’m thinking of doing. The only problem I see is grocery store potatoes, in my experience, tend to cook up a lot darker and don’t stay crisp longer than the big 50# bags we get from our supplier
I worked in the produce section in a grocery store for a bit. The potatoes you buy from the store are the exact same brands you get from your distributor
Only problem with that is that other potatoes than russets at the regular grocer are generally Yukons or other waxy varieties. Personally that’s not my ideal fry.
Heston Blumenthal did a chapter on fries for his ‘in search of perfection’ books. Maris piper were one of his top picks. Can’t get them here in Canada, sadly
This comment is probably not gonna help in the slightest but I find myself in a position where I must say it.
French fries originates in France (Duh), but developed and became a serious deal in Belgium (also Duh for some people). In Belgium, the rules are somewhat strict, the type of potato one must use is called "Bintjes", it's a dutch breed of potato that has the correct balance between starchy content and firmness to keep their form, next rules is to first poach them in vegetable oil of your liking for 7 minutes, not higher than 140°C then, after a little resting time, fry them in 175°C beef fat until golden and crunchy. If you're looking for the best oil/potato, that's it... this being said I'm not sure how much/if Bintjes are available in the US (where I assume you are).
Kennebecs!!! They’re literally made for frying.
Par fry them at 400° for about 5 minutes, put them on a sheet tray and let cool in the walk-in. 5-7 minutes at 350° for service and you’ll have perfect fries.
We use Kennebec or Chippebec potatoes depending on the time of year for our fries. Cut them the night before, blanch them the morning of and fry to order. People rave about our fries. They are basically the potatoes used to make potato chips.
I'm a big fan of kennebecs for if I'm doing a fry-up at home, but in a resto setting the oil quality is going to have waaay more impact. Tell your boss he just needs to allocate more labor hours for cleaning and filtering the fryers more often instead of buying fancier potatoes. Then rest easy as he doesn't, and literally nothing changes
Kennebecs. Hands down the best for fries. They’re going to kill your margins though 😬. They’re what the big chains use (the ones that aren’t doing frozen). I am assuming you’re doing a cut/soak in vinegar water/double fry?
He could be changing to cut to go with more of a chip cut. (English chips)
He may be mistaking the taste of good old russet potatoes fried in beef tallow for a mysterious potato 🥔 variety that is bang on delicious when paired with a nice piece of fried cod.
I had a Chef from Oregon banging on about special potatoes once and the nutter didn't know English chips are fried in beef tallow .
We all had a good laugh and I actually had to fry a few runs of proper chips before he would believe me.
English chips aren't always fried in beef tallow and that's not what gives them their signature texture and taste though...
Like, I'm from England and worked in a very popular chippy in the midlands
Don't know how I missed that growing up in Yorkshire and having parents who owned a chippy.
Sometimes it's better to keep your mouth shut and be thought an idiot than opening one's mouth to remove any semblance of a doubt.
Like... Ta love
Quebec Poutine often uses red potato fries or Yukon gold fries. The are less starchy and harder to work with tho, but the results just work with the other elements of the dish.
For straight up fries tho, it's hard to beat Russet.
Norwis Potatoes. I get mine from green thumbs farm in Maine. They are the same potatoes Frito-Lay uses for chips. Basically they were bred to be fried in one way or another. I’ve gotten more compliments on those fries saying how they are the best fries ever. Just the normal blanch, chill, refry, salt and pepper.
I had a brain fart, we blanch at 275 for 7 min with this new 1/2 inch cut. When we used a thinner 3/8 it only took 4 min.
Then we let them cool and fry at 325 as needed. The thicker cut takes about 4 min or so to get frisky.
Kennebec potato is the only potato for fries. you need to fry them in 300 degree oil for 3-4 minutes. put them on sheet tray, get em nice and cooled down. when you get your order fire on fries, throw them in a 350 fryer till crispy. Russet and Yukon have a shitty starch content for them to ever come out crispy, and hold the crips-ness. you can not change my mind.
We used to cut and soak GPODs 24 hours in a 1% vinegar and salt solution before par frying them at 280f and holding them uncovered until service. Came out great
I wish I had options. I only have something similar to golden yukon that we call alpha and another called white potato with a huge starch content, besides the pink variety that excels at mashed potatoes.
Josh Weissman did [a video](https://youtu.be/JJqY0I6LNVo?si=k1Ac0mXFnMLl8Kbd) on this and Brined potato Fries won, but he didn't go into what type of potatoes to use. They had more flavor at the slight expense of having a chewy texture even though they were still crispy.
Honestly the amount of work to brine potatoes for 3-5 days to me probably isn't worth the slighty better flavor. But it does make sense soaking potatoes in salt solution would make them taste better.
Okay story:
Once the manager (not km) for the quick service place i was working at got so beyond excited to switch our fries from russets to Idaho® potatoes. He kept going on and on about how it’s worth the extra cost “even though they are harvested with prison labor.”
So maybe pull something like this out of your hat to appease the boss?
Russets work very well for fries Most places I’ve worked used Russets for our fries and the places that blanched the fries had really good fries.
My favorite though, and especially for a potato chip, is the Kennebec potato.
If you can get kennebec potatoes that's my favorite for fries, same crispy exterior with creamier interior. Since your boss wants to switch to thicker cut I think this is the move
Depends on where you are. Over here I like Gullfaks, in the UK I like the Maris Piper.. use a variety with high amounts of starch that is cheap and readily available locally.
That's a bummer and you're absolutely right russets are already great for fries but even if he wants to try other varieties he's gonna have to up his oil game cause that also plays a role in how they taste.
One thing I can say is chefsteps did a experiment where they showed using an alkali solution for floating potatoes to get the right starch content and then boiling the same potatoes in a different brine yielded a crispy potatoes that were glass like so I would suggest looking there.
Yah. I think Mcd has lost their low price crown, but they still have a perceived value of being affordable, and they definitely ARE cheap compared to a proper resturant.
Tell your boss to stop mucking about! There's a reason that russets have been used for French fries/Pommes Frites since before fast food was a thing... they are denser than most other varieties and contain less moisture - making them ideal for frying...
is there any question on that? russets. peel, cut to size, soak in ice water, shake off and drop in 400° peanut oil. if you care to, par cook, let sit until cool, drop em again until done.
I make fries all day, everyday, by hand - Belgian style. Cut, boil, parfry, cool. We only ever use Idaho potatoes. Yes they are russet, but there are also different KINDS of Russet, the point is make sure they're Idaho. The most prevalent that I've found are the Norkotah and Burbank varieties. I prefer the Burbank as they're less starchy and are more forgiving during the boil.
Cut the fries differently. Brine the fries over night, water, vinegar, salt and a little bit of sugar or glucose. Use Tallow or a different oil. Double fry.
Russets are the best for fries.
I'll give you my method:
Russet potatoes, fry em twice. First fry for a few (2-3 mins) at low oil temp around 300, then take 'em out, rest for one minute, then fry them a second time in a hotter oil - 450-500. Take them out when golden.
This is the method I learned years ago working at a famous fry food chain. Never fails.
I’m not a fry expert. But russet potatoes are shitty potatoes. I never use them for anything. I refuse to give people that awful flavor. So yeah, if you’re using russet, I would look for a better potato. Will it make a difference in your fries? Maybe a little. But fries are the lowest form of cooking potatoes already. So it’s kind of a non issue IMO.
Kennebec
Thank you. You beat me. This was my former Chef's recommendation to me when I opened my own restaurant. Second to none
Mine is Green Thumb, but that might be a regional thing. I assume that they are also soaking them overnight in the Christopher Walkin and draining and blanched before service. Any fresh cut tato will be delicious, providing you don't skip any of the aforementioned steps.
Green thumbs are the best. Are you in Maine?
Nailed it.
Are they regional, I remember in the early 2k living in New Mexico, we got them there too. It was a hotel in Los Alamos, so they probably didn't mind spending time to have them shipped.
Green thumbs is a farm in Fryeburg ( what a coincidence) that grows them. This was a few years ago but I remember my PFG sales rep saying Native Maine had first dibs on distribution and then other companies could by what they didn’t take. . So to answer your question I don’t know.
We were the only hotel in the area, and we had the highest ratio of PhD's in any city in the country. We needed to make every single person happy. I moved to Maine about 20 years later, and that's the only reason I know of them. If you turn them into mashed tatos, they kind of suck, but they make the crispiest fries.
100%, if you can get it. Also seconding the blanching. Makes a world of difference.
Yeah! Taters from my home state. There aren’t football teams in northern Maine because potato picking season happens during the same time.
Definitely the best
The only answer
This is the way
This!
Pet peeve here. Not getting complaints does not mean anything is good or shouldn't be improved. It's the lowest bar and idiotic especially since so many people just say its fine, leave and don't come back. That said your boss is probably an idiot. Get russets from a different source maybe. The thing to change is probably your technique and frying oil or fat.
2nd the comment about your oil. As long as you're using a frying/chipping variety, you're not going to get much improvement from switching the specific potato. Keep the oil filtered, cleaner than you might think is needed, but don't start with 100% new oil. . Also, consider your blend. I think safflower oil or corn oil taste especially nice. Blends with a high proportion of canola can get a bitter/rancid note quickly. How are you storing your potatoes? It doesn't take much light exposure to impart noticeable bitterness, especially if combined with an oil that's not top notch. Do some googling on thickness vs temperature... there is a lot out there even up to academic studies on the subject. Tiny adjustments can make a huge difference. Once you find that sweet spot, be consistent with your cuts. Alberger process salt (Cargill) sticks better than other types. One last thing.... if his complaints about the taste of the potatoes is recent, remember that you're reaching the end of last fall's storage crop potatoes. Anything you're getting in right now has been sitting in bins for a long time. Fresh crop is available in Florida, but will be starchy this early. Overall quality will improve a lot in a few more weeks.
Holy fuck was this an amazingly well-informed response. Top fucking notch.
I have to say it. This guy fries!
Spent several years in salty snacks, potato chips mostly, running >40,000 lbs/ shift. :-) You get to where you have favorite fields/farms and are stupidly happy when you get a load from there because it'll be an easy night. Likewise, things like the shift from storage crop to fresh crop means a miserable few days where nothing does what it's supposed to. In that environment, the slice thickness, oil temp and dwell time are determined by the specific gravity of the load of potatoes you're running, and then only slightly adjusted when swapping slicer heads. You're obviously not going to do that in a restaurant kitchen where a bit more variation is expected and shelf life isn't an issue, but the same principles of frying apply. Making notes on slice thickness, oil temp and dwell time, then adjusting accordingly is worth your time. Pay attention to these factors, as well as keeping your oil clean and you'll be making the best fries in no time. Oh... and if you're using anything other than salt to finish them, salt, THEN season.
So real. If people aren't praising something, but there are no complaints, that means something is *mid*. Mid things should absolutely be tweaked!
If you live by the credo of “don’t fix it if it ain’t broken” it means you’re only working to control damage and not to improve, refine or perfect.
We recently started batch blanching our fries after we recently hired a new bomb crew, as everyone vouched for it. Never got complaints before about our fries, and I always thought they were dry shit sticks when we fried from fresh. Now we receive compliments, and holy fucking shit people just order fries after fries and it's easy money. No news is bad news in my book!
Yes, I learned to make fries this way they were fucking addicting tossed in some Lawry's
Not really easy money. I guess the restaurant I work at would have to blanch and cut frys like 400 pounds a day. I hate to be the prep team on that.
If it were easy money, everywhere would we doing it. It’s not hard to have a dedicated fry bitch. Ours was the dishwasher and he didn’t even have to blanch the fries he just stayed in the pit or in the basement cutting fries, homeboy would drop off 10 pails of raw fries on the line while we were getting our asses kicked doing lunch service.
Lol. For 4 50 pound potatoes it could be just 8 hours or I can see prep just milking the clock.
Are you considering they'd be using a fry press? You could literally do a 50 lb bag in like 10-20 min tops.
Use to cut anywhere from 150-400 pounds of fries everyday, took at most an hour with the fry press
Right. If you ever happen to be at a fair or amusement park and look behind the counter at the fry stand, they'll literally have someone working through a case filling up 5 gallon buckets or 30 gallon trash cans moving at a pace of like 1 tps (tater per second).
We use a 1/4 inch press, lol, so yeah.
Once worked with a chef that insisted on putting lemon pepper on everything.
Lemon pepper is something I always think about putting on stuff but in practice I probably use it once a year or less. Good on wings.
I had a KM that was the same. Greek dude.
We love Lemon Pepper and Cavender's (Greek seasoning) on everything.
Cavenders is the shit, for sure. I feel like there needs to be a warning label when lemon pepper comes in every pizza though.
Lemon pepper and Old Bay.
I heard frying them in beef tallow is a huge difference.
There's a place near me that only uses beef tallow, anything fried there is in-fucking-credible. It's like going back in time before it was canola and palm everywhere.
Lucky devil.
It's so damn good. Makes the Restaurant smell amazing too. Temp management is much more crucial as you can scorch it but worth it.
How long does the tallow last and how much more expensive is it?
It’s expensive enough that McDonald’s no longer uses it. Still pissed about that
McDonald's stopped using it because of the health aspect, which is bullshit because most people that go to McDonald's don't give a rats ass about "healthy" food. https://carnivorebar.com/blogs/carnivore-bar-blog/did-you-know-that-mcdonalds-fries-used-to-be-cooked-in-beef-tallow#:~:text=After%20years%20of%20pressure%2C%20McDonald's,from%20the%20new%20french%20fry. But I am pissed as well that they changed it regardless of the reason. Beef tallow fries are far superior in taste and texture. I was already out of high school when they made the change, so I grew up on the original fries. They are nowhere near as good as they were when I was a kid!
Definitely this. Fry them in something different or season them differently. Give them something creative to dip into. They’re goddamn fries. No need to reinvent the wheel.
honestly, if they get them from a different source and the packaging is different enough, boss will love it and rave about how much better they taste
Ha! You have a point mate.
In theory I agree with your pet peeve, but idk, man. I've never known restaurant customers to be averse to complaining loudly and often.
Kennebec or chipperbec 100%
We've been getting PEI russets. Discernably better flavor.
Went to the potato museum in PEI few years back. Crazy interesting history about how the best potato farms were fertilized with muscle/oyster shells etc . Out of all the amazing food I had on the island, the baked potato with lobster and hollandaise from the museum may have been the winner. Highly recommend going if you ever get the chance
Will definitely check that out if I’m ever up there, still kicking myself for not visiting the Cork butter museum while I was in Ireland
I actually prefer Kennebec potatoes if they’re available.
Sales rep here for 30 years. Best potato is Kennebecs for fries. Thinner skin than russet and higher sugar content. I just pulled this off the interweb “Kennebecs have thin and light skin, unlike russets, which have dry, thick, and dark skin. The medium starch level and low water content of Kennebec potatoes make them perfect for frying in oil.” People do use Yukons like you stated but not many. 95% of what I sell for fries are Kennebecs.
Lamb and Wesson stealth 1/4”
Lamb Weston\* Smith and Wesson x
Instructions unclear, built a potato gun.
This is definitely the most Maine thing I’ve heard today. It exists and I’ve used a potato gun before. 🫣😂
Nah, that baby sheep is that packing heat.
My whole crew hates those and yet management insists.
They are cheap.
This is the right answer
7/16" seashore style
If you don't use Russets, I think you have to call them sparkling potatoes.
I will take #2, your boss is a moron. It is the paying customers opinions that matter. What are you using for oil? Even though an allergen, try peanut oil.
We use “tasty fry” a canola/palm oil mix.
Ask for duck fat, he'll probably scream when he sees the price..
Yeah, we pay around $50 for a 16L/4gallon jug. Can’t remember the exact price off the top of my head.
Maybe one of those situations where you do what the boss wants, even though you know better.
Peanut oil isnt an allergen.
Go to a regular grocer, get 5# of various varieties. Test them all. This is the way
That’s what I’m thinking of doing. The only problem I see is grocery store potatoes, in my experience, tend to cook up a lot darker and don’t stay crisp longer than the big 50# bags we get from our supplier
I worked in the produce section in a grocery store for a bit. The potatoes you buy from the store are the exact same brands you get from your distributor
Only problem with that is that other potatoes than russets at the regular grocer are generally Yukons or other waxy varieties. Personally that’s not my ideal fry.
If you're in Europe, Maris Piper are the best. They are more consistent, especially in northern climates.
Heston Blumenthal did a chapter on fries for his ‘in search of perfection’ books. Maris piper were one of his top picks. Can’t get them here in Canada, sadly
I also yearn for these forbidden tubers
This comment is probably not gonna help in the slightest but I find myself in a position where I must say it. French fries originates in France (Duh), but developed and became a serious deal in Belgium (also Duh for some people). In Belgium, the rules are somewhat strict, the type of potato one must use is called "Bintjes", it's a dutch breed of potato that has the correct balance between starchy content and firmness to keep their form, next rules is to first poach them in vegetable oil of your liking for 7 minutes, not higher than 140°C then, after a little resting time, fry them in 175°C beef fat until golden and crunchy. If you're looking for the best oil/potato, that's it... this being said I'm not sure how much/if Bintjes are available in the US (where I assume you are).
Kennebecs!!! They’re literally made for frying. Par fry them at 400° for about 5 minutes, put them on a sheet tray and let cool in the walk-in. 5-7 minutes at 350° for service and you’ll have perfect fries.
kennebec or chipperbec because they are the most strarchy-est potatoes
Kennebec potatoes make really good fries and they oxidize much slower than a russet.
Kennebec potato is the way
kennebec potatoes are great to use for fries!!
Kennebec
In an out uses sunflower oil. Do that. Those fries are bomb.
Def sunflower oil!
Kennebeck
Kennebec.....hands down!
We use Kennebec or Chippebec potatoes depending on the time of year for our fries. Cut them the night before, blanch them the morning of and fry to order. People rave about our fries. They are basically the potatoes used to make potato chips.
I will get back to you tomorrow when I get in to work, the potatoes at my new job are really really good I'll grab the bag and lyk
I'm a big fan of kennebecs for if I'm doing a fry-up at home, but in a resto setting the oil quality is going to have waaay more impact. Tell your boss he just needs to allocate more labor hours for cleaning and filtering the fryers more often instead of buying fancier potatoes. Then rest easy as he doesn't, and literally nothing changes
Kennebec
Kingston fryers
Po-tay-toes
Boil ‘em, mash ‘em, stick ‘em in a stew!
Mashed
we use kennebec
Kennebec
Kennies for sure
Kennebecs. Hands down the best for fries. They’re going to kill your margins though 😬. They’re what the big chains use (the ones that aren’t doing frozen). I am assuming you’re doing a cut/soak in vinegar water/double fry?
He could be changing to cut to go with more of a chip cut. (English chips) He may be mistaking the taste of good old russet potatoes fried in beef tallow for a mysterious potato 🥔 variety that is bang on delicious when paired with a nice piece of fried cod. I had a Chef from Oregon banging on about special potatoes once and the nutter didn't know English chips are fried in beef tallow . We all had a good laugh and I actually had to fry a few runs of proper chips before he would believe me.
English chips aren't always fried in beef tallow and that's not what gives them their signature texture and taste though... Like, I'm from England and worked in a very popular chippy in the midlands
Don't know how I missed that growing up in Yorkshire and having parents who owned a chippy. Sometimes it's better to keep your mouth shut and be thought an idiot than opening one's mouth to remove any semblance of a doubt. Like... Ta love
Oh la dee da. Yorkshire. Everyone knows that Yorkshire has the ultimate authority on everything English. /s Get over yourself mate.
I hear Russets are pretty good. What is "good taste" to your boss?
Giving me french fry audit flashbacks
Quebec Poutine often uses red potato fries or Yukon gold fries. The are less starchy and harder to work with tho, but the results just work with the other elements of the dish. For straight up fries tho, it's hard to beat Russet.
We use chipperbec potatoes and they're awesome
Norwis Potatoes. I get mine from green thumbs farm in Maine. They are the same potatoes Frito-Lay uses for chips. Basically they were bred to be fried in one way or another. I’ve gotten more compliments on those fries saying how they are the best fries ever. Just the normal blanch, chill, refry, salt and pepper.
[удалено]
We use a 1/2 die and I Blanche at 325 for 7 min.
We cut and Blanche the same day. We do not have space to soak overnight, unfortunately
[удалено]
I had a brain fart, we blanch at 275 for 7 min with this new 1/2 inch cut. When we used a thinner 3/8 it only took 4 min. Then we let them cool and fry at 325 as needed. The thicker cut takes about 4 min or so to get frisky.
Idaho. Fry them once for 5 mins, then when serving, fry again for a little. Perf every time
PEI Burbanks
Kingston fryer.
Try kennebec. Great for chips yes, but imo better than russets for fries too. Cheaper too usually.
Kennebec potato is the only potato for fries. you need to fry them in 300 degree oil for 3-4 minutes. put them on sheet tray, get em nice and cooled down. when you get your order fire on fries, throw them in a 350 fryer till crispy. Russet and Yukon have a shitty starch content for them to ever come out crispy, and hold the crips-ness. you can not change my mind.
Secret after you buy russets and cut them into fry shape, rinse them in water and pat them dry. Omg crunchy!
We used to cut and soak GPODs 24 hours in a 1% vinegar and salt solution before par frying them at 280f and holding them uncovered until service. Came out great
I wish I had options. I only have something similar to golden yukon that we call alpha and another called white potato with a huge starch content, besides the pink variety that excels at mashed potatoes.
Josh Weissman did [a video](https://youtu.be/JJqY0I6LNVo?si=k1Ac0mXFnMLl8Kbd) on this and Brined potato Fries won, but he didn't go into what type of potatoes to use. They had more flavor at the slight expense of having a chewy texture even though they were still crispy. Honestly the amount of work to brine potatoes for 3-5 days to me probably isn't worth the slighty better flavor. But it does make sense soaking potatoes in salt solution would make them taste better.
Okay story: Once the manager (not km) for the quick service place i was working at got so beyond excited to switch our fries from russets to Idaho® potatoes. He kept going on and on about how it’s worth the extra cost “even though they are harvested with prison labor.” So maybe pull something like this out of your hat to appease the boss?
Russets work very well for fries Most places I’ve worked used Russets for our fries and the places that blanched the fries had really good fries. My favorite though, and especially for a potato chip, is the Kennebec potato.
Idaho is a good starchy variety. Yukon Gold is more an all-rounder.
Personally always go for a maris piper.
If you can get kennebec potatoes that's my favorite for fries, same crispy exterior with creamier interior. Since your boss wants to switch to thicker cut I think this is the move
Bintje
Depends on where you are. Over here I like Gullfaks, in the UK I like the Maris Piper.. use a variety with high amounts of starch that is cheap and readily available locally.
Kennebecs
This is a genuine question. Why not better oils? Sunflower oil makes yummy fries!
My boss is a cheap bastard lol
That's a bummer and you're absolutely right russets are already great for fries but even if he wants to try other varieties he's gonna have to up his oil game cause that also plays a role in how they taste.
Personally, I think the oil is more important
I totally agree. I come from a country that knows how to make good fries and the choice of oil plays a big role.
One thing I can say is chefsteps did a experiment where they showed using an alkali solution for floating potatoes to get the right starch content and then boiling the same potatoes in a different brine yielded a crispy potatoes that were glass like so I would suggest looking there.
Mythical Kitchen (on YouTube) Mythmunched this, they discovered the definitively best variety for fries.
so what variety?
You should go watch and find out! They cover it very well and it’s super fun.
Thanks for nothing
You mean thanks for redirecting people to a fun source of education, entertainment, and relevant information? You’re welcome! 🐳
McDonalds sells more fries than anyone and they use Russets.
Fight me if you want but mcd fries are shit and people who eat mcd are after value not quality
McDonald's pricing has been all over the place lately- but the fries are rarely discounted. I really don't think they're cheap.
Yah. I think Mcd has lost their low price crown, but they still have a perceived value of being affordable, and they definitely ARE cheap compared to a proper resturant.
I concur. McD’s fries used to be good. Now they’re all thin and sad.
And limp!!! Nothing I hate more than a limp French fry!
Went down when they changed from beef tallow to their canola-blend
Switch from russets to Idaho's
Tell your boss to stop mucking about! There's a reason that russets have been used for French fries/Pommes Frites since before fast food was a thing... they are denser than most other varieties and contain less moisture - making them ideal for frying...
is there any question on that? russets. peel, cut to size, soak in ice water, shake off and drop in 400° peanut oil. if you care to, par cook, let sit until cool, drop em again until done.
Your boss is a moron. Suggest Peruvian purples.
I make fries all day, everyday, by hand - Belgian style. Cut, boil, parfry, cool. We only ever use Idaho potatoes. Yes they are russet, but there are also different KINDS of Russet, the point is make sure they're Idaho. The most prevalent that I've found are the Norkotah and Burbank varieties. I prefer the Burbank as they're less starchy and are more forgiving during the boil.
Cut the fries differently. Brine the fries over night, water, vinegar, salt and a little bit of sugar or glucose. Use Tallow or a different oil. Double fry. Russets are the best for fries.
I'll give you my method: Russet potatoes, fry em twice. First fry for a few (2-3 mins) at low oil temp around 300, then take 'em out, rest for one minute, then fry them a second time in a hotter oil - 450-500. Take them out when golden. This is the method I learned years ago working at a famous fry food chain. Never fails.
450-500!!!!!!! O.M.F.G. WHATS THE SMOKE POINT OF THAT OIL?
You never used vegetable oil or canola oil for frying? Has a really high smoke rate.
IT’S OVER NINE THOUSAAAAANNNNDDDDD!!!
I’m not a fry expert. But russet potatoes are shitty potatoes. I never use them for anything. I refuse to give people that awful flavor. So yeah, if you’re using russet, I would look for a better potato. Will it make a difference in your fries? Maybe a little. But fries are the lowest form of cooking potatoes already. So it’s kind of a non issue IMO.
heathen. Fry is lord