The Orange Strainer: Not So French French Fries

Recipe: French Fries

Source: The Orange Strainer

Time: 50 minutes

Ease: 2

Taste: 8

Leftover Value: No leftovers, ever!

Down the Drain or Keep in the Strainer: Keep it in the Strainer!

I have a strong dislike of buying frozen french fries. They never taste the way I expect french fries to taste. So, in my five years of marriage, I think I can count on one hand the number of frozen french fry bags that I have bought.

Instead, I have chosen to make my own as long as I have potatoes on hand.

And I see to it that I always have potatoes on hand.

I love my starch.

Making your own french fries is a simple task. The only difficulty is the length of time your potatoes need for cooking. Potatoes can be just like people. Some are easy going and work well with you, others are stubborn and take a long time to get where you want them. The potatoes I used here are California White Potatoes. They are extremely tiny, not very hard, and have a very thin skin. Because of this, I didn't need to fry them as long and I chose to not peel them. (If they had been larger potatoes, I probably would have peeled them, and they would have taken years to cook).

Start by cutting the potato in half.

Then cut the half into quarters.

Slice your quarter up into four or five pieces.

Then cut those pieces in half. The point here is to get nice thin fries. (Although, if you like nice thick fries, stop before these last two steps).

Repeat with the rest of your potatoes. I always make too many. But I've found that with french fries that whole "one potato per person" rule does not apply (especially if they are tiny potatoes).

So, you be the judge of your family's appetites. I'm busy enough dealing with mine.

Pour about a quarter cup into a frying pan and let it heat up over medium high heat. I used a little bit more than a quarter cup. There's no problem with this, especially since I just used the leftover to fry the corn dogs that I made that night too.

I just don't want you judging me when you see how much oil is in the pan in these next pictures.

I can live with it, so I hope you can too.

Toss your potatoes into the hot oil.

Fry the potatoes in the oil for 5-10 minutes. Make sure to flip them over every minute or so. Again, if using a harder potato, you may need to fry them about 15 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350 at this time.

After the potatoes have gotten a light tan, take them off the stove. Try to drain off as much oil as possible before spreading them out onto a baking sheet.

Bake the potatoes for 15 minutes. Then take them out, flip them over, and shake a little salty goodness on them. Bake for 15 more minutes, or until that tan has become a little more prominent.