The thread on favorite potato recipes got me thinking about fries, deep fried fries, not the sliced and pan fried variety
I love 'em, even frozen ones, as long as they are hot. I love them salted, sprinkled with malt vinegar, dipped in mayonnaise, dipped in fry sauce, covered in gravy…even with ketchup. But which variety? What trips your trigger, or are you indifferent? What do you especially like or dislike about certain shapes?
Thin? 3/8”? Thick? Steak? Waffle? Curly? Should tots be an option?
I either like crisp thin shoe-strings, or thick cut steak fries with some girth. I have never had a good curly fry, and to be honest, they’re kind of a pain to eat. Waffles are ok, but generally I find it pointless unless you are using it as a vehicle for toppings.
And on that topic - I dislike fries with toppings! The best part of a fry is the contrast of crisp exterior and the pillowy soft potato inside. Why would you drown the crisp skin with sauce and other things. A strong nay to cheese fries, chili fries, poutine on fries - these should all be the side for those who want something to dip that fry into.
Tots are potatoes.
Tots are fried.
Tots are dippable.
Tots should be an option, IMO.
As for the others - I like standard cut, sometimes with skin on, sometimes without. I’ll eat steak fries, but pleaseandthankyou, MAKE SURE THEY’RE COMPLETELY FRIED! Limp-ass steak fries are the worst. Curly and waffle - If that’s what’s put in front of me, I’ll eat them but I’d not buy them for making at home.
And for me - sweet potato fries never seem to get as crispy as I’d like.
Not a fan of shoestring fries, love regular cut or crinkle cut fries. Catsup or mayo or maychup or HPmayo or gravy on the side for dipping to keep the fries crispy until dunking. Never was a fan of poutine.
I’ve never been a big tator tots fan, mainly because they remind me of elementary school lunches. Granted, I haven’t really had tator tots as an adult (my last tot may have actually been middle school). I oddly consider tator tots not as alternate form of fries, but I consider them round stubby hash browns. I love hash browns, but still prefer a hash brown patty over a tot.
All except Tots & Sweet. and even those I don’t refuse if only option. Favs are Standard, Natural, & Crinkle. The latter I had most recently from DQ. Really good-- was disappointed when I had a delivery from DQ a month later & they were just standard. Waffle I like but agree that they’re too often meh. I think where I first had them cut them a bit thicker so they achieved crisp/soft goodness. Dipping on side always for me.
I favor a classic fry cut from a russet. It needs to be just thick enough that a pillowy center is evident but thin enough that the glossy, crisp outside is not overwhelmed. Perfection is salted but with good mayonnaise on the side, which may or not be used. They are rare exceptions, but I have had waffle cut, crinkle cut, and even curly fries that achieved that rare balance of fluffiness and crispiness. I have never had a sweet potato fry I truly enjoyed, but then after all, they are not potatoes. I used to get pretty bad headaches. They seem to have gone away after retirement. Well salted fries with a good sprinkling of Cholula were efficacious.
The best part of a fry is the contrast of crisp exterior and the pillowy soft potato inside. Why would you drown the crisp skin with sauce and other things. A strong nay to cheese fries, chili fries, poutine on fries - these should all be the side for those who want something to dip that fry into.
