• We have updated the guidelines regarding posting political content: please see the stickied thread on Website Issues.

Chips (French Fries; Fries)

N

nissemus

Gone But Not Forgotten
(ACCOUNT RETIRED)
Joined
Nov 19, 2005
Messages
102
Lesson in where chips come from

A frozen food firm has set up an interactive lesson to teach children that chips come from potatoes.

McCain Foods created The Potato Story to help children learn where food comes from and how it is prepared.

It follows recommendations by the School Meals Review Panel that children should learn about the provenance of food - as well as eat healthier food.

British Heart Foundation research suggested one in three children did not know that chips were made from potato.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 357434.stm
Click to expand...

Are people in the UK really this dim? :shock:
 
nissemus said:
Lesson in where chips come from

A frozen food firm has set up an interactive lesson to teach children that chips come from potatoes.

McCain Foods created The Potato Story to help children learn where food comes from and how it is prepared.

It follows recommendations by the School Meals Review Panel that children should learn about the provenance of food - as well as eat healthier food.

British Heart Foundation research suggested one in three children did not know that chips were made from potato.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 357434.stm
Click to expand...

Are people in the UK really this dim? :shock:
Click to expand...

Sadly, yes - a surprisingly high proportion of kids don't know basic stuff like this.
 
nissemus said:
Lesson in where chips come from

A frozen food firm has set up an interactive lesson to teach children that chips come from potatoes.

McCain Foods created The Potato Story to help children learn where food comes from and how it is prepared.

It follows recommendations by the School Meals Review Panel that children should learn about the provenance of food - as well as eat healthier food.

British Heart Foundation research suggested one in three children did not know that chips were made from potato.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 357434.stm
Click to expand...

Are people in the UK really this dim? :shock:
Click to expand...

My brother's ex-wife (aka the Antichrist) did not know that Great Britain was an island. I also recall my mum telling me that one of my other brother's female friends didn't know that spuds grew in the ground.
 
.. who exactly invented chip/fries/potato chips or more exactly, elongated sticks of potato cooked by frying them in oil? .. I'm not talking about who/which was the first nation to cook potatoes in oil, more who was the first nation to cook elongated sticks of potatoes in oil. I suspect it was perhaps Italy, Greece or perhaps France what with them seeming to cook with oil before the UK? .. or am I wrong?

George Crum is suggested as the inventor of the 'potato chip' or as modern UK fans would call them, 'crisps' ..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Crum
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Swifty said:
.. and while were on the topic, who exactly invented chip/fries/potato chips or more exactly, elongated sticks of potato cooked by frying them in oil? .. I'm not talking about who/which was the first nation to cook potatoes in oil, more who was the first nation to cook elongated sticks of potatoes in oil. I suspect it was perhaps Italy, Greece or perhaps France what with them seeming to cook with oil before the UK? .. or am I wrong?

George Crum is suggested as the inventor of the 'potato chip' or as modern UK fans would call them, 'crisps' ..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Crum
Click to expand...
It would be whatever culture a. discovered frying and b had potatoes. I can't imagine about the frying. Once you get frying, you start throwing everything into it. State Fairs in the midwest are famous for booths that serve fried ice cream, fried steak, fried, well, whatever comes along. Some people deep fry whole turkeys for Thanksgiving. Being a veggie with relatives who have a long family history of abhorring deep fryers I've never seen one but supposed to be quite good although messy. Same folks who make terducken. Oh yes, and doughnuts are of course supposed to be deep fried, not whatever the hell they do to them now in factories.
 
Lb8535 said:
It would be whatever culture a. discovered frying and b had potatoes. I can't imagine about the frying. Once you get frying, you start throwing everything into it. State Fairs in the midwest are famous for booths that serve fried ice cream, fried steak, fried, well, whatever comes along. Some people deep fry whole turkeys for Thanksgiving. Being a veggie with relatives who have a long family history of abhorring deep fryers I've never seen one but supposed to be quite good although messy. Same folks who make terducken. Oh yes, and doughnuts are of course supposed to be deep fried, not whatever the hell they do to them now in factories.
Click to expand...
I used to work in a UK supermarket (Morrisons) as a cafe cook, we had three separate large industrial frying machines, one for fries/chips/potato products only, one for fish fillets (that we dipped in gooey batter first) and one for meat (fatty sausages mostly) ..

Three different machines, three different cooks so we took it in turns to empty one of the fryers each morning at 7:00am dictated by paperwork stuck to a wall, the hardest one to clean before you re filled it with clean oil was by far the meat fryer .. someone tried to screw me over once, I was scheduled to clean one of the others but she told her friend to skip the meat fryer so I'd have to do it the next morning. I wasn't impressed, followed the paperwork and emptied a perfectly clean fryer and refilled it instead .. yeah I know .. who's going to play me in the movie? ..
 
This BBC page explores the disputed origins of fish and chips in the UK

If there was more of an oral tradition on this, I could contribute more, since my maternal grandparents - or great-grandparents, I lose track - ran a fish-and-chip shop, about a century ago. :dinner:

There is no excuse for wheat-dodgers, like myself, to miss out on the joy of fish and chips. A tempura-style batter of cornflour and beer works very well. If something robust is missing from that, besan or buckwheat adds some texture. :nods:
 
Swifty said:
I used to work in a UK supermarket (Morrisons) as a cafe cook, we had three separate large industrial frying machines, one for fries/chips/potato products only, one for fish fillets (that we dipped in gooey batter first) and one for meat (fatty sausages mostly) ..

Three different machines, three different cooks so we took it in turns to empty one of the fryers each morning at 7:00am dictated by paperwork stuck to a wall, the hardest one to clean before you re filled it with clean oil was by far the meat fryer .. someone tried to screw me over once, I was scheduled to clean one of the others but she told her friend to skip the meat fryer so I'd have to do it the next morning. I wasn't impressed, followed the paperwork and emptied a perfectly clean fryer and refilled it instead .. yeah I know .. who's going to play me in the movie? ..
Click to expand...

Fried sausages. Sounds like the Iowa state fair for sure. Fried carrots, fried bacon, fried rootabaga, fried hamburgers, fried tootsie rolls, fried mars bars.....
 
Swifty said:
.. and while were on the topic, who exactly invented chip/fries/potato chips or more exactly, elongated sticks of potato cooked by frying them in oil?
Click to expand...

Oil? Chips were traditionally cooked in lard. Chip shops used lard as did people making them at home. Dripping was also used and is still recommended for extra-crispy and well-flavoured chips.

Oil took over in the late 70s as I remember, for home cooking anyway.
 
JamesWhitehead said:
If there was more of an oral tradition on this, I could contribute more, since my maternal grandparents - or great-grandparents, I lose track - ran a fish-and-chip shop, about a century ago. :dinner:
Click to expand...

My great-great grandfather sold fish and chips from the back of a horse and cart, sounds unlikely but I've seen a photo so it did happen. Must have had a coal burning stove to heat the fryer.

JamesWhitehead said:
There is no excuse for wheat-dodgers, like myself, to miss out on the joy of fish and chips. A tempura-style batter of cornflour and beer works very well.
Click to expand...

Young's tempura battered fish fingers are far nicer that the ones coated in orange breadcrumbs. Why are those breadcrumbs orange?
 
Apparently today (13 July) was National French Fry Day here in the USA, and a New York restaurant recognized it by setting the Guinness record for the world's most expensive fries.
New York restaurant's $200 fries certified as the world's most expensive

A New York restaurant broke its tenth Guinness World Record with its latest menu item: a plate of French fries that costs $200.

Guinness announced Serendipity3, a restaurant on the Upper East Side in Manhattan, created the world's most expensive French fries to coincide with Tuesday's National French Fry Day. ...

The dish, titled Creme de la Creme Pommes Frites, features ingredients including Chipperbeck potatoes, Dom Perignon Champagne, J. LeBlanc French Champagne Ardenne Vinegar, cage-free goose fat from France, Guerande Truffle Salt, truffle oil, Crete Senesi Pecorino Tartufello cheese, shaved black summer truffles from Italy, truffle butter, organic A2 A2 100% grass fed cream from Jersey Cows, Gruyere Truffled Swiss Raclette and a topping of 23-karat edible gold dust. ...

The restaurant previously landed Guinness World Records for foods including the world's largest wedding cake and most expensive ice cream sundae.
Click to expand...
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2021/0...sive-French-fries-Serendipity3/5531626192594/
 
Why is it that there are now a thousand different types of frozen chips? There should only be two types (both plain)- french fries and straight cut. That's it. Now, there are every size and shape and worse- coatings, under the sun. A whole aisle of freezers dedicated to (what should be) the humble potato. The world has gone insane. And don't get me started on tins of sardines covered in curry sauce and god knows what else.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Floyd1 said:
Why is it that there are now a thousand different types of frozen chips? There should only be two types (both plain)- french fries and straight cut. That's it. Now, there are every size and shape and worse- coatings, under the sun. A whole aisle of freezers dedicated to (what should be) the humble potato. The world has gone insane. And don't get me started on tins of sardines covered in curry sauce and god knows what else.
Click to expand...
Yes, yes, yes. There should be fries and chips and sweet potato fries. Nothing else.

The same is true of so many products. A few weeks ago we had hot dogs - Herta frankfurters of course - and trying to find hot dog buns in among the 500 different burger buns (brioche? Seriously, when did that become a thing for burgers?) took forever. There was a choice of one type of hot dog bun, which was fine and dandy, but very hard to find even with the help of a Sainsbury's staff member.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I have a 3 gripes about hotdogs and buns in supermarkets.
The hotdogs are usually in packs of 8 or 10, whereas the buns are in packs of 6.
The hotdogs are always much longer than the hotdog buns so you end up with an inch poking out each end.
The hotdog buns are never hotdog buns, they're always 'finger rolls' which are NOT the same.
(and that's assuming you can even find them in first place)

Also, not a gripe but an observation - the staff always look at you like you suggested something totally ridiculous if you ask anything of the above about the hotdogs and buns!

If I could send a message to all the supermarkets about it I would say "Check your product ranges and the pack sizes and then make sure that you have things that match for quantity and dimensions, and actually have the hotdog buns on the shelf next to the hotdogs".
It's not rocket science FFS.
 
cycleboy2 said:
Yes, yes, yes. There should be fries and chips and sweet potato fries. Nothing else.

The same is true of so many products. A few weeks ago we had hot dogs - Herta frankfurters of course - and trying to find hot dog buns in among the 500 different burger buns (brioche? Seriously, when did that become a thing for burgers?) took forever. There was a choice of one type, which was fine and dandy, but very hard to find even with the help of a Sainsbury's staff member.
Click to expand...
Amen.
I suppose pizzas went this way a long time ago, but now it is, as you say, with almost everything. If I want a touch of lemon in my mayo (which is perfectly reasonable) I will just add some lemon to some 'normal' mayonnaise. Same with mustard and with tomato purée to make 'seafood sauce'. All from the same jar of mayo. And what's almost as bad are products that proclaim to be from another country when you know for certain that residents of the said country wouldn't touch it with a bargepole. Sainsbury's 'French Style' mustard springs to mind. If you gave that to a French person they'd probably smash it on your head. And quite right too.
 
Floyd1 said:
And me on rare occassions, like just now. Why is it that there are now a thousand different types of frozen chips? There should only be two types (both plain)- french fries and straight cut. That's it. Now, there are every size and shape and worse- coatings, under the sun. A whole aisle of freezers dedicated to (what should be) the humble potato. The world has gone insane. And don't get me started on tins of sardines covered in curry sauce and god knows what else.
Click to expand...
I do like a crinkle cut chip and curly fries occasionally
 
Trevp666 said:
The hotdogs are always much longer than the hotdog buns so you end up with an inch poking out each end.
The hotdog buns are never hotdog buns, they're always 'finger rolls' which are NOT the same.
Click to expand...
'Finger rolls' have NO place anywhere. They are absolutely useless.
 
Floyd1 said:
Why is it that there are now a thousand different types of frozen chips? There should only be two types (both plain)- french fries and straight cut.
Click to expand...
Trans-Atlantic language check: What exactly do you mean by "French fries"? Is that what we call "crinkle cut" in the states? ("French fries" or just "fries" is the generic term for chips in the sense you're referring to.)

The same thing happens here. I went to buy some at a local supermarket yesterday, and one brand's entire line was on sale. They make "classic" fries, crinkle cut, waffle fries, seasoned fries, seasoned curly fries, seasoned waffle fries, extra crispy classic, extra crispy crinkle cut,
quick cook straight cut, quick cook crinkle cut, quick cook waffle fries, steak fries (wider cut), dip'n wedges, beer battered fries, and 5-minute fries - and that doesn't include sweet potatoes or other forms of potato that one wouldn't think to call French fries. Adding to the confusion is the fact that they want to keep all of these at the same price point, so how much you get can vary between 1 1/4 pounds to a full 2 pounds.

cycleboy2 said:
trying to find hot dog buns in among the 500 different burger buns (brioche? Seriously, when did that become a thing for burgers?)
Click to expand...
On the other hand, hot dog buns aren't that hard to find in the US. We do have a variety of buns that are somewhat like hamburger buns, but there is always a big supply of regular hamburger and hot dog buns, in roughly equal numbers and side by side. One hot dog bun variation is New England style, which is sliced along the top instead of the side. But we do suffer from the imbalance caused by the fact that most hot dogs are sold in packs of 10, and most buns in packs of 8.

An annoying thing I've noticed in restaurants over the years is not only brioche buns for hamburgers, but crusty "hard rolls" as well. I find both are totally unsuited to the texture of a well-made burger. Some years ago a local place served buffalo burgers - a lean and delicate tasting meat - on hard rolls!
 
ChasFink said:
Trans-Atlantic language check: What exactly do you mean by "French fries"? Is that what we call "crinkle cut" in the states? ("French fries" or just "fries" is the generic term for chips in the sense you're referring to.)

The same thing happens here. I went to buy some at a local supermarket yesterday, and one brand's entire line was on sale. They make "classic" fries, crinkle cut, waffle fries, seasoned fries, seasoned curly fries, seasoned waffle fries, extra crispy classic, extra crispy crinkle cut,
quick cook straight cut, quick cook crinkle cut, quick cook waffle fries, steak fries (wider cut), dip'n wedges, beer battered fries, and 5-minute fries - and that doesn't include sweet potatoes or other forms of potato that one wouldn't think to call French fries. Adding to the confusion is the fact that they want to keep all of these at the same price point, so how much you get can vary between 1 1/4 pounds to a full 2 pounds.
Click to expand...
No. By 'French fries' I meant very thin chips. I should have perhaps just said 'thin-cut fries', or 'thin-cut chips'. They are called 'French fries' on the bag though, whereas all the other types are called 'chips' I think.
 
Then I think standard British chips are what we would call steak fries, and your French fries are our regular "classic" fries.
 
ChasFink said:
An annoying thing I've noticed in restaurants over the years is not only brioche buns for hamburgers, but crusty "hard rolls" as well. I find both are totally unsuited to the texture of a well-made burger. Some years ago a local place served buffalo burgers - a lean and delicate tasting meat - on hard rolls!
Click to expand...
And as for pitta breads- they just can't do them here. I'm sure in some Jewish and Arabic parts of town you can get them, but as for supermarkets- no chance. They are hard as iron (even after warming) and fall to bits as soon as you put anything in them, not to mention the totally wrong shape. Israeli ones are the best by far. Round, (as they should be, not semi- circular) soft and 'doughy.'
 
ChasFink said:
Trans-Atlantic language check: What exactly do you mean by "French fries"? Is that what we call "crinkle cut" in the states? ("French fries" or just "fries" is the generic term for chips in the sense you're referring to.)
Click to expand...
Here is a basic idea of chips (US fries)

x-3.png

No idea what 'potato tornado' are though
 
ChasFink said:
Then I think standard British chips are what we would call steak fries, and your French fries are our regular "classic" fries.
Click to expand...
Well there are steak chips, which are a (bit) wider than straight cut. -I suppose it also varies from State to State though?
 
So if I'm getting this right, we all agree that the standard French fry everywhere is McDonald's size, and standard British and Australian chips are like steak fries, only a bit smaller.

BTW, Nathan's in the US (the restaurant that hosts the big hot dog eating contest) have a nearly unique style: crinkle cut, but more the size and overall shape of British/Australian chips, served with a little two-pronged plastic fork so you don't get grease or ketchup on your fingers. They offer a frozen version in supermarkets as well.

fries.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top