french fry question

zoske,
man does this take me back. had to find my sous chef book i made when i was sous chef at the executive dining room of barnett bank in '91 and '92.

run your washed potatoes thru your cutter (we used the large hotel bakers)
chill them in ice water.

since you have two fryers there are two ways to go.
method one (uses both fryers at identical temps)
set your temp to 325f. use a candy thermo to verify the temp.
drain your potatoes
place into fryer until they are just BEGINNING to turn a golden color. remove and drain well on absorbant paper then chill in reefer until needed.
reset your fryer temps to 375f.
when order comes in heat the fries until golden brown and crisp.
method one works well for no more than 100 orders.

method two (continuous production)
set one fryer at 325f and the other at 375f.
drain water off of potatoes and run just like method one above and drain. then put into 375f fryer until golden.

the very best oil to use is a 25% lard to 75% peanut oil mixture.
next best is peanut oil 100%
last choice is fryer oil.

please be aware that these frys will be somewhat lighter in color than you are used to.

my experience is that bakers make the very best frys followed by all purpose chefs potatoes but under no circumstances use red bliss

hope this helps some
be sure to get a good candy or fryer thermo as heat is critical
jack

zoske,
just out of curiosity what made you decide on a trailer tech???
if the question is too nosy i understand
jack

heck!!!!!!!!!!!!
i forgot to answer the ice water question!!!!!!!!!
the only reason that you really do it is to prevent discoloration (although it does crisp them up a little)
if you don't do it they will turn brown.
if you are doing a lot of them add one capful of lemon juice to the water as it helps to make them stay white (by the way that's a good trick for whitening mushrooms that have started to turn brown also)
jack

Jack,

The only reason you "forget" stuff in your original posts is because you are sceered of being accused of making Smokin' posts!

Now admit it!

q,
only thing i am scared of is peggy
jack

Now Geiyser, I resemble that remark...

Hey Prisonchef: What about soaking those taters in water with some malt vinegar mixed in?? There used to be a place in Jersey called Pallisades Amusement PArk that did that I heard.....

Jack
I did all of my research on the internet when I started looking for a concession/kithcen trailer. To be totally honest I really liked the way the pictures of their trailers looked on the internet and their price was right.(I am pretty simple minded) I didn't know anything about concession trailers when I started looking and still don't know much but I am learning. Fortunately my experience with Trailer Tech has been great. Alex was good to work with. I was able to get everything I wanted in the trailer and arranged where I wanted it. This was all done over the phone and internet since I live in Iowa and they are located in Florida. When I got the trailer I was very impressed that it looked exactly like the pictures and everything was very well put together. Everyone that has seen my trailer has been very impressed and a few of them have been in the food business and only had good things to say about it. I would recomend Trailer Tech and would do business with them again.
Zoske

hi prisonchef,
Quick question, after frying them the first time at 325, how long can the fries keep in the fridge before frying them for a second time at 375?

i also heard a little corn starch to the oil also increases the crisp.

bbqnj,
the longest that we kept them was 6 hours but i think if you were to put them on a sheet pan and freeze them that should work but it would require a blast freezer to prevent product degradation.

on the corn starch thing i myself have never tried it nor have i tried the 10x sugar trick for coloring. if i was going to go that route myself i would just use commercial fries which have a malto-dextrous coating already applied for coloring.

Zoske,
Jack and I also have a trailer tech trailer and we're equally happy with it. Alex and Greg are both very nice and helpful. We need to tackle some of the laminate on the cabinets where it's starting to come loose. But I think that is due a lot to wear and tear in the heat and humidity here.
Peggy
And I am real sweet to Jack. He has nothing to fear!

we been making fries for three years. but we prefer a much easier method. we bake the taters first, then chill them over night. next day, slice them(we do it by hand) and portion with deli paper. then just grab and fry to order. takes about three min to fry. starch in the potatoes is what causes the browness. russets are full of starch and make the worst fries ever!
after frying, season with your favorite rub, or make your own creation to make them unique.
m.t.

zoske,
i have personally witnessed coffebluff's technique for fries and i am here to tell you that it works,works well and works everytime!!!
there is no wasted time nor fiddling with blanching,draining,holding and finish cooking.
he was even kind enough to let me cut up a whole pan of taters just so i could have the method down pat
if your work staff is only two people like ours is then his method is the one i would use based soley on the way his customers gobbled them down and how fast the orders could be turned out!!!
jack

hey guys thanks for sharing!

quick question though, if russets make a bad fry with that method, whats a good potato than? something like redbliss?

only one kind....
i must confess.......
IDAH0

I was going to mention coffebluff's method, but was waiting for him to do it. I didn't want to give out any secrets. His fries are great. Big fat ones that taste fluffy inside like fries should in my opinion.
Thanks, coffeebluff. I was getting hungry remembering how good they were.
Peggy

hi guys-
I think the best way is the to step blanche method described by prison chef--blanche your fries @ 325 and the hit with the 375 when your order comes in--all in all a lot of work--but you'll never have better fries