French fries

French fries(or simplyfries, also known aschipsamong other names) arebatonnetorjulienne-cutdeep-friedpotatoesof disputed origin. They are prepared by cutting potatoes into even strips, drying them, and frying them, usually in adeep fryer. Pre-cut, blanched, and frozenrusset potatoesare widely used, and sometimes baked in a regular orconvection oven, such as anair fryer.
French fries are served hot, either soft or crispy, and are generally eaten as part of lunch or dinner or by themselves as a snack, and they commonly appear on the menus ofdiners,fast foodrestaurants, pubs, and bars. They are typically salted and may be served withketchup,vinegar,mayonnaise,tomato sauce, or other sauces. Fries can be topped more heavily, as in the dishes ofpoutine,loaded friesorchili cheese fries, and are occasionally made fromsweet potatoesinstead of potatoes.
The standard method for cooking french fries isdeep frying, which submerges them in hot fat, nowadays most commonly oil.Vacuum fryersproduce potato chips with lower oil content, while maintaining their colour and texture.
The potatoes are prepared by first cutting them (peeled or unpeeled) into even strips, which are then wiped off or soaked in cold water to remove the surface starch, and thoroughly dried.They may then be fried in one or two stages. Chefs generally agree that thetwo-bathtechnique produces better results.Potatoes fresh out of the ground can have too high a water content resulting in soggy fries, so preference is for those that have been stored for a while.
In the two-stage or two-bath method, the first bath, sometimes calledblanching, is in hot fat (around 160 °C/320 °F) to cook the fries through. This step can be done in advance.Then they are more briefly fried in very hot fat (190 °C/375 °F) to crisp the exterior. They are then placed in a colander or on a cloth to drain, then served. The exact times of the two baths depend on the size of the fries. For example, for 2–3 mm strips, the first bath takes about 3 minutes, and the second bath takes only seconds.
Since the 1960s, most french fries in the US have been produced from frozen Russet potatoes which have been blanched or at least air-dried industrially.The usual fat for making french fries isvegetable oil. In the past, beefsuetwas recommended as superior,withvegetable shorteningas an alternative.McDonald'sused a mixture of 93% beeftallowand 7%cottonseed oiluntil 1990, when they changed to vegetable oil with beef flavouring.Horse fat was standard in northern France and Belgium until recently,and is recommended by some chefs.
French fries are fried in a two-step process: the first time is to cook the starch throughout the entire cut at low heat, and the second time is to create the golden crispy exterior of the fry at a higher temperature. This is necessary because if the potato cuts are only fried once, the temperature would either be too hot, causing only the exterior to be cooked and not the inside, or not hot enough where the entire fry is cooked, but its crispy exterior will not develop. Although the potato cuts may be baked or steamed as a preparation method, this section will only focus on french fries made using frying oil. During the initial frying process (approximately 150 °C), water on the surface of the cuts evaporates off the surface and the water inside the cuts gets absorbed by the starch granules, causing them to swell and produce the fluffy interior of the fry.
The starch granules are able to retain the water and expand due to gelatinisation. The water and heat break theglycosidic linkagesbetweenamylopectinandamylosestrands, allowing a new gel matrix to form via hydrogen bonds which aid in water retention. The moisture that gets trapped within the gel matrix is responsible for the fluffy interior of the fry. The gelatinised starch molecules move towards the surface of the fries "forming a thick layer of gelatinised starch" and this layer of pre-gelatinised starch becomes the crisp exterior after the potato cuts are fried for a second time.During the second frying process (approximately 180 °C), the remaining water on the surface of the cuts evaporates and the gelatinised starch molecules that collected towards the potato surface are cooked again, forming the crisp exterior. The golden-brown colour of the fry will develop when the amino acids and glucose on the exterior participate in aMaillard browning reaction.
In the United States and most of Canada, the termfrench fries, sometimes capitalised asFrench fries, or shortened tofries, refers to all dishes of fried elongated pieces of potatoes.Variantsin shape and size may have names such ascurly fries,shoestring fries, etc.
In the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, Ireland and New Zealand, the termchipsis generally used instead, though thinly cutfried potatoesare sometimes calledfrench friesorskinny fries, to distinguish them fromchips, which are cut thicker. In the US or Canada these more thickly-cutchipsmight be calledsteak fries, depending on the shape.
The wordchipsis more often used in North America to refer topotato chips, commonly known in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, and South Africa ascrisps.  In Australia,chipsare often referred to ashot chipsto distinguish them frompotato chips, although the type of 'chip' is often implied through context.
Thomas Jeffersonhad "potatoes served in the French manner" at aWhite Housedinner in 1802.The expression "french fried potatoes" first occurred in print in English in the 1856 workCookery for Maids of All WorkbyEliza Warren: "French Fried Potatoes. – Cut new potatoes in thin slices, put them in boiling fat, and a little salt; fry both sides of a light golden brown colour; drain."This account referred to thin, shallow-fried slices of potato. It is not clear where or when the now familiar deep-fried batons or fingers of potato were first prepared. In the early 20th century, the term "french fried" was being used in the sense of "deep-fried" for foods likeonion ringsorchicken.
One story about the name "french fries" claims that when theAmerican Expeditionary Forcesarrived in Belgium duringWorld War I, they assumed that chips were a French dish because French was spoken in theBelgian Army.But the name existed long before that in English, and the popularity of the term did not increase for decades after 1917.The term was in use in the United States as early as 1886.An 1899 item inGood Housekeepingspecifically referencesKitchen Economy in France: "The perfection of French fries is due chiefly to the fact that plenty of fat is used."
The oldest documents where a fried potato is mentioned are from Chile in 1629 in the city ofNacimiento, extracted fromHappy Captivity, written in 1673 by ChileanFrancisco Núñez de Pineda, where he narrates his experiences as a captive war soldier in 1629 at the hands ofMapuchewarriors.In the text, he mentioned eating "papas fritas" (fried potatoes) in 1629 and women "sent fried and stewed potatoes" to the chiefs.The exact shape is unclear, likely cubes fried in butter which was customary.However, the cane shape originates from Europe.
French fries as we know them may have been invented inSpain, the first European country in which the potato appeared from theNew Worldcolonies.Professor Paul Ilegems,curatorof theFrietmuseuminBruges, Belgium, believes thatSaint Teresa of Ávilaof Spain cooked the first french fries, and refers also to thetraditionof frying inMediterranean cuisineas evidence.
The Belgians and French have an ongoing dispute about where fries were invented.
The Belgian food historian Pierre Leclercq has traced the history of the french fry and asserts that "it is clear that fries are of French origin".They became an emblematicParisiandish in the 19th century. Frédéric Krieger, aBavarianmusician, learned to cook fries at a roaster onrue Montmartrein Paris in 1842, and took the recipe to Belgium in 1844, where he created his business Fritz and sold "la pomme de terre frite à l'instar de Paris" ("Paris-style fried potatoes").The modern style of fries born in Paris around 1855 is different from the domestic fried potato that existed in the 18th century.
From the Belgian standpoint, the popularity of the term "french fries" is explained as "French gastronomic hegemony" into which the cuisine of Belgium was assimilated, because of a lack of understanding coupled with a shared language and geographic proximity of the countries.The Belgian journalistJo Gérard[fr]claimed that a 1781 family manuscript recounts that potatoes were deep-fried prior to 1680 in theMeusevalley, as a substitute forfrying fishwhen the rivers were frozen.Gérard never produced the manuscript that supports this claim, and "the historical value of this story is open to question".In any case, it is unrelated to the later history of the french fry, as the potato did not arrive in the region until around 1735; furthermore, given 18th-century economic conditions: "it is absolutely unthinkable that a peasant could have dedicated large quantities of fat for cooking potatoes. At most they weresautéedin a pan".
Fries are very popular in Belgium, where they are known asfrieten(in Flemish) orfrites(in Belgian French), and the Netherlands, where among the working classes they are known aspatatin the north and, in the south,friet(en).In Belgium, fries are sold in shops calledfriteries(French),frietkot/frituur(Flemish),snackbar(Dutch in The Netherlands) orFritüre/Frittüre(German). They are served witha large variety of Belgian saucesand eaten either on their own or with other snacks. Traditionally fries are served in acornet de frites(French),patatzak/frietzak/fritzak(Dutch/Flemish), orFrittentüte(German), a white cardboard cone, then wrapped in paper, with a spoonful of sauce (often mayonnaise) on top.
In France and other French-speaking countries, fried potatoes are formallypommes de terre frites, but more commonlypommes frites("fried apples"),patates frites, or simplyfrites. The wordsaiguillettes("needle-ettes") orallumettes("matchsticks") are used when the french fries are very small and thin. One enduring origin story holds that french fries were invented by street vendors on thePont Neufbridge inParisin 1789, just before the outbreak of theFrench Revolution.However, a reference exists in France from 1775 to "a few pieces of fried potato" and to "fried potatoes".Eating potatoes for sustenance was promoted in France byAntoine-Augustin Parmentier, but he did not mentionfriedpotatoes in particular. A note in a manuscript in U.S. president Thomas Jefferson's hand (circa 1801–1809) mentions"Pommes de terre frites à cru, en petites tranches"("Potatoes deep-fried while raw, in small slices"). Therecipealmost certainly comes from his Frenchchef, Honoré Julien.The thick-cut fries are calledpommes Pont-Neufor simplypommes frites(about10 mm or3⁄8in); thinner variants arepommes allumettes(matchstick potatoes; about7 mm or1⁄4in), andpommes paille(potato straws;4 mm or1⁄8in).Pommes gaufrettesarewaffle fries. A popular dish in France issteak frites, which is steak accompanied by thin french fries.
French fries migrated to the German-speaking countries during the 19th century. In Germany, they are usually known by the French wordspommes frites, or onlyPommesorFritten(derived from the French words, but pronounced as German words).Often served with ketchup or mayonnaise, they are popular as a side dish in restaurants, or as a street-food snack purchased at anImbissstand(snack stand). Since the 1950s,currywursthas become a widely-popular dish that is commonly offered with fries. Currywurst is a sausage (oftenbratwurstorbockwurst) in a spiced ketchup-based sauce, dusted withcurry powderand served with fries.
The standard deep-fried cut potatoes in the United Kingdom are called chips, and are cut into pieces between 10 and 15 mm (0.39 and 0.59 in) thick. They are occasionally made from unpeeled potatoes (skins showing). Britishchipsare not the same thing aspotato chips(an American term); those are called "crisps" in the UK and some other countries. In the UK, chips are part of the popular, and now international,fast fooddishfish and chips. In the UK, the name chips are a separate item to french fries; with chips being more thickly cut than french fries, they can be cooked once or multiple times at different temperatures.From 1813 on, recipes for deep-fried cut potatoes occur in popular cookbooks.By the late 1850s, at least one cookbook refers to "French Fried Potatoes".
The first commercially available chips in the UK were sold by Mrs 'Granny' Duce in one of theWest Ridingtowns in 1854.Ablue plaqueinOldhammarks the origin of thefish-and-chipshop, and thus the start of the fast food industry in Britain.In Scotland, chips were first sold inDundee: "in the 1870s, that glory of British gastronomy – the chip – was first sold by Belgian immigrant Edward De Gernier in the city's Greenmarket".In Ireland the first chip shop was "opened by Giuseppe Cervi", an Italian immigrant, "who arrived there in the 1880s".It was estimated in 2011 that in the UK, 80% of households bought frozen chips each year.Although chips were a popular dish in mostCommonwealth countries, the "thin style" french fries have been popularised worldwide in large part by the large American fast food chains such as McDonald's andBurger King.
"Pommes frites" or just "frites" (French), "frieten" (a word used in Flanders and the southern provinces of the Netherlands) or "patat" (used in the north and central parts of the Netherlands) became a national snack.Fries also come in the form of a common Dutch street food, known asPatatje Oorlog, translated to as "war fries". It consists of fries dressed with mayonnaise, a peanut-based satay sauce and garnished with diced raw onions along with a variety of other optional ingredients.
In the United States, theJ. R. Simplot Companyis credited with successfully commercialising french fries in frozen form during the 1940s. Subsequently, in 1967,Ray Krocof McDonald's contracted the Simplot company to supply them with frozen fries, replacing fresh-cut potatoes. In 2004, 29% of the United States' potato crop was used to make frozen fries; 90% consumed by the food services sector and 10% by retail.The United States supplies China with most of their french fries, as 70% of China's french fries are imported.Pre-made french fries have been available forhome cookingsince the 1960s, having been pre-fried (or sometimes baked), frozen and placed in a sealed plastic bag.Some fast-food chains dip the fries in a sugar solution or a starch batter, to alter the appearance or texture.French fries are one of the most popular dishes in the United States, commonly being served as a side dish to main dishes and in fast food restaurants. The average American eats around 30 pounds (14 kg) of french fries a year.
The town ofFlorenceville-Bristol,New Brunswickin Canada, headquarters ofMcCain Foods, calls itself "the French fry capital of the world" and also hosts a museum about potatoes called Potato World.McCain Foods is the world's largest manufacturer of frozen french fries and other potato specialities.
French fries are the main ingredient in theQuébécoisdish known aspoutine, a dish consisting of fried potatoes covered withcheese curdsand browngravy. Poutine has a growing number of variations, but it is generally considered to have been developed in ruralQuébecsometime in the 1950s, although precisely where in the province it first appeared is a matter of contention.Canada is also responsible for providing 22% of China's french fries.
In Spain, fried potatoes are calledpatatas fritasorpapas fritas. Another common form, involving larger irregular cuts, ispatatas bravas. The potatoes are cut into big chunks, partially boiled and then fried. They are usually seasoned with a spicy tomato sauce.Fries are a common side dish in Latin American cuisine or part of larger preparations such as thesalchipapasin Peru orchorrillanain Chile.
Whilst eating 'regular' crispy french fries is common in South Africa, a regional favourite, particularly inCape Town, is a soft soggy version doused in white vinegar called "slap-chips" (pronounced "slup-chips" in English or "slaptjips" in Afrikaans).These chips are typically thicker and fried at a lower temperature for a longer period of time than regular french fries.Slap-chips are an important component of aGatsbysandwich, also a common Cape Town delicacy.Slap-chips are also commonly served withdeep fried fishwhich are also served with the same white vinegar.
Fried potato(フライドポテト,Furaido poteto)is a standard fast-food side dish in Japan.Inspired byJapanese cuisine,okonomiyakifries are served with a topping ofunagisauce,mayonnaise,katsuobushi,noriseasoning (furikake) and stir-fried cabbage.
French fries come in multiple variations and toppings. Some examples include:
Fries tend to be served with a variety of accompaniments, such assalt and vinegar(malt, balsamic or white), pepper, Cajun seasoning, grated cheese, melted cheese,mushy peas, heated curry sauce, curry ketchup, hot sauce, relish, mustard, mayonnaise,bearnaise sauce, tartar sauce, chili,tzatziki,feta cheese, garlic sauce,fry sauce, butter, sour cream,ranch dressing, barbecue sauce, gravy, honey,aioli,brown sauce, ketchup, lemon juice,piccalilli,pickled cucumber, pickledgherkins,pickled onionsorpickled eggs.In Australia, a popular flavouring added to chips ischicken salt.
French fries primarily containcarbohydrates(mostly in the form ofstarch) and protein from the potato, and fat absorbed during the deep-frying process. Salt, which containssodium, is almost always applied as a surface seasoning. For example, a large serving of french fries atMcDonald'sin the United States is 154 grams and includes 350 mg of sodium. The 510caloriescome from 66 g of carbohydrates, 24 g of fat and 7 g ofprotein.
A number of experts have criticised french fries for being very unhealthy. According to Jonathan Bonnet in aTimemagazine article, "fries are nutritionally unrecognizable from a spud" because they "involve frying, salting, and removing one of the healthiest parts of the potato: the skin, where many of the nutrients and fiber are found."Kristin Kirkpatrick calls french fries "an extremely starchy vegetable dipped in a fryer that then loads on the unhealthy fat, and what you have left is a food that has no nutritional redeeming value in it at all."David Katz states that "French fries are often the super-fatty side dish to a burger—and both are often used as vehicles for things like sugar-laced ketchup and fatty mayo."Eric Morrissette, spokesperson for Health Canada, states that people should limit their intake of french fries, but eating them occasionally is not likely to be a health concern.
Frying french fries inbeef tallow,lard, or other animal fats addssaturated fatto them. Replacing animal fats with tropical vegetable oils, such aspalm oil, simply substitutes one saturated fat for another. For many years partiallyhydrogenated vegetable oilswere used as a means of avoiding cholesterol and reducing saturated fatty acid content, but in time thetrans fatcontent of these oils was perceived as contributing tocardiovascular disease.Starting in 2008, many restaurant chains and manufacturers of pre-cooked frozen french fries for home reheating phased out trans-fat–containing vegetable oils.
French fries contain some of the highest levels ofacrylamidesof any foodstuff, and experts have raised concerns about the effects of acrylamides on human health.According to theAmerican Cancer Society, it is not clear as of 2013whether acrylamide consumption affects people's risk of gettingcancer.A meta-analysis indicated that dietary acrylamide is not related to the risk of most common cancers, but could not exclude a modest association for kidney, endometrial orovarian cancers.A lower-fat method for producing a french-fry–like product is to coat "frenched" or wedge potatoes in oil and spices/flavouring before baking them. The temperature will be lower compared to deep frying, which reduces acrylamide formation.
In April 2023, researchers from China suggested a possible link between the consumption of fried food and mental health problems. According to the study, those who frequently consume fried food, especially potatoes, have an increased risk of depression and anxiety, by 7% and 12% respectively, compared to those who do not. The connection was particularly prominent among younger males. However, the causal relationship is not conclusive. The results are still preliminary, and the researchers are uncertain whether consuming fried foods causes mental health problems or individuals with symptoms of anxiety and depression tend to opt for fried foods.
In June 2004, theUnited States Department of Agriculture(USDA), with the advisement of a federal district judge fromBeaumont, Texas, classified batter-coated french fries as avegetableunder thePerishable Agricultural Commodities Act. This was primarily for trade reasons; french fries do not meet the standard to be listed as aprocessed food.This classification, referred to as the "French fry rule", was upheld in theUnited States Court of Appealsfor theFifth CircuitcaseFleming Companies, Inc. v. USDA.
A 2022 study estimated the environmental impact of 57,000 food products in the UK and Ireland, finding that french fries have a lower impact on the environment than many other foods.