Monday, March 15, 2010

Leftovers: French Fries

After a sodden weekend, and talking about fabulous salts, this seemed like a logical time to talk about soggy french fries.

So have you ever gotten take-out or delivery and when you open your meal, the side of usually amazing, crispy, roasted garlic pomme frites are all soggy from the trapped condensation? (Of course you have. There is just no way to get them home without that happening unless you live directly above the diner/restaurant.)
Well, here is my solution to limp fries: (executed last night when Mike brought some fries back with him, through the rain, after he'd gone out for late-night food w/ a couple of his friends.)

Take a dry, preferably non-stick pan, and set it on medium heat. Toss your fries right in and let them start to sizzle and crisp for about 5 minutes. Toss them every 2 minutes or so. Add a little more salt to the fries, as it should now stick since the heat has reactivated the oil in the fries. 
*This would be a good time to experiment with some more interesting salts as well...
Toss again, and after 10 minutes total, they should be hot and crisp again.

I cannot guarantee that this will work on fries that you might have had in the fridge overnight. Those might not be salvageable. But it works as a quick fix for just-delivered fries that did not survive the trip.

2 comments:

Erin said...

that is genius. so simple yet no one (or at least me) has ever thought about before.

Joanna said...

TIP: Always order your fries in a paper bag to help them stay crispy.
The order taker may balk, but I find that if you sweetly explain that it's to help the fries stay crispy because they get soggy in the aluminum or styrofoam containers, they are more than happy to oblige.