I do not like buying frozen French Fries because I want to control the types and amount of vegetable oil used to make them. Some of the commercial French fries on the market contain surprisingly large amounts of oils. This is too bad because potatoes. by themselves, are not fattening and contain plenty of important nutrients.
A 5 1/2-ounce potato, about the size of a computer mouse, has 100 calories, no fat, 26 grams of carbohydrate and 3 grams of fiber. North Dakota State University nutritionist Julie Garden-Robinson says that potato also provides 21% of the daily recommendation for potassium and 45% of vitamin C, plus other nutrients.
She stresses that you should cCook potatoes in their skins and eat the skin or peel as thinly as possible because many of the nutrients are directly beneath the skin.
French Fries Your Way
One potato per person or one big for two people
Olive oil
Fresh ground pepper
Coarse salt
Dried red chili peppers (optional)
Oregano and thyme (optional)
Wash the potatoes. Do not peel. Cut out any blemishes.
Cut the potatoes in any style. Remember the thicker the piece, the longer it takes to cook.
For shoe string, cut into quarter inch thick slices along the length of the potato. Lay them flat and cut them in quarter-inch thick fries. For wedges, don't cut them so small.
For cubes, cut into quarter to half inch thick slices. Lay them flat and cut again. Then again along their length.
Wash off the excess starch on the potatoes. Pat dry. Put on a light coating of olive oil. Sprinkle with the pepper, salt and optional ingredients such as herbs or dry chili peppers and quickly combine them with your hands.
Spread on a large cookie tray and bak at 450 degrees F. After 10 or 15 minutes, turn the potatoes with spatula to help them brown on all sides. Serve when cooked to your liking.
It does not matter which type of potato you use. However, I like to cube the red ones and cook with them with the herbs. I like to turn the russets into shoe string and the yellow fleshed potatoes into wedges, using the dry chili peppers for flavor.
Brian Clancey is a keen cook, pursuing the truth that the best way to a woman's heart is through her stomach. This was part of the inspiration behind the http://www.thehealthyweb.com website, offering daily recipes and discussion of food and health issues.