potato depends on the surface area. Chips,
which are almost all surface, average about
35% oil, while thick fries are more like 10–
15%.
French Fries “French fries” may first have
been made in significant quantities by
Parisian street vendors early in the 19th
century. They are potato sticks cut with a
square cross section, 5–10 mm on a side,
deep-fried in oil, with a crisp gold exterior
and a moist interior that’s fluffy if the
potatoes are high-starch russets, creamy
otherwise. Simple quick frying doesn’t work
very well; it gives a thin, delicate crust that’s
quickly softened by the interior’s moisture. A
crisp crust requires an initial period of gentle
frying, so that starch in the surface cells has
time to dissolve from the granules and
reinforce and glue together the outer cell
walls into a thicker, more robust layer. Good
fries can be made by starting the potato strips