My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using a
deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees. Second
was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The recipe said the
second fry should only take a minute or so until they browned but after
5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or crisp. The seasoning was
terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt cayenne and cinnamon). They
were delicious but not a crispy as a normal white potato french fry.
Anyone know the secret to crispy sweet potato fries?

Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
@corp.supernews.com:

> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
> fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using a
> deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees. Second
> was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The recipe said the
> second fry should only take a minute or so until they browned but after
> 5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or crisp. The seasoning was
> terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt cayenne and cinnamon). They
> were delicious but not a crispy as a normal white potato french fry.
> Anyone know the secret to crispy sweet potato fries?


Mickey Zalusky,

Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
technique" slices?

That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm guessing.

Andy

On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:36:01p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?

> Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
> @corp.supernews.com:
>
>> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
>> fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using a
>> deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees. Second
>> was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The recipe said the
>> second fry should only take a minute or so until they browned but after
>> 5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or crisp. The seasoning was
>> terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt cayenne and cinnamon). They
>> were delicious but not a crispy as a normal white potato french fry.
>> Anyone know the secret to crispy sweet potato fries?
>
>
> Mickey Zalusky,
>
> Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
> technique" slices?
>
> That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm guessing.
>
> Andy
>

IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless you
fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not particularly
desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable different between the
two, which accounts for most of the frying difference.

Just my 2¢.

--
Wayne Boatwright o¿o
____________________

BIOYA

Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
28.19:

> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:36:01p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?
>
>> Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
>> @corp.supernews.com:
>>
>>> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
>>> fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using
>>> a deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees.
>>> Second was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The
>>> recipe said the second fry should only take a minute or so until
>>> they browned but after 5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or
>>> crisp. The seasoning was terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt
>>> cayenne and cinnamon). They were delicious but not a crispy as a
>>> normal white potato french fry. Anyone know the secret to crispy
>>> sweet potato fries?
>>
>>
>> Mickey Zalusky,
>>
>> Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
>> technique" slices?
>>
>> That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm
>> guessing.
>>
>> Andy
>>
>
> IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless
> you fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not
> particularly desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable
> different between the two, which accounts for most of the frying
> difference.
>
> Just my 2¢.


Wayne,

I dunno either. The only sweet potatoes I eat are the Thanksgiving kind
that come casseroled (?) with or without mini marshmellows melted on top.

Andy

On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:55:05p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?

> Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
> 28.19:
>
>> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:36:01p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?
>>
>>> Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
>>> @corp.supernews.com:
>>>
>>>> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
>>>> fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using
>>>> a deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees.
>>>> Second was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The
>>>> recipe said the second fry should only take a minute or so until
>>>> they browned but after 5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or
>>>> crisp. The seasoning was terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt
>>>> cayenne and cinnamon). They were delicious but not a crispy as a
>>>> normal white potato french fry. Anyone know the secret to crispy
>>>> sweet potato fries?
>>>
>>>
>>> Mickey Zalusky,
>>>
>>> Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
>>> technique" slices?
>>>
>>> That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm
>>> guessing.
>>>
>>> Andy
>>>
>>
>> IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless
>> you fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not
>> particularly desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable
>> different between the two, which accounts for most of the frying
>> difference.
>>
>> Just my 2¢.
>
>
> Wayne,
>
> I dunno either. The only sweet potatoes I eat are the Thanksgiving kind
> that come casseroled (?) with or without mini marshmellows melted on top.
>
> Andy
>

One of my favorite restaurants serves up some great hand-cut sweet potato
fries that are nicely browned on the outside and tender inside, but they
are never what I would call crisp. They are delicious. I don't expect
them to be really crisp. It's not the nature of sweet potatoes.

My mom used to make some really terrific pan fried sweet potatoes. She
would slice parboiled fresh sweet potatoes about 3/16" thick, then begin
cooking them in a single layer in a large iron skillet containing small
amounts of bacon fat and butter, turning once or twice. As they were
beginning to brown, she would lightly sprinkle them with granulated sugar,
turn and sprinkle with sugar again, which encouraged caramelization almost
bordering on "burned". A final finish with a few drops of fresh lemon
juice and they were served piping hot. I need to make those sometime!

--
Wayne Boatwright o¿o
____________________

BIOYA

Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
28.19:

> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:55:05p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?
>
>> Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
>> 28.19:
>>
>>> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:36:01p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it
>>> Andy?
>>>
>>>> Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
>>>> @corp.supernews.com:
>>>>
>>>>> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular
>>>>> french fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch
>>>>> batons. Using a deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was
>>>>> at 300 degrees. Second was at 350 degrees according to the recipe
>>>>> I used. The recipe said the second fry should only take a minute
>>>>> or so until they browned but after 5 minutes, the potatoes never
>>>>> got brown or crisp. The seasoning was terrific (mixture of brown
>>>>> sugar, salt cayenne and cinnamon). They were delicious but not a
>>>>> crispy as a normal white potato french fry. Anyone know the secret
>>>>> to crispy sweet potato fries?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Mickey Zalusky,
>>>>
>>>> Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
>>>> technique" slices?
>>>>
>>>> That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm
>>>> guessing.
>>>>
>>>> Andy
>>>>
>>>
>>> IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless
>>> you fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not
>>> particularly desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable
>>> different between the two, which accounts for most of the frying
>>> difference.
>>>
>>> Just my 2¢.
>>
>>
>> Wayne,
>>
>> I dunno either. The only sweet potatoes I eat are the Thanksgiving
>> kind that come casseroled (?) with or without mini marshmellows
>> melted on top.
>>
>> Andy
>>
>
> One of my favorite restaurants serves up some great hand-cut sweet
> potato fries that are nicely browned on the outside and tender inside,
> but they are never what I would call crisp. They are delicious. I
> don't expect them to be really crisp. It's not the nature of sweet
> potatoes.
>
> My mom used to make some really terrific pan fried sweet potatoes.
> She would slice parboiled fresh sweet potatoes about 3/16" thick, then
> begin cooking them in a single layer in a large iron skillet
> containing small amounts of bacon fat and butter, turning once or
> twice. As they were beginning to brown, she would lightly sprinkle
> them with granulated sugar, turn and sprinkle with sugar again, which
> encouraged caramelization almost bordering on "burned". A final
> finish with a few drops of fresh lemon juice and they were served
> piping hot. I need to make those sometime!


So your Mom is/was a family cookin' gourmet cook?!! Mine was too.

Andy

On Sun 05 Mar 2006 04:03:55p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?

> Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
> 28.19:
>
>> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:55:05p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Andy?
>>
>>> Wayne Boatwright <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in
>>> 28.19:
>>>
>>>> On Sun 05 Mar 2006 02:36:01p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it
>>>> Andy?
>>>>
>>>>> Mickey Zalusky > wrote in news:120mm5dm6micbe1
>>>>> @corp.supernews.com:
>>>>>
>>>>>> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular
>>>>>> french fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch
>>>>>> batons. Using a deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was
>>>>>> at 300 degrees. Second was at 350 degrees according to the recipe
>>>>>> I used. The recipe said the second fry should only take a minute
>>>>>> or so until they browned but after 5 minutes, the potatoes never
>>>>>> got brown or crisp. The seasoning was terrific (mixture of brown
>>>>>> sugar, salt cayenne and cinnamon). They were delicious but not a
>>>>>> crispy as a normal white potato french fry. Anyone know the secret
>>>>>> to crispy sweet potato fries?
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Mickey Zalusky,
>>>>>
>>>>> Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
>>>>> technique" slices?
>>>>>
>>>>> That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm
>>>>> guessing.
>>>>>
>>>>> Andy
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless
>>>> you fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not
>>>> particularly desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable
>>>> different between the two, which accounts for most of the frying
>>>> difference.
>>>>
>>>> Just my 2¢.
>>>
>>>
>>> Wayne,
>>>
>>> I dunno either. The only sweet potatoes I eat are the Thanksgiving
>>> kind that come casseroled (?) with or without mini marshmellows
>>> melted on top.
>>>
>>> Andy
>>>
>>
>> One of my favorite restaurants serves up some great hand-cut sweet
>> potato fries that are nicely browned on the outside and tender inside,
>> but they are never what I would call crisp. They are delicious. I
>> don't expect them to be really crisp. It's not the nature of sweet
>> potatoes.
>>
>> My mom used to make some really terrific pan fried sweet potatoes.
>> She would slice parboiled fresh sweet potatoes about 3/16" thick, then
>> begin cooking them in a single layer in a large iron skillet
>> containing small amounts of bacon fat and butter, turning once or
>> twice. As they were beginning to brown, she would lightly sprinkle
>> them with granulated sugar, turn and sprinkle with sugar again, which
>> encouraged caramelization almost bordering on "burned". A final
>> finish with a few drops of fresh lemon juice and they were served
>> piping hot. I need to make those sometime!
>
>
> So your Mom is/was a family cookin' gourmet cook?!! Mine was too.

Yes, Mom was one of the best Southern cooks I've ever known. My last food
memory of her was her legendary fresh coconut cake that she baked a few
days before she passed away. She was a great cook and a great teacher (to
me). What was your favorite thing that your Mom cooked?

--
Wayne Boatwright o¿o
____________________

BIOYA

On Sun 05 Mar 2006 04:20:36p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Mickey
Zalusky?

>
>>>Have you tried using a mandoline that does the waffle cut "twist-
>>>technique" slices?
>>>
>>>That should crisp up pretty fast in a deep fryer or baked. I'm
>>>guessing.
>>>
>>>Andy
>>>
>>
>>
>> IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless
>> you fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not
>> particularly desirable. The starch/sugar balance is considerable
>> different between the two, which accounts for most of the frying
>> difference.
>>
>> Just my 2¢.
>>
> I think you're right. When I bake a sweet potato, it has a lot more
> moisture than a regular white potato. I've seen recipes for sweet
> potato fries make in a hot (400 or 450 degree) oven. I'll probably give
> that method a try. Thanks for the comments.

Yes, that might actually work better.

--
Wayne Boatwright o¿o
____________________

BIOYA

Mickey Zalusky wrote:
> My first attempt was a twice-fried method as used for regular french
> fries. Peeled and cust sweet potatoes into 1.4-inch batons. Using a
> deep fat fryer and peanut oil the first fry was at 300 degrees.
> Second was at 350 degrees according to the recipe I used. The recipe
> said the second fry should only take a minute or so until they
> browned but after 5 minutes, the potatoes never got brown or crisp.
> The seasoning was terrific (mixture of brown sugar, salt cayenne and
> cinnamon). They were delicious but not a crispy as a normal white
> potato french fry. Anyone know the secret to crispy sweet potato
> fries?

IMHO, they must be cut very thin as in "shoestring" fries. Sweet potatoes
are not the same as white potatoes used in french fries. Sweets are much
more moist.

Have you ever baked a white baking potato and sweet potato? When you split
open the white potato, it's fluffy but a bit dry. Split open the sweet
potato; it's fluffy but moist. So you need a thin cut of the sweet potato
and faster cooking in hot oil, not twice cooking as in 'Belgian' fries.
It's also been my experience with sweet potatoes they absorb oil more easily
so again, thin cut, fried hot and quick. Then drain, season and serve.

Jill

On 5 Mar 2006 22:52:00 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
<wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote:

>IME, sweet potatoes never will get as crisp as white potatoes unless you
>fry virtually all the moisture out of them, and that's not particularly
>desirable.

Right. Even the ones I've had from a commercial fryer have been a bit
wilty. If you just know to expect it, it's not a big deal.

serene

On 6 Mar 2006 00:26:13 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
<wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote:

>What was your favorite thing that your Mom cooked?

Her matzoh balls, hands down.

No, wait, her chopped liver.

Dammit, maybe it's her spaghetti sauce that takes a day and a half to
cook.

Damn. Hard choices.

(Garlicky lamb roast. Pork-stuffed wontons. Latkes! How could I
forget latkes? Chicken and rice casserole. And on and on and on.)

The other day, I was talking to her on the phone. God, I miss her so
much. We had a lonnnnnng conversation about all my favorite things
that she makes. Some of her own mother's recipes are lost to time,
and I'm trying to learn all of my mom's before I lose her. The one
thing she wished she had learned from her mom is her chopped herring
recipe, and we've decided to try to duplicate it. Too bad we're now
500 miles apart.

serene

In article >,
serene > wrote:

> On 6 Mar 2006 00:26:13 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
> <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote:
>
> >What was your favorite thing that your Mom cooked?
>
> Her matzoh balls, hands down.
>
> No, wait, her chopped liver.
>
> Dammit, maybe it's her spaghetti sauce that takes a day and a half to
> cook.
>
> Damn. Hard choices.
>
> (Garlicky lamb roast. Pork-stuffed wontons. Latkes! How could I
> forget latkes? Chicken and rice casserole. And on and on and on.)
>
> The other day, I was talking to her on the phone. God, I miss her so
> much. We had a lonnnnnng conversation about all my favorite things
> that she makes. Some of her own mother's recipes are lost to time,
> and I'm trying to learn all of my mom's before I lose her. The one
> thing she wished she had learned from her mom is her chopped herring
> recipe, and we've decided to try to duplicate it. Too bad we're now
> 500 miles apart.
>
> serene

500 miles is only a 10 hour drive..... :-)
--
Peace, Om.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson

Every year at thanksgiving, before I deep fry the turkey, I make sweet
potato potato chips. They are always crispy. But I think they are crispy
because they are so thin.

ScottR

I haven't tried this, but would it work to dredge the sweet potato
rounds in a little flour or corn starch before frying? I'm thinking the
outer edge would be crispy, and the insides would be soft.


--Lia

In article >,
serene > wrote:

> On 6 Mar 2006 00:26:13 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
> <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote:
>
> >What was your favorite thing that your Mom cooked?
>
> Her matzoh balls, hands down.
>
> No, wait, her chopped liver.
>
> Dammit, maybe it's her spaghetti sauce that takes a day and a half to
> cook.
>
> Damn. Hard choices.
>
> (Garlicky lamb roast. Pork-stuffed wontons. Latkes! How could I
> forget latkes? Chicken and rice casserole. And on and on and on.)
>
> The other day, I was talking to her on the phone. God, I miss her so
> much. We had a lonnnnnng conversation about all my favorite things
> that she makes. Some of her own mother's recipes are lost to time,
> and I'm trying to learn all of my mom's before I lose her. The one
> thing she wished she had learned from her mom is her chopped herring
> recipe, and we've decided to try to duplicate it. Too bad we're now
> 500 miles apart.

Just about the nicest thing my mother ever did for me was to give me a
hand-written cookbook containing all the family faves, while she was
still in good enough health to be able to help me when I didn't
understand things. In fact, I made two dishes out of that book for
dinner tonight -- her meatloaf, and my grandmother's stewed potatoes and
onions.

Isaac

On Wed, 08 Mar 2006 05:46:16 -0600, OmManiPadmeOmelet
> wrote:

>In article >,
> serene > wrote:
>
>> [my mom]
>> Too bad we're now
>> 500 miles apart.
>>

>
>500 miles is only a 10 hour drive..... :-)

For me, it's around 7 hours. :-)

I see her a few times a year. Still, I miss her.

Serene