Everything you always wanted to know about fries, the fries museum, what you call the different fries. Fries, fries or chips with, fries kapsalon, fries war… Almost everyone likes a potato and today you really learn everything about fries, the fries museum and fries.
Actually 2 stories are doing the rounds:
Story 1 tells about fishermen from the Ardennes (Belgium) who fished in the Meuse and fried the small fish in hot oil after the catch. In the winter when no fish were caught, they cut small fish from potatoes and fried them in the hot oil.
Story 2 is that the French invented the fries. How and the what is not known to the rest (yes, always nice too, from those people who claim that this or that comes from their hand when that is not true;-), well, I assume that the fries from our neighboring country Belgium (despite the jokes we make about them, they have brought something very important to the Netherlands 🙂
And then there are also people like my dear husband, who thinks that fries are a Dutch invention. Because let's be honest:fries are actually eaten quite a lot and very often in the Netherlands. According to my hubby it even belongs to the Dutch culture (but good:according to my husband fries are also a culinary masterpiece 😉
One says fries, the other sticks to chips, but what is the right word? And is there? If we look at the original meaning, French fries actually mean nothing but fried (in French). However, when the French talk about fries, they always say pommes frites (or fried potatoes). In Belgium they speak of fries as fries, since fries is the word for potatoes. So it doesn't matter whether you're talking about fries, chips or chips, everyone knows that they mean fried potatoes (not sliced).
Potatoes are needed to make fries or chips. Bintjes are the best type of potato for making fries. This is because these potatoes are elongated, the eyes are shallow and the potato has a high starch content. This can be clearly seen when the potato is cooked:it is then crumbly. Of course there are also other potato varieties that can be used for making chips. Think of:Victoria, Asterix and Innovator.
When making fries, it is very important that the potatoes are not kept too cold. If this does happen, too much sugar is converted, making the potatoes no longer suitable for frying. Incidentally, nowadays you no longer have to fry chips, with the arrival of the Airfryer, more and more people enjoy fries without a greasy aftertaste.
Nowadays you can find a lot of different types of fries on the shelves of the supermarket:
* Belgian fries
* French pommes frites
* English chips
* Rasp fries
* Mini fries
* Curly Frisian
* Ribbed fries
Yes, it really does exist:a real fries museum in Bruges! There you can learn everything about fries and of course you have to eat a bowl of fries afterwards….. Seems to me to be an incidental proof that we owe the fries to the Belgians 😉
French fries museum
Vlamingstraat 33
Bruges (Belgium)
French fries with : Fries with mayonnaise (usually replaced by French fries sauce, which is a lot cheaper)
French fries Special: Fries with (curry) ketchup, mayonnaise and onions
Peanut chips: fries with satay (peanut) sauce
Potatje Joppie: fries with joppie sauce (mixture of mixture, ketchup, etc.) especially North Brabant
Patatje half om: Fries with piccalilli and mayonnaise
French fries war or flip: Region dependent, but generally fries with mayonnaise, peanut sauce and onions. In Belgium fries means war:fries with stew, mayonnaise and ketchup.
Fries chilli mayo: fries with a sauce of mayonnaise and chili sauce
Fries Samurai: similar to fries chili mayo, but then fries with mayonnaise and sambal
Fries super/'supertje': tray containing frikandel and fries (so not separate from each other)
French 'Ala”: (especially in Limburg) frikandel with sour meat, covered with fries special
French water bike: two frikandels covered with fries, on top of that mayonnaise, curry and onions.
Fries Catamaran: fries special with two frikandels special on the sides
French fries hair salon: aluminum tray with fries, shawarma or kebab and, if you want, cheese on top. After grilling, salad is added and sauces of your choice.
French fries pita: fries with gyros or shoarma with vegetables and garlic sauce
Of course you don't have to memorize all this, as long as you remember your own favorite (nobody can ever trick you, because you know exactly what to expect)! And my absolute top 3:
1. Potato war (without the onions)
2. French fries with
3. Chips hair salon
What do you say:fries, chips or chips? And how do you prefer to eat your fries? Let me know, I'm very curious.
*Featured image is from Shutterstock
