My dad grew up in Dublin with seven sisters. All of my aunts worked outside the home while raising families. They didn’t have a lot of time for gourmet cooking, but one dish all my aunts made really well was chips. These are not American potato chips and definitely not French fries. These potatoes are thick as your middle finger, crispy and golden on the outside, floury inside – all the better for soaking up lashings of malt vinegar.
My cousin Lorraine shared her late mother’s, my Auntie Marie’s, secrets for perfect chips and I'm sharing them with you. It's important to thoroughly dry the potatoes before frying and fry them twice to achieve the perfect golden, crisp exterior and floury center.
This recipe works best if you soak the sliced potatoes in lightly salted water overnight -- do not refrigerate. You will need a deep fat fryer with a basket or a large, heavy pot such as a dutch oven, a spider for removing the fried chips from the oil and a candy thermometer.
My Irish Aunties' Chips
- Servings: 10-12 chips
- Yield: 4
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cooking Time: 15 min
Ingredients
- 4 russet potatoes, washed, peeled and sliced into ½ inch sticks
- Water, enough to cover the sliced potatoes
- ½ tsp. salt
- Canola oil for frying the chips
- For serving, salt and malt vinegar, ketchup or curry sauce
Preparation
- Wash, peel and slice the potatoes into ½ inch sticks. Rinse the potatoes. Place them in a large bowl, cover with water and ½ tsp. of salt. Leave them overnight at room temperature.
- Add enough canola oil to cover the chips -- about 6 inches -- to a deep fat fryer or large, heavy pot. Heat the oil to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- While the oil is heating, remove the sliced potatoes from the water and dry each chip thoroughly with a clean, cotton dish towel.
- When the oil reaches 300 degrees, using a frying basket or a spider slowly lower the sliced potatoes into the hot oil. You may have to do this in batches.
- Fry the chips for 5 to 8 minutes until they are a light golden brown. You may have to lower the heat to maintain the oil temperature at 300 degrees. When the chips are golden, remove them from the oil using a basket or spider.
- Remove the chips to a baking sheet lined with paper towels to drain and rest for a few minutes while you bring the oil temperature to 350 degrees.
- Lower the pre-cooked chips into the hot oil and fry for 3 or 4 minutes. You may have to move them around a bit with the spider or shake them in the basket to cook them evenly. Remove them from the oil when they are a deep golden brown. Season with salt.
- Serve them a cone of newspaper and parchment paper, with the parchment paper next to the chips. Or serve them on the side with fish, sausages or eggs. For an authentic flavor, sprinkle chips generously with malt vinegar. Some people prefer ketchup or curry sauce.
Recipe Tags
Chips are fantastic alone as a snack, but are more usually served for "tea", i.e. supper, with fried fish, sausages, eggs or grilled meat.
This post comes from the TODAY Food Club community, where anyone can write posts, ask questions and share advice. Learn more and join us!
