Chips By Heston Blumenthal

[Guest guest]

This is from the BBC. The chef in question is probably one of the more

interesting characters that practice the culinary arts. His cooking tends to the

" too much work " but can still be fun. His recipes are imaginative and different.

Hence I decided to post a few of his recipes here.

 

Chips

by Heston Blumenthal

 

Serves 4

Preparation time over 2 hours

Cooking time 10 to 30 mins

 

With the right variety of potato, these chips are crisp on the outside and light

and fluffy on the inside. The beauty of this method is that the potatoes can be

cooked twice and kept in the fridge until required.

Ingredients

1.2kg/2lb 8oz potatoes, such as Charlotte or Belle de Fontenay

1 litre/1¾ pints groundnut oil

salt

 

 

Method

1. With a sharp knife, square the potatoes into rectangles and then cut them

into chips about 1cm/½inch thick. The length of the chips is not so important,

but try to keep them the same thickness so that they will cook at the same rate.

2. As soon as the chips are cut, put them into a bowl under cold running water

for 10 minutes or so to rinse off some of the starch, then drain them.

3. Next, bring a casserole of unsalted water to the boil and plunge in the

drained potatoes. Bring back to the boil and simmer very gently until the point

of a knife will penetrate the chips easily.

4. Very carefully lift the potatoes out of the water, using a slotted spoon, and

place them on a tray. Allow them to steam until they are cool, then place them

in the fridge. The chips will harden when cold.

5. Heat the groundnut oil to a temperature of 130C/250F (CAUTION: Hot oil can be

dangerous. Do not leave unattended) and carefully plunge in the chips as they

may splutter. After a while, they will take on a drier appearance (do not let

them brown at all). When this happens, they have finished their second cooking

process; drain them, let them cool to room temperature, and put them into the

fridge. When cold, they are ready for their final cooking.

6. Heat the groundnut oil to a temperature of 180C/350F (CAUTION: Hot oil can be

dangerous. Do not leave unattended). Carefully plunge in the chips and cook

until golden brown. This may take 8-10 minutes.

7. Drain and season with salt only; they will take quite a lot. Serve.