Fries of the Future(npr.org)
npr.org
Fries of the Future
https://www.npr.org/transcripts/772775254
51 comments
Interesting, I had always assumed that they made the switch to be more vegetarian friendly, but it actually was because of the "fat scare." I googled around to learn more about it, and found an article called Why McDonald's French Fries Used to Taste Better [1] that's worth a read.
[1] - https://blog.cheapism.com/why-mcdonalds-fries-used-to-be-bet...
[1] - https://blog.cheapism.com/why-mcdonalds-fries-used-to-be-bet...
Yeah they are still made with animal products. "Natural beef flavor".
I have the same feeling about Oreos when they were made with lard.
Mass produced, highly engineered consumables occupy an interesting aesthetic & historical space where a particular experience could be shared by tens or hundreds of millions for decades and then disappear forever in a matter of months.
McDonald’s, among others, exploits this phenomenon with the McRib.
Mass produced, highly engineered consumables occupy an interesting aesthetic & historical space where a particular experience could be shared by tens or hundreds of millions for decades and then disappear forever in a matter of months.
McDonald’s, among others, exploits this phenomenon with the McRib.
If you need fries fried in beer tallow, Popeyes is a national chain that uses beer tallow to fry everything, including the fries.
You'll find they are nothing special.
You'll find they are nothing special.
It isn't exactly special, but it tastes good and it doesn't make you feel like you just ate something that came entirely out of a factory.
They definitely taste different than other fast food chains. I would consider their taste better.
Back when I was in Illinois I remember Portillo’s fries had a particularly fatty and delicious taste, I wonder if they also fry in beef tallow?
Back when I was in Illinois I remember Portillo’s fries had a particularly fatty and delicious taste, I wonder if they also fry in beef tallow?
The fat scare is far from over. Not everyone spends time on Hacker News or controversial diet channels on youtube.
Moreover, nutrition is a lot more complex than "fad in, fad out". The subcutaneous fat of an animal can hold some pretty toxic stuff -- that's kind of its purpose. It wasn't a scare, people were just missing nuance and still more research needs to be done.
Moreover, nutrition is a lot more complex than "fad in, fad out". The subcutaneous fat of an animal can hold some pretty toxic stuff -- that's kind of its purpose. It wasn't a scare, people were just missing nuance and still more research needs to be done.
"It wasn't a scare, people were just missing nuance"
This reads like post-hoc rationalization about the claim (scare) that saturated fat causes heart disease, because that's what the scare was about. As far as toxins in fat goes, the primary toxin that I've seen discussed is dioxin and that scare tactic is sorely missing nuance.
This reads like post-hoc rationalization about the claim (scare) that saturated fat causes heart disease, because that's what the scare was about. As far as toxins in fat goes, the primary toxin that I've seen discussed is dioxin and that scare tactic is sorely missing nuance.
I'm willing to wager that we thought saturated fat was bad for a very good reason, and it's not one of the reasons touted by people who want to eat deep fried bacon wrapped hot dogs for every meal. My first thought when someone calls a scientific consensus a scare is that they have an agenda. You'll see similar language in climate change denial. Yes, new data comes out and some theories are shown to not be perfect, but if you're getting your education from internet memes and hacker forums and scattered papers you're going to draw conclusions that miss things. It's also a matter of whether whichever studies are being touted right now are representative of the larger scientific landscape.
That's an interesting mix of red herrings and what I'm going to call Cougher's Law: as an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving climate change approaches 1. The good news is that your red herrings are low in saturated fat, so you can use them to your heart's content rather than to its detriment.
http://biochemical-pathways.com/#/map/1
This is the moment I decide I'm absolutely done battling nerds who think that because they understand computers (usually badly) they understand everything about complex metabolic processes. The lack of humility is seriously mind-boggling.
There's a scientific consensus that you understand nothing about. People spend their lives on this stuff. Recommendations have certainly changed as new information came out -- we also discovered iodine and B vitamins -- but is there any government agency in the Western world that recommends a high-lard diet? If not I think you're batting out of your league.
Not that this absolutely needs to be said, but lard isn't pure saturated fat, and the unrendered fat of an animal is an organ.
This is the moment I decide I'm absolutely done battling nerds who think that because they understand computers (usually badly) they understand everything about complex metabolic processes. The lack of humility is seriously mind-boggling.
There's a scientific consensus that you understand nothing about. People spend their lives on this stuff. Recommendations have certainly changed as new information came out -- we also discovered iodine and B vitamins -- but is there any government agency in the Western world that recommends a high-lard diet? If not I think you're batting out of your league.
Not that this absolutely needs to be said, but lard isn't pure saturated fat, and the unrendered fat of an animal is an organ.
[deleted]
Which toxins does subcutaneous beef fat contain in signification concentrations?
[deleted]
[deleted]
You can make french fries incredibly easily at home, using just a microwave. They taste a lot better than anything bought commercially.
Just buy a big potatoe, cut it into thin strips. Place it on a regular dinner plate. Add seasoning. Microwave for 5 minutes.
Take out, shuffle the strips around, add oil (regular olive oil works fine) and normal, non-processed cheese. Microwave for another 3 minutes. Its done when you can poke a fork through the fry without any resistance.
Total prep time: about 10 minutes.
Just buy a big potatoe, cut it into thin strips. Place it on a regular dinner plate. Add seasoning. Microwave for 5 minutes.
Take out, shuffle the strips around, add oil (regular olive oil works fine) and normal, non-processed cheese. Microwave for another 3 minutes. Its done when you can poke a fork through the fry without any resistance.
Total prep time: about 10 minutes.
Text-only version: https://text.npr.org/s.php?sId=772775254
I only see three lines of text, more than I saw coming from the nag screen (nothing).
> DIHEL: So back then - almost 20, 25 years ago - Lamb Weston invented a coating called Stealth, which was their secret coating that you couldn't see and you couldn't tell was on the french fry, but it lasted - it was crispier longer, up to 12 to 15 minutes.
Costco sells Ore-Ida "Fast Food" frozen fries that have a coating on them. I hate them. You drop them on the pan for baking and your fingers get oily. They are supposed to come out crispy, and the best I can say is that they don't come out limp & soggy.
I'd much rather have fries au naturel. No coatings - just the sliced potatoes, deep-fried. And then a sprinkle of salt. Sam's Club sells a frozen waffle-cut fry that is pretty good.
McDonalds fries are actually cooked twice. And have a coating. They're briefly fried at the factory to keep them crispy, and then of course fried again at the restaurant just prior to selling them to you.
https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/mcdonalds-reveals-beloved-f...
Costco sells Ore-Ida "Fast Food" frozen fries that have a coating on them. I hate them. You drop them on the pan for baking and your fingers get oily. They are supposed to come out crispy, and the best I can say is that they don't come out limp & soggy.
I'd much rather have fries au naturel. No coatings - just the sliced potatoes, deep-fried. And then a sprinkle of salt. Sam's Club sells a frozen waffle-cut fry that is pretty good.
McDonalds fries are actually cooked twice. And have a coating. They're briefly fried at the factory to keep them crispy, and then of course fried again at the restaurant just prior to selling them to you.
https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/mcdonalds-reveals-beloved-f...
They're actually par boiled, then fried once at the factory, then frozen, then fried again.
Strangely, following this exact process results in a fantastic french fry made at home. I started doing this after reading about it in the Food Lab book by Kenji Lopez-Alt. Highly recommend that book btw.
Strangely, following this exact process results in a fantastic french fry made at home. I started doing this after reading about it in the Food Lab book by Kenji Lopez-Alt. Highly recommend that book btw.
> If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.
Just fry them on the way to the customer.
Just bake the pizza on the ride over to the customer.
Self driving, potato fryin future.
Spoiler: At the end of TFA, they actually reveal that they are already working on it.
I've experienced lots of limp-chip scenario in delivered food.
I find it's worst with American McDonalds-style french fries - they're very thin, and steam themselves into a soggy mess very quickly, pretty much no-matter what happens.
Australian/English style chips seem to have a better longevity if they're cooked properly (double-fried, and a more developed golden colour than pale/white). The best chips for delivery are battered (light tempura style), although it's rare to find them. They remain crisp and crunchy even long after they've gotten cold.
Packaging is also a serious concern, too - plastics are right out, as steam will be trapped and condense on them much more rapidly - even if the packaging isn't closed tightly. Paper or cardboard are best. Foil can be okay as a backup option for a short period, if it's kept hot.
I find it's worst with American McDonalds-style french fries - they're very thin, and steam themselves into a soggy mess very quickly, pretty much no-matter what happens.
Australian/English style chips seem to have a better longevity if they're cooked properly (double-fried, and a more developed golden colour than pale/white). The best chips for delivery are battered (light tempura style), although it's rare to find them. They remain crisp and crunchy even long after they've gotten cold.
Packaging is also a serious concern, too - plastics are right out, as steam will be trapped and condense on them much more rapidly - even if the packaging isn't closed tightly. Paper or cardboard are best. Foil can be okay as a backup option for a short period, if it's kept hot.
Archived copy of the transcript (without GDPR nag screen):
https://web.archive.org/web/20191121194422/https://www.npr.o...
https://web.archive.org/web/20191121194422/https://www.npr.o...
Why the downvotes? Many US pages are increasingly annoying to read from the EU, this is genuinely helpful.
nice, it would be nice if this could be applied to any sort of batter, so I could order fish & chips and have both of them crisp and non-soggy :)
This is super cool! I’d never considered literally changing the fry formula to keep them crispy - that’s clever.
Years ago I daydreamed about this problem (it was never a serious endeavor but fun to think about). I’d thought the key would be to make a cheap container that optimized for crispness. Maybe something that absorbed moisture but had a reflective inner coating to insulate and keep the heat.
Anyway, it’s always fun to read about more-serious folks who tackle the same problems and find good solutions!
Years ago I daydreamed about this problem (it was never a serious endeavor but fun to think about). I’d thought the key would be to make a cheap container that optimized for crispness. Maybe something that absorbed moisture but had a reflective inner coating to insulate and keep the heat.
Anyway, it’s always fun to read about more-serious folks who tackle the same problems and find good solutions!
By the time the moisture is available to the container, it's soaked the (formerly) crispy outside of the fry.
Aren't you describing the "pocket" of a hot pocket?
I believe there was a pizza startup that cooked the pizza in a wheeled oven, as it was delivered. You could do the same with fries.
This is mentioned at the end of the article.
Dominoes is doing this now
Zume pizza?
I would love to see the gymnastics required to keep boiling hot oil safely transported by Uber drivers.
This is common practice in some parts of Vietnam and Thailand...minus the "safely" part.
Air fryer?
This is mentioned in the episode.
Does China not buy potatoes from the US? I don't understand why the executives wanted to wait...
I'm sure we've all had soggy fries before in the US so its not a new problem isolated to fast food delivery...
I'm sure we've all had soggy fries before in the US so its not a new problem isolated to fast food delivery...
China is the largest producer of potatoes in the world, accounting for 26% of the world total.
According to this, only Alaska is currently allowed to sell fresh potatoes to China. https://www.potatopro.com/news/2019/united-states-potato-ind...
According to this, only Alaska is currently allowed to sell fresh potatoes to China. https://www.potatopro.com/news/2019/united-states-potato-ind...
Can someone be kind enough to provide a TL;DR
People are downvoting but I appreciate this request because the transcript is very disorienting to read.
Planet Money used to be a great source for learning about the economy but has recently become unlistenable. For example, I tried listening to their Halloween episode about recessions but gave up after ten minutes of bad jokes and audio "fluff".
Planet Money used to be a great source for learning about the economy but has recently become unlistenable. For example, I tried listening to their Halloween episode about recessions but gave up after ten minutes of bad jokes and audio "fluff".
I appreciate very much for the summary, thank you!
For one, I haven't heard about Planet Money before. You summary gave me context what the post is about and I subscribed to the podcast because of your reply. I bet many others would find it useful too. Thanks again!
Their Halloween episodes have always been campy and difficult to listen to. This year’s was especially bad...bad...bad.... rewind noises
Planet Money is a fantastic podcast that covers a huge variety of interesting topics, and only takes about 20 minutes. I highly recommend it as one of the most informative fun podcasts I've ever heard.
But here goes...
Fries don't stay delicious very long. You get a couple minutes then they're blech. They don't work great out of drive-throughs, where you might take them home before eating, and now we have food delivery services where fries might sit 40 minutes before being eaten! Double blech.
This company made a coating for fries that makes them stay fresh for drive through service. That is old news. If you've had fries from fast food you've probably had these coated fries. People like them and don't know they're coated.
But that just covers a couple minutes... Could that company make a coating that keeps fries good for 40 minutes?
Awesome lady scientist says yes! Other people say no. Awesome lady scientist says, let's do it anyway!
They succeed. NPR Journalist does the Pepsi challenge on them - the fries are good. They're in the process of selling them to companies now.
But here goes...
Fries don't stay delicious very long. You get a couple minutes then they're blech. They don't work great out of drive-throughs, where you might take them home before eating, and now we have food delivery services where fries might sit 40 minutes before being eaten! Double blech.
This company made a coating for fries that makes them stay fresh for drive through service. That is old news. If you've had fries from fast food you've probably had these coated fries. People like them and don't know they're coated.
But that just covers a couple minutes... Could that company make a coating that keeps fries good for 40 minutes?
Awesome lady scientist says yes! Other people say no. Awesome lady scientist says, let's do it anyway!
They succeed. NPR Journalist does the Pepsi challenge on them - the fries are good. They're in the process of selling them to companies now.
[0] http://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/19-mcdonalds-broke-my...