Every French woman I know owns a friteuse, or deep-fryer. I’ve always imagined them cooking up delicate fried delights. And I had envie, I was really coveting one.
But here is the main reason I wanted one: to make doughnuts. The French of course do marvelous pastries, but they don’t do doughnuts, and sometimes nothing else will do. Plus I saw a recipe for them in Better Homes and Gardens which made it look so easy.
I happened to mention my doughnut fixation to our dear friends Bennett and Joan who were visiting from the states, and surprise, they up and bought me a friteuse! So now I have a lovely French one, full of possibilities.
Have I made doughnuts! Cake doughnuts with icing and doughnuts rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Yeast doughnuts with a sugar glaze, à la Krispy Kreme. I had the idea they would be a fun thing to serve at dinner parties. Ha! They've they’ve never lasted that long.
Then I thought, OK, on to the French recettes! I went to my favorite source, The Lyon Ladies (Nicole’s group of French women who are learning English). What did they do with their friteuses?
Pas beaucoup, not much, was their surprising answer, (though not too much of a surprise, since the thing is a bit of a hassle to use and clean, not something you pull out on a busy week night). Mostly they use it to make pommes frites (French fries) for kids. The gourmet cooks among them sometimes make what they call beignets, which are batter dipped, fried veggies (beignets can be sweet, too, you will see them occasionally in a pâtisserie. They resemble a very small, round, cream or chocolate filled doughnut).
So I’ve been frying everything I can think of. I’ve made the veggie beignets (yummy) and the famous twice-fried pommes frites. I’ve tackled shrimp tempura. I also found a recipe in a French magazine for ravioles frites, which were hot and crunchy and a fun appetizer, or the centerpiece for a main-dish salad.
Should you have a Deep Fryer, or even a deep pan and a surplus of vegetable oil, here are some recipes for you. Test your oil temperature if you don’t have a machine; 350F (180C) is good for most things, 375 (190C) for french fries. If the temperature is correct, not as much oil is absorbed.
RECIPES: What to do with a Friteuse
Ron's great idea: We've cooked all the fried stuff out on our terrace, which keeps the house odor-free. If you lack an outdoor plug, sit your deep- fryer near your range hood and crank it up to high speed.
For the cake doughnuts, I used the Better Homes and Gardens recipe, which you can find right here. Are they as easy as they look to make? Yes, but they're time-consuming.
For the ravioles frites, buy fresh ravioli in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, and fry them for 3 minutes at 350 (180C), turning once. Drain on paper towels and serve hot with a dipping sauce. Any sort of marinara sauce works well. You can even use salsa, or a chinese sweet and sour sauce.
A basic tempura batter can be used for shrimp or vegetables. Use cut-up squash, mushrooms, cauliflower, broccoli, bell peppers. You’ll probably have to do them in batches, but just pop them in a warm oven on a plate to hold them. This recipe includes an easy dipping sauce as well.
For the French fries, or pommes frites: Peel and slice baking potatoes into skinny pieces. They should be cut uniformly. You can do this by hand, or with a Japanese Mandoline Slicer
For the oil, by the way, I buy vegetable oil in 2 litre bottles and pour it back in the container when it’s cool and store it in the fridge. I keep a ‘savory’ bottle and a ‘sweet’ bottle’. I use it three or four times before I throw it out, though some say you can use it ten times (if cooking seafood, I use it only once).
In the Comments: Delia says there's a Heritage Week-end in the UK too, which is going on my travel list! Sandra did the 'Patrimoine' in Orleans this month, and Ido, Julie, and Suzanne are dreaming of doint it one day. Jacki's comment tripped a 'moutarde' memory for Linda. Merci for the comments!
Favorite Reads: While we're talking about the Patrimoine week-end: On my wish list is H.R. Kedward's France and the French: A Modern History
Our Readers' Blogs: Julie studies French and travels the world at her Traveling Through blog. Sara followed her boyfriend to Provence and look what happened! Go to Sara in le Petit Village. And while we're in Provence, Ashley lives the dream and blogs on daily life at BackyardProvence. If you prefer the lovely Lot area, Caesar and Lady Caroline, who have just joined us, rent out their 14th century stone house, in a town I happen to know well and love: St. Céré. Find out more at Maison Burgos France.
17 thoughts on “Southern Fried or French Fried, It’s All Good”
This makes me really want a deep fryer! Frying is one cooking technique I have definitely not mastered. French fries would be reason enough for me. Homemade are the best. My mom makes the best. I just got myself a rice cooker — why not a fryer next?
Lynn…your Southern roots are coming out–we can fry just about anything!
i have made fried wontons with nutella inside…..dusted with powdered sugar…..ummmm gooey
Oh my gosh that photo has made my mouth water :~) Fried foods are not normally my favorite, but a warm doughnut, yummmm. Takes me back to when we lived down the street from a Krispy Kreme in Mobile, AL. When that light came on often my good intentions crumbled!
I’ve been a devotee of friteuse for a few years now since my wife made one appear at Christmas. On of my absolute favorite things is sweet potato fries, also twice fried like their regular potato cousins. I do two minutes for the first time and two minutes for the second after letting the fryer recover to working temperature in between. I use white sweet potatoes, not yams. The white ones crisp up much better and look wonderful as well. A bit of pink salt finishes them up. These are ridiculously good.
I don’t dare buy a deep fryer, Lynn. I’d have a heart attack in a month after eating fried chicken every night (and right now I’m longing for real French pommes frites). When you mentioned the ravioli, I immediately thought of our St. Louis specialty, Toasted Ravioli. It’s not really toasted. It’s fried. I don’t know why this St. Louis delicacy invented on The Hill (our Italian neighborhood; three Italian restaurants on every block) hasn’t spread. Read more about it here http://tinyurl.com/65hzldn and here http://tinyurl.com/yojpat
Ah, Lynn, I just had toasted ravioli in St. Louis — apparently a local specialty — and had no idea how they were made. I bet they were fried as you describe — yummm! Also had a fried croissant — now that would make a French person faint in horror! But such fun to try local favs, no matter where you go or how weird they may be!
The recipe looks easy and yummy, will have to try it, but first I gotta get me a friteuse because I don’t own one lol! Thank you for the rec commendations, I have watched Coco before Channel and loved it!
Have a fantastic weekend!
XXX Ido
When can we sample those glazed donuts??? Oh, by the way, the “Journees de Patrimoine” is all over Europe on that same weekend. It would be a great weekend to travel to a different country to explore more.
What about French Crullers??? These are made with cream puff dough, but fried. When I was a child, all the bakeries in New Orleans had these. But most of the bakers in NO ( baking that wonderful French Bread) were German. So maybe the crullers were not French. Some of the best French bread in New Orleans was made in bakeries with names like Leidenheimer, Reisling, and Binder.
I don’t have a deep fryer, and for the sake of my diet, don’t dare get one. I remember once or twice when I was about 14, my best friend and I fried doughnuts in our kitchen. My Mother came home to a powdered sugar kitchen, but the doughnuts were really good, similar to the German Fastnachts Kuchelies. I no longer have that recipe. Lynn, when you mentioned beignets, I thought of the New Orleans beignets. Were yours similar to the ones they have at Cafe du Monde? And the veggies beignets reminded me that when I lived in Sarasota, there was a French cafe that made beignets plain – no sugar, then split them and used them for sandwiches. Yum!
Lynn,I love your blog and wouldn’t miss it!
My comments today have nothing to do with either the friteuse,or those heavenly doughnuts and pommes frites(YUM!!!)
But (!) do you still have your cat?
How has he adapted to living in the chateau?
(I know the French are also fond of their animals)
Bon journee!!
Need some expert’s opinions on wine. Just got back from the Gironde/Medoc area where we wine tasted in the area near Blaye, Chateau Rousselle…….Award wining wines all of which tasted salty to my California palate. Vincent, explained it as related to sugar. French wines have ~2gm/liter sugar and American 6gm. Are salt and sugar taste buds the same so share and therefore the reason the wines tasted salty?
A great mystery to me and I would appreciate your explanation or a reference to go to.
TIA Elizabeth Foree
I haven’t had a homemade doughnut since my childhood. I think that is way too long for such a treat. Wish I lived next door and could stop by and have a sample. Actually I wished I lived next door for more reasons than the doughnuts. Sigh…Is my love of France showing?
Sam
Lynn-I cannot wait to try these recipes. I recently purchased Emeril Lagassee’s fryer and it is macdaddy. Holds the temperature perfectly and filters and stores the oil for next time. Available on amazon.com!
I’m curious to view the French fryer. Big Hugs from your “Auntie” ;o)
What is that cute dish that the spoons are in? So very elegant and very French.
Darlin, how on earth have I missed your blog….until today! I’m down here in Birmingham pining for Paris as we speak. I loved your reference to Krispy Kreme, a place many will not understand or know that yummy aroma when you open the door!
I will drop in a pay a visit as often as I can. I hope you’ll have a look at my blogs when you get a min. The B’ham may bring back memories from your home and the Paris one……well you know ! 🙂
V