 |
| Fried Baked Potatoes |
Ah, Max. He's my older of two sons, and he's a quirky bird. He's a big fan of most fried potato foods: french fries, potato chips, potato pancakes, tater tots, etc. So, when I introduced him to a fried baked potato, he was in fried potato nirvana. A couple of months ago he even told me, as he picked up one of these little fried potatoes, "Mom, this is MY comfort food." Gosh, I love that kid.
My mom used to cut up day-old baked potatoes and fry them in a little bit of oil in her trusty cast-iron skillet. I tried that, but there were too many little potato pieces that would stick to the bottom, and that not only made the pan hard to clean, but then I didn't get to eat all that brown crispy potato goodness that was stuck to the pan. So, why not just fill up the pan with more oil and fry them like french fries? Yeah, why NOT? So, that's what I did. Mind you, I only do this occasionally because it just seems sort of wrong. Baking a potato and then cutting it up and deep frying it, but it makes the potato so crisp and succulent. They sort of remind me of those potato skin appetizers we would order at Black Angus. Do they even sell those any more?
So, anyway, I'm making these for Max tonight while my little eating buddy Ezra and I enjoy some of our favorite pasta.
Max's Favorite Potatoes/Fried Baked Potatoes
Ingredients:
1 or more baked potatoes, fresh or day old
canola oil for frying
salt to taste
Directions:
If you don't quite know how to bake a potato, you just preheat an oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Scrub potatoes (any kind will do) and cut off a little bit of each end (like 1/8 inch) and carefully pierce each potato about 5-8 times with a sharp knife. Bake at 400 degrees for about an hour, or until potatoes just yield when squeezed with an oven-mitted hand. Then remove from the oven.
If you opt for fresh baked potatoes, be careful when cutting them so you don't get burned and so you don't crush them. Cut potatoes into 1-inch chunks.
Fill a frying pan with about 3/4 to 1 inch of canola oil and turn heat to medium-high. Put one potato chunk in the pan. When it starts bubbling and frying, carefully slide in the rest of the potato chunks. I use my grease screen to help me with this by putting the potatoes on the screen and shimmying the potatoes into the oil. Make sure potatoes are evenly distributed in the pan.
Allow the potatoes to cook until deep golden brown, turning only occasionally and gently at that. Once they reach the desired color, remove to a paper towel-lined plate and salt to taste.
Makes 1 to infinity servings.