Potatoes for fries / chips in Thailand

[Kenny202]

I remember when I first came here to live about 8 years ago the potatoes were mostly awful. Spongy rubbery things, like they were grade C, green and old imported cheaply from another country. Well happy to say these days potatoes are generally lovely and fresh, look like they may be grown locally now. One problem I do come across is they don't seem to fry well as chips. I have tried everything....doing them in the microwave a bit first.....par boiling and drying off 100%. They never seem to go crispy and brown very very quickly. I suspect this maybe due to the high sugar content they seem to have in the spuds here. Often they're unusually sweet, particularly Makro potatoes. Spuds from the markets don't seem to be near as bad. Just seem to cook differently here....never usually proper crispy and seem to really hang onto and absorb the oil. We use Soy oil mostly and not new oil. Tried cooking lower / higher temperature oil.

 

We always have packet pre cooked french fries at home as my wife has a restaurant, and they're pretty damn good these days but still like a fresh cooked home made chip now and then. Anyone have any ideas? 

[Lite Beer]

Potatoes here are pretty awful.

Gone to seed or rotten inside.

[CharlieH]

There are currently some nice spuds in Big C.

Of course branches may vary but its worth a look. ????

[Kenny202]

Just now, Lite Beer said:

Potatoes here are pretty awful.

Gone to seed or rotten inside.

No I don't find that at all. Maybe a long time ago. Pretty damn fresh these days. I actually find Tesco potatoes the best, when most of their other fresh vegetables I find are awful.

[kickstart]

.I have said the same thing Thai spuds ,or are they imported from China are not the same as our spuds, 

Having work on a large arable farm in the uk ,with a lot of spuds I am certain it is the verity of said potatoes look at the skin it is almost yellow ,on the farm we grew a yellow skin verity ,they only went to  factories  that make crisps .I did try some boiled /mashed, they were not nice like Thai spuds .

Look at UK verities like Maris Piper ,good old King Edward ,white skin and good taste.

But, potatoes are susceptible to a lot of diseases ,it could be the fact that Thai spuds ,what ever verity they are ,are grown for they diseases resistant ,and can grow in the Thai climate.

I have tried to grow spuds in the garden  here ,put them in the ground and that was the last I saw of them ,just rotted away 

[Upnotover]

I used to make my own frozen chips.  Par boil, dry, fry once low temp.  Then freeze.  Fry high temp from frozen.  Usually came out pretty well.  I found that frying once did often brown them too fast and not crisp.  Could also do the second fry from cool if not freezing.

[tomazbodner]

A while back I saw how to make "McDonald's fries" and they washed them a few times to get all the starch off, then soaked them in cool water with a few tablespoons of sugar, dried and fried. Logic was that sugar coating would cause caramelising during frying, making fries crispy and golden colour. Never tried myself. Was on some Thai Youtube site a while back...

[ChaiyaTH]

37 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

A while back I saw how to make "McDonald's fries" and they washed them a few times to get all the starch off, then soaked them in cool water with a few tablespoons of sugar, dried and fried. Logic was that sugar coating would cause caramelising during frying, making fries crispy and golden colour. Never tried myself. Was on some Thai Youtube site a while back...

Also depends a lot on the oil and freshness of oil in how they come out though, very clean oil usually keeps them quite white and it turns more yellow after, then orange at worst. Anyway, they even sell fried fries by bags in Big C nowadays so why bother making them. There is a lot choice nowadays.

Edited December 8, 2021 by ChaiyaTH

[Kenny202]

5 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Also depends a lot on the oil and freshness of oil in how they come out though, very clean oil usually keeps them quite white and it turns more yellow after, then orange at worst. Anyway, they even sell fried fries by bags in Big C nowadays so why bother making them. There is a lot choice nowadays.

You didn't read my op? Have used old and new oil and we got plenty of frozen fries in the freezer. Homemade cut potatoes are different...not necessarily better but different

[JensenZ]

1 hour ago, Kenny202 said:

We use Soy oil mostly and not new oil. Tried cooking lower / higher temperature oil.

Why would you use such an oil when natural coconut oil is so cheap and readily avaiable? It's more stable in heat due to it's high level of saturation and doesn't burn or smoke so easily. It is also less prone to oxidation in storage. If you buy the coconut cooking oil, you will not taste any coconut flavour in your deep friend food, although coconut flavoured french fries or chips might be an interesting experiement. You'd have to use the very expensive virgin coconut oil, but that's more sensitive to heat.

 

I found the same problem as you when I buy cheap spuds at Big C. They look burnt before going crisp. I don't know where you live, but I found the spuds in Friendship Supermarket (Pattaya) much better for frying. Also, if you go to Big C Extra, they have more expensive varieties of potatoes that might be worth testing.

[Albert Zweistein]

3 hours ago, tomazbodner said:

A while back I saw how to make "McDonald's fries" and they washed them a few times to get all the starch off, then soaked them in cool water with a few tablespoons of sugar, dried and fried. Logic was that sugar coating would cause caramelising during frying, making fries crispy and golden colour. Never tried myself. Was on some Thai Youtube site a while back...

And more sugar........................., anyway I never visit Mc <deleted>.

[Kenny202]

8 hours ago, JensenZ said:

Why would you use such an oil when natural coconut oil is so cheap and readily avaiable? It's more stable in heat due to it's high level of saturation and doesn't burn or smoke so easily. It is also less prone to oxidation in storage. If you buy the coconut cooking oil, you will not taste any coconut flavour in your deep friend food, although coconut flavoured french fries or chips might be an interesting experiement. You'd have to use the very expensive virgin coconut oil, but that's more sensitive to heat.

 

I found the same problem as you when I buy cheap spuds at Big C. They look burnt before going crisp. I don't know where you live, but I found the spuds in Friendship Supermarket (Pattaya) much better for frying. Also, if you go to Big C Extra, they have more expensive varieties of potatoes that might be worth testing.

I wouldn't either after reading how Jamie Oliver took them to court and just won the case. Meat "product" they use is so rank and unidentifiable initially as beef, they need to add all these horrible chemicals to it to make it edible....the chemicals them selves being highly toxic. Turned me off for life ????

[BritManToo]

11 hours ago, Kenny202 said:

We always have packet pre cooked french fries at home as my wife has a restaurant, and they're pretty damn good these days but still like a fresh cooked home made chip now and then. Anyone have any ideas? 

I always buy the frozen chips in Makro, usually 99bht for 2Kg, although last month they were 75bht.

I cook them in an air fryer ........ no oil at all, and they taste pretty good with a dollop of HP sauce.

Edited December 9, 2021 by BritManToo

[473geo]

7 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

I always buy the frozen chips in Makro, usually 99bht for 2Kg, although last month they were 75bht.

I cook them in an air fryer ........ no oil at all, and they taste pretty good with a dollop of HP sauce.

A reasonable second choice, I find Thai sausage a little more palatable with a dollop of HP sauce too

We buy potatoes at big C only when they look good, yes they are not crunchy when cooked but they sure taste like real chips, so for me the better of the two options ????

[tomazbodner]

9 hours ago, Albert Zweistein said:

And more sugar........................., anyway I never visit Mc <deleted>.

Neither do I. Just mentioned it as it was supposed to make it crispier that OP was talking about.

Regardless, fries aren't health food anyway. Though they still have less harmful ingredients than most of Thai food.

[SiSePuede419]

On 12/8/2021 at 7:31 AM, JensenZ said:

Why would you use such an oil when natural coconut oil is so cheap and readily avaiable?

Coconut oil is expensive at Big C, compared to Canola oil.  Are you in Thailand?

 

Besides, coconut oil changes the taste.  Have you tasted fries fried in coconut oil?

Edited December 10, 2021 by SiSePuede419

[Dionigi]

unfortunately they are not yet informing the buyer what kind of potatoes they are selling. I have found that there are a long oval potato with a yellow flesh colour which makes great crispy chips when cooked correctly (5 minutes at 120C and finish at 200C). not all potatoes this shape work but for at least 6 months they seen to. The lumpy white fleshed potatoes just go dark brown without crisping.

[rwill]

Russet potatoes are real good for making fries.  I have only seen them a couple of times at Villa Market.

 

The 6 Best Potatoes For French Fries - French Fries Wiki

[pest]

On 12/8/2021 at 8:34 PM, CharlieH said:

There are currently some nice spuds in Big C.

Of course branches may vary but its worth a look. ????

The 37 bht kg are the best 45 bht kg are floury 

[easydoor]

At Makro,

they have the brand : 'BINTJES' ... This are potatoes from Holland and most factories, making chips and fries, are using this kind of potatoes. Yes you will pay some more as for Thai or Chinese potatoes but you will have good fries, at least, if you know how to prepare. Lot depends on the kind of oil you are using. Also in Makro hey have oil to prepare fries.

I am Belgian, from Flanders, so I know what I am talking about.

If you want to know how to prepare fries, ask the question here.

[CharlieH]

If you like the "fast food" style fries, the shoestring fries 72bht/2kg Big C are good, but ya gotta get the oil temp has high as you can.

Also as mentioned above the Makro fries are good in an air fryer.

[Kenny202]

1 hour ago, Dionigi said:

unfortunately they are not yet informing the buyer what kind of potatoes they are selling. I have found that there are a long oval potato with a yellow flesh colour which makes great crispy chips when cooked correctly (5 minutes at 120C and finish at 200C). not all potatoes this shape work but for at least 6 months they seen to. The lumpy white fleshed potatoes just go dark brown without crisping.

I think they are Dutch creams, really nice. I'm pretty sure that's what they used to sell in the small Tesco / Lotus shops. get about 3 or 4 in a mesh bag

[bbko]

OP have you tried double frying them?  Similar to par boiling, double frying is frying them half way then remove and let cool down, then fry again when needed.

 

Here in my home we use an air fryer on many foods; chicken, fries, fish, steak, pastry, etc. it's fast, clean, uses little to no oil and comes out great, best when used with parchment paper.

[Tropposurfer]

I get great chip tatties from Central Food Hall and or Villa Market - dirt covered and large size.

In Aussie its the potatoes that are covered in dirt that make the best potatoes, so when I left my antipodean shores for LOS I searched out the same/similar here.

These are 'floury' type species and are superb for chips. Russet, Yukon Gold are two varieties grown worldwide. Washed, baby washed, yellow fleshed, red skinned, or purple potatoes aren't any good as they are too waxy inside.

I haven't tried to source seed potatoes to grow in my veggie garden here but they would be available as Thailand does grow a decent nation crop of the delicious 'spud'. If anyone wants to grow their own spuds ya' must use 'seed' potatoes as diseases will surely follow and linger in the soil once they take hold if you use cutting of eyes, or planting whole store-bought/eating potatoes. They're really easy to grow by the way.

Edited December 10, 2021 by Tropposurfer

[Adiudon]

I use the large white spuds from Makro for chips and have found the best way to cook them to resemble UK chippy chips is to peel, rinse and dry on kitchen roll, spray with oil and put in the air fryer for 10-15 minutes (depending on the amount you are having) then straight into a hot chip pan, they brown off and crisp up in 2 minutes, drain and serve.

I am back to using soybean oil, I tried with rice bran oil but I don't think it could take the heat of the chip pan and tended to leave the chips greasy.

If deep anything in batter I have found Tescos own brand of powder to be the best, I have tried all the rest that I have seen, including chip shop batter flour from UK which I found was probably the worst.

Battered cod loin, chips and gravy with pickled onions and bread n butter for tea tonight, it is Friday after all.

[jimn]

On 12/8/2021 at 8:33 PM, Lite Beer said:

Potatoes here are pretty awful.

Gone to seed or rotten inside.

Disagree 100% on that. Years ago they were aweful now I find them excellent especially in Macro

[sirineou]

On 12/8/2021 at 8:31 PM, Kenny202 said:

. I suspect this maybe due to the high sugar content

It is not the sugar content, but the starch content. It is the starch that changes into sugar when cooking that makes the potato taste good, Have you ever tried eating a raw potato?

Soaking the potato French fries for a couple of hrs, will remove the starch from it's surface and make for crispier fries. Same think happens when you parboil them. 

 

i have one of these French  fry making presses, I brought it with me from the US, but you can buy one on Lazada. 

If you wash the potatoes well you dont even have to peal them , You Put a potatoes in , press, and in a second you have perfectly shaped  French fries, The one I have has blade attachments for different size french fries,

I  always soack them in water if I have time. , The water is cloudy white with all the starch it removes.

I spray them with olive oil (Get an olive oil sprayer) and cook them in an air fryer, 

Some times I sprinkle them with paprika. 

Some times after I fry them, I mix them with scrambled eggs and scallions and make an omelet. Have you ever tried that?

 

 

[sirineou]

5 minutes ago, jimn said:

Disagree 100% on that. Years ago they were aweful now I find them excellent especially in Macro

I also get mine at Macro. They seem to be pretty good. 

[ChrisKC]

In my local makro, they have the potatoes I like that i use for everything regarding French fries, roast, baked or even boiled and mashed with milk and butter. These potatoes are no different in my opinion than those I bought in England. I think they are called "whites" and only about three to a kilo. It is worth noting that in Thailand potatoes, unless made into french fries, and even then they are made from frozen ones,  are not a common food and this means the nice potatoes sometime are sitting there too long for their quality to last, so I reject them and wait for the fresh ones to come in.

 

So making french fries, i do par boil after cutting to shape. First bringing to the boil and then simmer for about 10 to 12 minutes, i leave them to drain for a few minutes, not specially drying them. 

Next i place them In the hot oil in a deepish pan where they are covered and cook to a beautiful brown color whilst occasionally turning them to ensure all around cooking.

When finished i take them from the pan in a sieve and put them in a bowl with some kitchen roll, to remove excess oil, then sprinkle with a little salt and black pepper.

They are crispy and quite, quite delicious

 

 

As a matter of interest. Home grown potatoes in Thailand is relatively new, only about 50 years.

They are grown in Thailand and far better than the imports, don't, know where they come from.

[Kenny202]

8 minutes ago, sirineou said:

I also get mine at Macro. They seem to be pretty good. 

Makro spuds are good and fresh these days, for mash and general eating....They do seem very sweet to my taste but still nice.....but for fries I find they just don't crisp up.