French Fry Diary 738: Power Air Fryer

I got my QVC addiction from my late and much-missed mother-in-law, but really we each watch for very different reasons.  Mom was a shopaholic, so the entire channel was a vice, but as a foodie, I find myself drawn more to programs like "In the Kitchen with David" with the delightful David Venable.  Recently from that show, and pitch man Eric Theiss, we purchased a Power Air Fryer, and we love it. 

I had always been wary of some of the air fryers I had seen on TV, shopping oriented or not.  They never seemed to cook the food all the way through, fries Looking soggy, etc.  The first time I saw Eric on David's show with the Power Air Fryer, there was a sound the fries made when they hit the plate out of the inner fryer pot - the same sound fries make when shaken to disperse salt in a metal bowl - the sound of crispy fries.  They had my attention. 

After seeing them and the fryer on QVC a few more times, we made the purchase of, for an excellent price, the Power Air Fryer XL Pro.  We passed on the cookbook by Eric, but we did also get the barrel pan and the grill rack with the package.  In a few days the Fryer arrived, and we have been thrilled ever since.

Of course the first thing I made was French fries, Nathan's, which have been an air frying favorite ever since.  Following the simple picture touch screen directions - 400 degrees for 18 minutes - for fries, they came out perfectly golden brown.  I thought at first maybe a bit too brown, and that I had actually made charcoal, but no, they were perfect, crispy outside and soft and hot inside.  Near perfection. 

Over the next few days, hell, the next couple weeks, we had a whirlwind of experimentation, seeing what we could and could not cook in the Air Fryer, and there's really not much that you can't.  I learned that with those wonderful Nathan's fries, if you shake them halfway, and use more uniform sizes (I cut the longer fries in half) so they cook more evenly.  You can also adjust time and temperature as you wish as opposed to using the touch screen options.  These techniques are good tips for almost anything you cook.

I tried many different frozen fries options - shoestrings, steak fries, potato wedges, curly fries, waffle fries, tater tots, crinkle cuts, regular cuts - and also tried onion rings, as well as other stuff not usually covered in this blog like hot dogs, biscuits, hot pockets, motz sticks, scallops, shrimp, chicken, steak, burgers, hush puppies, cakes, and corn on the cob, that last one a particular favorite. 

There is of course a learning curve. As opposed to food being underdone as I assumed would be a problem, it's very easy to overcook, so keep an eye on what you're cooking.  Onion rings especially are easy to overdo.  You can even do handcut fries, which come out amazing.  So far the handcuts are the only item to which I've added oil, and then only a quick spray if at all.

The Power Air Fryer has been one of the best things we've purchased since we've been down here in Florida, besides of course the grill, which is my baby.  That said, I love my Air Fryer.  I don't miss our deep fryer, which we left in South Jersey, at all.  Thank you, QVC! 

Random Tater Pic of the Day #268

From good friend Terry's dinner table: venison chili dogs with Nathan's fries.

French Fry Diary 689: Famous Nathan

I like documentaries, so there's that, but folks that know me know the real reason I watched Famous Nathan, the bio-doc about Nathan Handwerker and his restaurant empire Nathan's Famous. Yeah, for the fries.

Regular readers know that I count Nathan's Famous Jumbo Crinkle Cut French Fries among the best fast food franchise fries, so of course I'd like some possible background on them. While Famous Nathan is a doc on Nathan Handwerker, you never know, there might be some insight on the fries.

The first thing on that front that caught my attention were the old pictures of the original Nathan's at Coney Island. The price I saw for fries (although the potato chips were more prevalent, at least in the old days) was five cents, which is cool, but I also noticed something else.

Nathan's had a lot of stuff for sale like malteds, different flavored sodas, hamburgers, potato chips, and roast beef. Look close, you'll even see fried sea food, barbeque, and chow mein. Clam chowder, frog's legs, shrimp - what couldn't you get at Nathan's?

The bio-doc goes on to reconstruct Nathan's journey to America, his rise in his chosen field, include interviews with family and friends, as well as feuds. Everyone in the doc is a larger than life character who plays a part in the world of famous Nathan and his empire on that corner in Coney Island. This is a delicious treat full of wonderful stories.

Fries aside, Famous Nathan, while failing in the best way as a biography because Nathan Handwerker was a hard man to get a handle on, the film is an amazing look at the American Jewish experience in the 20th century. The home movies may be of a specific famous family, but the tales are that of every family. This is America. Highly recommended.

French Fry Diary 662: Nathan's Kettle Cooked Crinkle Cut Potato Chips

Now I've reviewed them before and I'm quite fond of Nathan's Potato Chips, the thick crinkle cut style. On a recent stop at the fryless Nathan's at the Thomas Edison rest stop on the NJ Turnpike, I saw these chips - kettle cooked crinkle cuts. I figured I'd give them a try.

First things first. The bag was so hard to open (I eventually gave up and just used a scissors) I thought perhaps I was mistaken and had actually bought it at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's.

These are almost identical to the other chips in every way except for the kettle cooking. The chips are too crunchy and too greasy. It's almost as they were trying to ruin them. But I can't really say that. I don't like these, perhaps someone does.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #133

This one completely perplexed me. Nathan's was the only counter in the entire food court that had a tip cup. Yes, a tip cup. I couldn't figure out for the life of me what they were doing at Nathan's that was different from anyone else in the food court, let alone any other counter service restaurant of this type. And they certainly weren't very friendly or helpful either - so why tip them?

French Fry Diary 551: Fried Rice Potatoes

I was in Shop-Rite picking up a few items for dinner and snacks while we were buried in one of the big snow storms a few days back, when something in the fresh and hot Chinese buffet section (Asian Chef by Mikado, according to the receipt attached) of the store caught my eye. Fried Rice Potatoes.

There, amongst a couple different varieties of chicken, was a serving pan of thick potato chunks cut crinkle cut style, looking similar to Nathan's fries, with pepper chips, sitting under a heat lamp and a sign that read 'Fried Rice Potatoes.' There was no rice involved, and neither the server nor Google were much help so I don't know where the name was derived from, or even if it was a typo.

So I scooped up some honey chicken, some teriyaki chicken, and a healthy portion of the fried rice potatoes and headed home, anxiously waiting to reheat and enjoy this treat for later.

When I got home I reheated two ways, microwave and baked in the oven. As might be expected, the baked food was better. The potatoes had a solid baked potato vibe plus a kick from whatever they were marinating in, very tasty. The chicken wasn't bad either. I will definitely be getting this again.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #116

What an awesome dinner. My friend Terry sent this one to me - spicy chicken patties on English muffins and Nathan's fries.

Squint your eyes and you can almost see a hidden Mickey…

French Fry Diary 511: Nathan's Cheddar Cheese Crinkle Fries

These aren't the great French fries that Nathan's has at their restaurants (except for the one at the Moorestown Mall food court, which is inexplicably always staffed but never open when I've been there recently), these are corn meal snacks. I took a pic when I first saw them at Shop-Rite, and finally got around to buying a bag.

They also come in Honey Mustard and Chili Cheese, but I opted for the Cheddar Cheese Crunchy Crinkle Fries, mostly because those first two flavors really didn't grab me. The bag has both the great story and history of Nathan's as well as the ingredient list that verifies that potatoes had nothing to do with these fries.

Basically these are mediocre cheese curls but a lot of effort was put into making them look very close to how regular Nathan's French fries look. It works to a certain extent. The flavoring is uneven on the fries so you get a lot of cheesiness on some and hardly any on others. These are pretty good, but not great. If I want cheese curls, I think I might go for the real thing rather than these.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #93

Nathan's new Crunchy Crinkle Fries snacks, captured on display at Shop-Rite.

French Fry Diary 433: P.J. Whelihan's 2012

Yeah, I came back. I came back to the place where I found a hair in my fries - P.J. Whelihan's in Medford Lakes. Only because we were coming out of seeing The Bride in the Pineland Players production of "Bye Bye Birdie," and that's where the cast and crew were going, we went. I was not enthused, but we went. I was outvoted, I wanted the Medport.

So, once there, I determined to give the fries a second chance, and also try the onion rings. I went for a different kind of favorite fried food this time - PJ's Famous Fries - old bay seasoned crinkle cuts, but sans the American cheese. Or at least that's what the menu said, and what I ordered. Last time I was here, I got natural cuts. And sadly, since the last time I was here, they got rid of that wonderful Guiness BBQ sauce. Boo. Hiss.

The Famous Fries were fairly standard crinkle cuts but slightly flatter on one side than on the other, kinda like an oddly shaped Nathan's fry. They were also quite long, only lightly seasoned with Old Bay, and very addictive. I passed on the American cheese but it would've gone well with them. They were great while hot, but unfortunately got cold rather quickly.

The onion rings were thick cut and lightly crunchy. Almost perfectly done. I liked these best on this trip. They came with a creole mayo sauce that my good friend, the Dark Crystal, really disliked, more vinegar than mayo. I got the Hot-n-Honey signature wing sauce for my fries, and that was more buffalo than honey, still hot, but not the kind of hot I was looking for in a honey BBQ sauce.

All in all, this time it was a good visit, and pleasant visit. And best of all, no hair...

French Fry Diary 301: The Molly Pitcher Travel Plaza, Yes, Again

Three strikes and you're out is the baseball metaphor. This is my third trip to the Molly Pitcher Travel Plaza, a rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike in North Jersey. It has a Roy Rogers, a Nathan's, an Arthur Treacher's, and a Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill, among other shops and food stops. The last one in that list has never been open when I've been there.

This trip I arrived just after nine PM on a busy Saturday night. Like last time, there were employees in there at Dick Clark's, but none would talk to me, let alone look at me. I think at this point, this must be some sort if scam, and the AB Grill is never open. It's a mirage obviously.

The Arthur Treacher's was open and doing a brisk business, but as noted on the last visit, I only could have gotten Nathan's fries there. Do I have to visit Ohio to get real Arthur Treacher's chips?

Oh well. Instead I got Roy Rogers fries, some milk and Cinnabon for the road, and made my way back home. Perhaps tonight I will dream of a day when the AB Grill will be open or I can get Arthur Treacher's chips at an Arthur Treacher's...

Random Tater Pic of the Day #22

This is the legendary Nathan's Famous without fries at the Thomas Edison Service Plaza on the New Jersey Turnpike. If you want the favorite fried food here, you have to go to Burger King or Popeye's. That's just wrong.

French Fry Diary 244: Trader Joe's Beer Battered Vidalia Sweet Onion Rings

I picked these up at the same time I got the Handsome Cut Potato Fries, also a new product, I was intrigued by the combination. I'm not a fan of beer battered onion rings, but I love rings made with sweet Vidalia onions, so I had to give it a try.

On the bag for the Trader Joe's Beer Battered Vidalia Sweet Onion Rings, a lot is made about how it's all about the sweetness of the Vidalia onions, and the beer batter. Of the latter, the batter (loving the rhyme) is described as light and airy with just the right amount of crispness. Let's just say Trader Joe's is really proud of these babies.

They looked like standard beer batter rings to me when I was preparing them, so I covered my bets and hit them with some Billy Bee Honey BBQ Seasoning - great for onion rings or Nathan's frozen grocery fries or just any fries at all. I hoped they wouldn't need it. And they're very big rings of onion, as is the way of the Vidalia.

I cooked 'em up in the oven and made them a little bit crispy crunchy because that's how I like my onion rings. The sweet Vidalia comes out but I'm glad I used the seasoning as it covers up the beer batter. Not good, I would rather have panko bread crumbs instead.

I enjoyed them but unlike the Trader Joe's Handsome Cut Potato Fries I doubt I'll get these again. However if you like beer batter rings, maybe these are for you.

French Fry Diary 229: Return to the Molly Pitcher Travel Plaza

So here I am, on Memorial Day weekend, back at the Molly Pitcher rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike. The last time I was here, neither Arthur Treacher's nor Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill nor even Nathan's were open.

Surprisingly, tonight, Sunday of one of the busiest traffic weekends of the year at 10:45 PM - they were in the process of closing again. So it was Roy Rogers by default again. No complaints there, I love Roy Rogers, but I did want to try the others.

It should be noted that the real Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill is in Banson, Missouri, and that I could find no record of this one on the internet. Also, this Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips is one of those affiliated with Nathan's, and not one of the 'real' ones from Ohio that has the 'real' Arthur Treacher's chips. All I would have gotten here is Nathan's fries anyway. Again, no complaints, but I want the real chips, you know?

Now I have to figure out if these closings are something deliberate against me or do these restaurants have weirder hours than those at Harrahs. You know, the casino, another place that is open twenty-four hours a day. I just find it funny. I mean, do 7-Eleven or 24/7 convenience stores close up parts of their store at inopportune times?

French Fry Diary 190: Roy Rogers on the NJ Turnpike: Breakfast

I was surprised on a recent visit to the Cherry Hill Roy Rogers, the one on the NJ Turnpike. I arrived at quarter after ten in the morning to find that they were still serving breakfast. I wanted lunch but had to settle for breakfast as I was hungry and didn't want to wait. Actually I didn't mind it being breakfast as there is also a Cinnabon there. Regretfully though, the Nathan's and the Carvel were both closed at that time of the morning.

The visit did give me a chance to sample the breakfast potatoes that Roy's serves, called 'Home Taters.' They are natural cut scalloped potatoes, deep-fried and packed into Roy's cool little fry-holding holsters. To say these were not satisfying is not just a reflection on the fact that I was expecting lunch and specifically fries.

These potatoes were dry and tasteless, and really not pleasant at all. They were soft, inside and out, in a bad way, and definitely a reason to avoid Roy Rogers for breakfast. Thank heaven for Cinnabon.

French Fry Diary 181: Molly Pitcher Plaza on the NJ Turnpike

On the way home from the Funplex in East Hanover NJ we had to stop to rest as it's a long drive, so we took a break at the Molly Pitcher Travel Plaza on the NJ Turnpike. It was named for the heroine of the Battle of Monmouth in 1778. Legend has it she fetched water for the American soldiers during that decisive battle in the American Revolution. For her trouble, she got a rest stop, but as you'll see, not just any rest stop.

We arrived just after midnight on a Saturday night, which is why it seemed strange half the place was closed up. I was especially crushed as three of the restaurants at the place were of considerable French fry interest. Nathan's and Roy Rogers have some of the best fast food fries around, and Arthur Treacher's used to as well, but I had not been to the latter since I began this blogging journey. There was also something extremely enticing called Dick Clark's American Bandstand Grill.

Had they all been open, and our stomachs empty, I imagine I could have eaten lots of the favorite fried food, taken copious notes, and pulled at least three, maybe more, entries for the FFD out of this experience. As it turned out, we had Roy Rogers and Cinnabon. That's not a complaint, by the way. It was a good snack and a good break, but it could have been much better.

Mrs. Pitcher, we'll be back. Please be open!

French Fry Diary 109: Poll Results Spring 2010

The poll question of the moment on French Fry Diary for the last few months has been Best thing to put -on- fries, or dip fries -into-... Your answers are below:

Ketchup got 45% of the vote and cheese got 39%. These are the standards. Everybody likes ketchup (apparently, even though I don’t) and cheese fries are pretty darned popular. Next up is malt vinegar with 27% of the vote. These folks are either from the UK, have visited there or just stumbled upon this one. Similarly also from Europe, we get the mayo vote with 15%.

A notable 11% also like dipping their fries into their milkshakes just like I do. And we’ve talked about this before, I might be an oddball, but I’m not alone. One of my other favorites, barbeque sauce got a respectable 17%.

The pride of Canada, gravy, and disco chili fries each got 13%. Chocolate and maple syrup each pulled in 3%, while mustard, ew, got 11% of the vote. A recent favorite of mine, honey, which I’ve been putting on baked Nathan’s fries while they cook for an extra tasty sweet treat, got 7%.

Now ten percent of the vote went to ‘other.’ Now if you voted for ‘other,’ please do drop me a note and let me know what exactly you had in mind for your fries – I would love to know!

French Fry Diary 84: Nathan’s Misfire

I shot through the drive-thru of my local Nathan’s Famous fries connection, an ice cream place called Bruster’s, only to discover when I got home – no Nathan’s Famous fries!

A substitution had been made. Instead of the yummy wide crinkle-cuts I was jonesing for, I got steak fries. Now don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with steak fries, usually, but that’s not what I ordered, ya know?

These steak fries were obviously cooked in the same oil and perhaps had the same seasoning as the distinctive Nathan’s taste was still there, but really not enough to mask the not-so-great, overdone and inadequate steak fries I got as a substitute.

I know that from now on, I’m inquiring about the fries before I order next time and then checking ‘em before I leave. This was a disaster.

French Fry Diary 83: Nathan’s Famous at Home

Nathan’s Famous has some of the best fast food French fries out there, in my opinion, but the good news is that you can also have those great fries at home any time.

Nathan’s has a variety of products available at most supermarkets, including their famous hot dogs, hamburgers, mustards, steak sauce, potato chips and especially their prize fries. The dogs are pretty much the same, and the burgers suffer from that same freezer burn and shaped problems that plague most burgers of that type. The potato chips however are quite nice.

They’re waffle chips although Nathan’s calls ‘em “crinkle cut style’ to cash in on their popular fries. They are thick and tasty and full of more potato flavor than many other chips out there from real potato chip companies. They also have no trans fat for the Health Nazis out there. Very good, and a suitable replacement when Nathan’s famous fries are not available.

Also for when the fries aren’t available are Nathan’s Famous Onion Rings, labeled as ‘thick sliced’ and ‘battered’ as if that could make them better, they are priced rather expensively in your grocer’s freezer. Quite honestly, I’m not a fan of Nathan’s rings when at the restaurant because of their greasiness, and these are only slightly better thanks to the baking option. The batter coating is pretty bad and even baked they’re greasy, I would give these a total pass.

On the other hand, Nathan’s Famous Fries in the frozen edition are almost as good as the real thing. While Nathan’s Famous are among some of the best of the fast food fries, their frozen fries are the best. And pass on the deep frying method to cook, unless that’s what you want, because they will taste greasy, but you asked for it.

The real beauty of these comes when they are baked. This is the crème de la crème of the baked frozen French fry. And because you make them at home you control the crispiness and the softness inside. For an extra treat I like to throw some spices, usually Billy Bee Honey BBQ Seasoning in the bag and shake it around before placing them on the baking sheet. Mmmm... fries...

French Fry Diary 82: Nathan’s Famous

Nathan’s Famous was founded by Nathan Handwerker in 1916, specialized in his famous secret recipe hot dogs and quickly became a landmark in Coney Island, NY. Eventually they became franchised throughout the country and added many other staples to their menu, including some of the best French fries, in my opinion. Nathan’s Famous fries are available at other places other than Nathan’s, such as the Bruster's ice cream place, Kenny Rogers Roasters, and even in your grocer’s freezer.

Nathan’s Famous has always been one of my favorite fast food French fries, if not the best. Just to make sure of my thoughts before putting them on the page I did a drive-by and picked up an order, a large order of course which is considerable by the way, at a local mall. The man behind the counter had a teardrop tattoo under one of his eyes and inked sleeves. The way he kept calling me ‘boss’ brought to mind far too many Cool Hand Luke jokes than are acceptable. The service however was quick, courteous and enough to make most fast food places blush with shame.

Ten minutes later when I arrived home I opened the bag. I had closed said bag tightly to seal in the hotness of the fries on the ride home. No peeking or picking at for these fries. If I did, there wouldn’t be any when I got home. Yeah, they’re that good.

Mmmm... still toasty warm, and stabbed right into the middle of the overly large fry bag was the famous Nathan’s French fry fork – a wonder of the fast food field, this is a small red plastic two-pronged fork specially made for eating fries. I usually keep mine for a few more feedings cuz they’re just that much darned fun. That fork is worth the price right there.

Nathan’s Famous fries are wonderfully thick crinkle-cuts that have a surprisingly sweet taste. I’ve never gotten a batch that were too greasy or too crispy or too soggy – they are always just right. This bag was just as good as ever.

The beauty of it is that even if they still weren’t warm when I got home, Nathan’s fries nuke quite well for maybe thirty seconds or less and you’re back in action. You can even microwave them a second time – but no more than that and they get messy, either soggy or hard like rocks.

Better than nuking them though is to just bake them. Using the minimum oil already on the fries as cooking oil, just place them on some aluminum foil and pop ‘em in the oven at 400 for about five to ten minutes and not only will they be good as new, but maybe a good kind of crispy. That’s right, baking take out Nathan’s makes them better.

Nathan’s Famous fries remain some of the best out there in the fast food realm. Def recommended.