French Fry Diary 670: The Curse of the McWhopper

You may have heard the recent hubbub over Burger King wanting to unite with McDonald's to make the McWhopper - a hybrid product consisting of the top of the Big Mac and the bottom of the Whopper - available at one location in honor of Peace Day on September 21st. Famously, McDonald's passive/aggressively turned Burger King down.

Here's the thing though. Anyone who's paying attention knows what the real deal is and where the real passive/aggression lies. Look at the proposed McWhopper, folks, seriously, just look at it. The bottom, the BK half, has a bigger and better looking burger. The sandwich is not a cylinder, but a pyramid. This is merely an exercise is Burger King quietly demonstrating that the Whopper is bigger than the Big Mac. Sneaky sneaky, BK.

And although I'm not a condiment guy, preferring my burgers plain, I would rather have a BK patty over Mickey D's. That said, a lot of folks have noted they would love to try the mythical McWhopper. The folks at Serious Eats have even made their own and offer the recipe here.

One thing is for sure, if they ever do offer the McWhopper, or if you make one yourself, get McDonald's fries to eat with it - it's one of the few things that Mickey D's always does right. BK, not so much.

Chorizo Hash Browns

Here's one from Serious Eats, posted by Nick Kindelsperger - Chorizo Hash Browns...

"I have a thing for hash browns. I love the crisp edges and the deep oniony bite. This recipe adapted from Gourmet tosses in some Spanish chorizo for some extra meatiness, and some smoked paprika to really bring things home. I wouldn't call this thing light by any means, but sometimes I really need something heavy and filling like this.

"As with most heavy fried-potato dishes, an egg somehow seems to make sense. Too bad I didn't realize that until I took this picture. But just mentally stick a runny yolk on top and we're all set. Oh, and those little black specks are some deeply caramelized onions. I panicked and worried that they'd taste burned, but instead they were truly sweet and delicious."

Check out the recipe here.

French Fry Diary 122: Wok Fries

I didn't have a deep fryer when I first got married. That came later. What I did have was a wok, both electric and traditional.

In fact, it was a joke when The Bride and I were opening both wedding and shower presents - "Oh look, another wok." Yeah, we received at least six.

So early in my marriage, all of my French fry experiments in deep frying took place in woks.

Here are a few tips from Serious Eats about how to deep fry using a wok. Enjoy!

French Fry Diary 29: Tornado Fries

Traditionally a treat on the streets of Seoul, South Korea, the infamous Tornado Fries have finally made it to the States.

For those of you who don’t know about the tornado potato, we’re talking about an entire potato, thinly spiral-cut, and deep-fried on a skewer. Check the pic for further illumination.

According to Serious Eats, it will be available at the Minnesota State Fair this summer, as well as being available in this French fry lover’s back yard, on the New Jersey Boardwalk.

The Original Tornado Fries is now open on the Wildwood Boardwalk and doing a brisk business. You can get them with a variety of seasonings and toppings.

So if you get down to the Wildwood shore, and you’re an aficionado of the favorite fried food, don’t forget to stop by and get your Tornado Fries.


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