BEST CHIPS RECIPES

Steps:

• 1. Three obvious things are important on your journey to perfection – your choice of potato, your choice of oil and your choice of salt. For me, the Maris Piper potato wins every time, and you want to use nice large ones.
  2. On oil, sunflower and sunseed are very efficient, and many people swear by using groundnut oil. But, if you’re after flavour, cooking chips in beef tallow (rendered beef fat you can get from your butcher) gives you better flavour and colour – the choice is yours.
  3. Finally, on salt, being an Essex boy, in my house it has to be Maldon sea salt.
  4. So down to business: chop 800g of Maris Piper potatoes into finger-sized chips, leaving the skin on – don’t be too exact.
  5. Chip shops have massive industrial fryers, which you can’t recreate at home, so you need to use a large sturdy pan on a medium to high heat (unless you own a deep-fat fryer, of course). Your oil should be 8cm deep, but never fill your pan more than half full. If you don’t have a thermometer, use a raw chip, and as it starts to float and fry the temperature should be about 140°C, which is perfect for blanching.
  6. Use a large metal sieve to gently lower the chips into the pan for around 8 minutes, or until soft but not coloured, then remove to a tray to cool.
  7. Turn the heat up under the oil and return one blanched chip to the oil as a guide again. Once it’s floating and golden the temperature should be about 180°C, which is perfect for frying and will give you chips with those all-important crispy outsides and fluffy middles.
  8. At this stage you may want to cook your chips in 2-portion batches, so you don’t decrease the temperature of the oil too much or overcrowd the pan. Fry the chips until beautifully golden, then remove to a bowl lined with kitchen paper, shake around a bit, season with sea salt and serve right away.

Steps:

• Trim all the rounded edges off the potatoes to make a rectangular block, then cut this into thick batons (save any offcuts to make mash). Drop into a pan of cold salted water with the vinegar and bring to the boil. Simmer for 6-8 mins until the potatoes are just cooked and tender – test with the tip of a knife. Drain carefully, trying not to break any of the chips, and leave to cool completely. Can be prepared up to two days ahead and chilled until needed.
• Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 9. Pour the oil into a sturdy, rimmed baking tray or shallow roasting tin and heat in the oven. Mix the flours with the baking powder, cayenne and some salt in a shallow dish and gently toss the chips in the floury mixture to coat, then leave in the mixture until needed.
• Carefully remove the pan from the oven – the oil should be shimmering – and lay the chips in a single layer in the pan. Use a thin, flexible spatula to gently turn the chips so they are all coated, then roast for 20 mins. Turn the chips again, then roast for another 10 minutes. Turn one final time, then cook for a futher 10 minutes until crisp and deep golden all over. Drain the chips onto kitchen paper and serve straight away.