SC - Fw: [CALONTIR] Bread

[Jenne Heise]

On 9/5/00 7:50 PM sca-cooks at ansteorra.org wrote:

>You don't mention what you are using to fry.  I use a heavy pot with oil 
>on a gas burner.  Good heat control, and no more than half full of oil no 
>matter what (avoid spillage).  If using an auto-fry-thingy like a 
>FryDaddy(tm), then I got no help for you.  They're wild in terms of temp 
>control.  remember that oil drops in temp when you add food based on temp 
>of food and amount of food added.  Don't crowd, and keep food room temp so 
>you can get oil back to desired temp quickly.  Hope some of this helps.
>
>niccolo difrancesco

We use a cast iron footed pot, set up on a Wok ring, on our (best) 
regular, 30-yr old electric stove-top burner.  The pot profile pinches in 
about an inch at the top...  it's quite round, about 12" diameter both 
high and wide.  

Two of the large (2 qt?) bottles of oil fill our pot up to about a third. 
 Half is way too much to deal with, what with the bubble-up (our most 
frequent item is home fish-n-chips... the water on the fries... woo ha!  
Remember, with fries, the more thoroughly you drain the rinse water, the 
better -- The less water on the surface, going into hot oil, the better.) 
 Fresh new oil will do the "bubble-up" worse, we've found.  

The temp drop when food is added ... we try to gauge amounts added so 
that we don't lose temp to below about 330 (when starting to add at ca. 
380, for fries)  Otherwise the food doesn't cook properly (and 
consequently absorbs excess oil) because the oil has cooled too much.

Some things need two cookings, with temp coming all the way back up 
before the 2d go.

The wok wire scooper thing-y, or a mesh spatter-screen, can be handy in 
knocking down the bubble-up, if needed.  If you're experiencing 
bubble-up, slow down, and like Nicolo said, reduce the volume of what 
you're putting in!  

We use the 400 degree thermometers too...  we use a piece of bent wire to 
suspend the therm. in the oil without touching the bottom (!).  Due to 
the reverse flair at the pot mouth, we hang the wire off the the heavy 
bail (handle) of the pot, over the edge.  Hope that makes sense...

These tips gathered from ca. 18 yrs of figuring out how to do decent 
fish-n-chips at home, because until quite recently the nearest good ones 
were a nine-hour drive away!  We now have one acceptable place in town, 
and my husband's home-made still compare favorably, depending on who's 
cooking at the restaurant; and the price differential, even at $7+/# for 
halibut, is ridiculous.

Have fun.  Be careful!  Unlimber your kitchen fire extinguisher and/or 
box of baking soda, if you're just starting (I'm still timid after all 
these years, because my husband is the fryer, 8-)).  

Chimene