Frying foods is one of the easiest ways to make tasty (and unhealthy) foods. I love french fries but I have cut down quite a bit to where I may eat it once or twice a month. I use to love the fries Burger King had when they had this crispy crust on the outside probably 7 years ago? I don't recall exactly. They've since discontinued it due to, according to them, inconsistency in the fry times. However I think it was because they came under scrutiny on how unhealthy and increased fat content the fries contained due to the crispy crust.
I think a happy life is a good life, and if french fries makes me happy, then I should enjoy it in moderation. One of the annoying things I hate when getting an order of fries at somewhere like McDonald's is the fry cook is sometimes heavy handed, and I have extremely salty fries. If I ask them to make a fresh batch without salt, I sometimes see the fry cook roll their eyes. Look man, if you didn't salt the damn fries so much, maybe I wouldn't have to ask you to make a fresh batch of unsalted fries! And then the look of their faces when I ask for a packet of salt after. Priceless!
I enjoy quick and simple cooking and one of the gadgets I got for a gift was the CoolDaddy electric deep fryer from Presto. Not only is it portable, but it's enclosed so the oil doesn't splash everywhere. The unit comes with a dial to match perfectly the temp with the foods you are cooking. You want french fries? No problem, move the dial to match the recommend temps to the side. Fried chicken, same thing, takes some of the guess work out.
One of the features I really like is the ability to load up the basket with your foods, put it in the unit, close the lid, then slide down the handle to submerge the food in oil. All that splashing and popping of oil is eliminated. I don't really like to fry inside my house due to the lingering smell afterwards, so it's perfect to take out to the patio, grab an extension cord and fry outside.
One thing I noticed is my foods isn't so oily compared to when I deep fry in a pot or pan. When I place a leg of fried chicken from the electric fryer, the paper towel isn't soaked with oil like it would normally if I had used the pan.
The unit isn't without it's annoyances and one of it is the really short power cord. It's about 1 1/2 feet long! I think it's done by design, so people don't placed a long cord and have someone snag it by mistake and splash hot oil everywhere. Another safety mechanism is the plug to the unit is connected by magnets to reduce the chance to snagging it and taking the whole fryer with you.
I'm extremely happy with it so far. It's great when the guys are over, and we are hanging out in the patio area. When we get a little hungry, I can go to the freezer, grab some frozen fries I cut before (or store bought frozen fries) and just throw them in. In about 5 or 6 minutes, we've got a nice basket of fries to enjoy. Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. I've done this with previously prepared fish, chicken, egg rolls, and other finger foods. Came out perfect every time. Only once did the egg rolls come out burned, as I didn't set the egg timer on, and ended up distracted with the sports on TV.
It's easy to clean, portable, consistent temps, and with the excellent outcome of the food, I couldn't be happier.
I'm sure you can find these at most major department stores, Target, Kohls, Walmart...etc., for anywhere between $40-60.
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