Ok. So even in the summer I crave french fries. But I don’t crave heating up a big pot of oil inside the house. There’s a solution: grilled fries. The fine people of Nauru love their fries. While most of them enjoy deep-fried fries, we covered that with Belgium Pommes Frites. So, inspired by their island setting – where the fine people of Nauru love to grill – I thought it’d be fun to try grilled fries.
And it was fun.
In my research I found several ways to make these, including boiling the potatoes and then slicing (again, who wants to heat up the house with a big pot of bubbling water? Not me!).
I decided to try something different. Something simpler. I crossed my fingers, shut my eyes, and hoped against hope that it would work.
And it did.
Here is how I did it.
Sunset on Nauru. Photo by Clive Cooper.
Serves up to 5
Ingredients:
5 large yukon gold potatoes, washed
vegetable oil
salt & pepper
Method:
First, find the largest yukon gold potatoes you can. You can also use Russets, although they are a bit more temperamental and want to fall apart if you overcook them even the littlest bit.
Cook your potatoes on the second rack of your grill preheated to about 425F. You aren’t looking to completely cook them. You just want to get them started. These large ones took about 15 minutes. I did smaller ones and they only took 10 minutes.
Remove from grill and set aside until cool enough to handle – about ten minutes. Meanwhile, go for a walk or a jog on the airport runway, just like the locals. Don’t worry, you’ll be safe. Airplanes only land – at most – twice per week.
Nauru’s airport landing strip. Photo by Cedric Favero.
When you return home, cut open the potatoes there should be a circle of raw, light-colored potato in the middle. That’s good! If it’s all the same color you cooked them too long.
This raw area ensures that the potato will hold up to cutting without falling apart. It also keeps the thin section of the wedge from overcooking during the second grilling. Win-win!
Brush or toss in a shimmering sea of oil. Then sprinkle with several happy shakes of salt and pepper.
Grill on the lower part of your grill, on both sides, until as browned as you’d like. Be sure to oil the grill to help keep them from sticking.
The longer they sit there, the more charred they get. You’re looking for 3-5 minutes per side, depending on how you like ’em.
Serve immediately with ketchup.
Or whatever floats your Nauruan boat.
So what do you think… are Grilled Island Fries in your future?
| Servings |
| 5 people |
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Ok. So even in the summer I crave french fries. But I don’t crave heating up a big pot of oil inside the house. There’s a solution: grilled fries. The fine people of Nauru love their fries. While most of them enjoy deep-fried fries, we covered that with Belgium Pommes Frites. So, inspired by their island setting – where the fine people of Nauru love to grill – I thought it’d be fun to try grilled fries.
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- 5 large potatoes (yukon gold), washed
- vegetable oil
- salt
- pepper
- First, find the largest yukon gold potatoes you can. You can also use Russets, although they are a bit more temperamental and want to fall apart if you overcook them even the littlest bit. Cook your potatoes on the second rack of your grill preheated to about 425F. You aren’t looking to completely cook them. You just want to get them started. These large ones took about 15 minutes. I did smaller ones and they only took 10 minutes.
- Remove from grill and set aside until cool enough to handle – about ten minutes. Meanwhile, cut open the potatoes there should be a circle of raw, light-colored potato in the middle. That’s good! If it’s all the same color you cooked them too long. This raw area ensures that the potato will hold up to cutting without falling apart. It also keeps the thin section of the wedge from overcooking during the second grilling. Win-win!
- Brush or toss in a shimmering sea of oil. Then sprinkle with several happy shakes of salt and pepper. Grill on the lower part of your grill, on both sides, until as browned as you’d like. Be sure to oil the grill to help keep them from sticking.
- The longer they sit there, the more charred they get. You’re looking for 3-5 minutes per side, depending on how you like ‘em.
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