2 lb. potatoes, peeled, rinsed and dried
1 lb. bacon
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 chipotle pepper, chopped
2 drops Tabasco sauce
1/2 teaspoon cumin
For the french fries: Pour enough oil into a deep
fryer or deep sauce pan to reach at least halfway up the sides of the
pan,but not more than three-quarters of the way up. Heat the oil to 325
degrees.
Cut the potatoes into sticks 1/2 inch wide and 2 1/2
to 3 inches long. Dry all the pieces thoroughly in a clean dish towel.
This will keep th oil from splattering. Divide the potato sticks into
batches of no more than 1 cup each. Do not fry more than one batch at a
time.
When the oil has reached the desired temperature,
fry the potatoes for 4 to 5 minutes per batch. They should be lightly
colored, but not browned. If your fryer has a basket, simply lift it out
the remove the fried potatoes. Otherwise, use a long-handled skimmer to
lift out the potatoes. Be sure to bring the temperature of the oil back
to 325°F in between batches. At this point the fries can rest for
several hours at room temperature until you are almost ready to serve
them.
For the second frying: Heat the oil to 325°F. Fry
the potatoes in 1-cup batches until they are nicely browned and crisp, 1
to 2 minutes. Drain on fresh paper towels or brown paper bags and place
in a warmed serving bowl lined with more paper towels. Sprinkle with
bacon dust and serve with the chipotle mayo dipping sauce and/or
ketchup.
For the Bacon Dust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a tray with parchment paper, then line each slice of bacon on tray
and bake for 15-20 minutes until crisp and dry.
Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and allow to
cool. Crumble and put in the food processor and pulverize into a fine
consistency.
Put fries, in batches, in paper bag with portions of the bacon dust and shake to coat.
For the Chipotle Mayo: Combine mayo, chipotle
pepper, Tabasco, cumin & adobe sauce, or if you can the chipotle
peppers already in a can in the Mexican food section of your grocery
store, you can use that.
bacon recipe courtesy of: Mary Beam, Westbrook, Maine, for Just a Pinch Recipe Club
