T-Fal low fat fryer

[rotuts]

I dont fry

health and expense of the oil.

however what could be better than a 'true' french fry? Skin on, hot tasty ect.

well squid: Hot and Spicy squid in the higher end chinese rest.

during the various PBS cooking shows the have a 'low fat' T-fal fryer:

http://www.cooking.com/products/shprodde.asp?SKU=255036

does anyone have this? its $$$ but does it really work better than bite-ing the bullet and do frying in low volume fat and saving the fat ...

IOd veryt much like to hear

thanks

[Kerry Beal]

Watched it at work at the gift show last year. Tasted the product and found it acceptable.

[Norm Matthews]

$300.00 low-fat fryer to save money on oil? For fries? I don't see the value there.

[heidih]

Here is a link to some older comments about the fryer

[mbhank]

Ming Tsai has been pushing it since T_Fal is one of his sponsors. On a recent show he made french fries in one for a dish he was making. He extolled the virtues of it, put the fries in and said they would be ready in 45 minutes. 45 Minutes??!! For french fries? I thing you're better off using a small amount of oil and saving it. $300 buys a lot of potatoes.

[Dakki]

It also buys a lot of very good frying oil.

Speaking of which, I'm not entirely convinced of the fat reduction benefits of this thing. My understanding is that properly fried foods absorb very little fat. One would probably get better fat-reduction results overall from more-aggressive trimming and/or selecting for leanness in protein than by faux-frying.

And aren't we supposed to be cutting sugar and starch instead of fat these days?

[heidih]

Dakki - I keep thinking about those old commercials - perhaps for Mazola corn oil - where they fried the chicken in the oil, first measuring the beginning and then the ending oil, and found only a few tablespoons used. I would love to see some current experimentation and information on the techniques/tempos that result in the least oil absorbtion

[andiesenji]

I got one a couple of years ago, used it twice, returned it. Shoddily made, took too long to heat up and did not maintain heat after food was added.

Certainly not worth the price.

A gimmick not really up to par.

[ermintrude]

And as for health rather than the what they tell you, what the science says is different. While I was aware of some of the differences between what is being promoted as "Healthy" and what the scientific evidence says it was "A modernist cuisine" vol 1" that opened my eyes. To summarise fry your fries in beef or duck fat it as the sum of the evidence shows no link compared as being fried in vegetable oil (could be safer as breakdown products over the smoke point can be carcinogenic). However avoid any trans fats - they are bad for you.

My grandmother used to say was "Eat some of everything but not to much of anything" I think that sums up a good diet.

[Mjx]

Dakki - I keep thinking about those old commercials - perhaps for Mazola corn oil - where they fried the chicken in the oil, first measuring the beginning and then the ending oil, and found only a few tablespoons used. I would love to see some current experimentation and information on the techniques/tempos that result in the least oil absorbtion

ATK tested this, and the findings were that, if the oil is properly heated, this is absolutely correct (The Best Recipe 1999 p. 147).

If you don't feel like frying, and don't mind the amount of time involved in alternative cooking method, why not just make them in the oven? They take about half an hour to finish at 230C/450F, a bit less time, if you toss the potatoes in a little oil before baking.

[rotuts]

thanks for the responses

this is as I thought. I do make my 'frys' in the oven, but I was thinking more along the lines of squid.

guess Ill go back to small batches in a pan

thanks again

[DrewUK]

I have one here in the UK and I love it. It is poorly made as this is my second one, luckily I bought it at Costco who have a no quibble returns policy so when it broke I got a new one. The type of potato makes a huge difference as I found baking potatoes work the best. I usually cook with olive oil to be on the healthy side. It makes fantastic roast potatoes but it is best at sauté because they come out brown on all 6 sides not burnt on one and raw on the others, because it keeps them moving all the time. I find that it makes large chips (i.e. size of your little finger) better than thinner french fries.

My two pence

http://www.cutcookeat.com

[MartinH]

I use mine to make chicken wings: with no pre-heating, a completely unattended 25 minutes of cooking (for about 15 wings) produces well-browned, crispy-skinned wings fried in their own rendered chicken fat. It is the easiest and best way I've found to do wings. I've also tried other things. Browning or caramelizing onions in it omits all the stirring needed in a pan. I have used it to fry potatoes in beef fat (as I believe McDonalds originally used for their fries); though tastier than oils, large amounts of beef fat for deep frying are almost unobtainable. So, for me it is not the "low fat" angle, since in any case I like high fat food, but the convenience that makes it useful.

[Twyst]

Cooks illustrated listed this fryer as one of the best home fryers period, and it happens to claim to require half the oil of a standard fryer. I have no experience with the product but it is very well reviewed by everyone for holding temperature well and overall performance.

http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi-D895UX-Cool-Touch-Electric-2-Pound-Capacity/dp/B00004RGAW