Talk:French fries

french fries/ chips

In the UK, all chips are called chips, although french fries is often understood to mean the thin ones you get at McDonald's, they are still correctly called chips. The fat ones are sometimes called 'game chips' —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.211.10.21 (talk) 15:01, 12 January 2011 (UTC)

Mrs. Beeton refers to game-chips, but they are what we now know, in the UK, as "crisps", i.e. deep-fried very thin slices of whole or peeled potato. Archolman 22:53, 20 May 2011 (UTC)

I have sometimes heard the term "French fried potatoes" used in Britain to refer to sauté potatoes, i.e. potatoes that have been peeled, parboiled, allowed to cool, sliced thinly, and (possibly after being set aside for later) shallow fried; that allows potatoes to be fried in a simpler way, e.g. along with other ingredients as part of a fried English breakfast instead of fried bread (with all the earlier stages being done the day before). If there is any separate evidence for this use of the term, perhaps it could be mentioned in this article and a sauté potato article could be set up as a redirect to this one. PMLawrence (talk) 10:20, 10 December 2013 (UTC)

Going in Circles

It seems to me that this will never become a featured article until a universal word or phrase can be thought of that appeals to all variations of these thinly sliced and fried potatoes. --Chiefsfan (Reply) 03:36, 18 February 2011 (UTC)

Just to nitpick

Gaufrettes, unique as they are, can't count as chips rather than fries (crisps rather than chips, if you will) because their texture is still soft. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.73.70.113 (talk) 23:49, 15 March 2011 (UTC)

France/Quebec

I lived in france for 9 years and never once did i see them on the menu as "pommes de terre frites"

"pommes frites" and "frites" are the most common ways of them being listed, and thus should be placed before "pommes de terre frites", or better yet - just remove "pommes de terre frites"

Chips as main meal

I know that it says under the course served, it's rarely served as a main course, however as I've been in Britain the majority of my time, in Aberdeen, Burntisland, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Bognor Regis and Chichester, I have seen many people eat chips on it's own, as a main meal.

While I don't doubt the facts about chips being served as anything, it's far more common than rare, being a main meal, oddly enough.

~RichardKT —Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.215.16.47 (talk) 00:16, 27 April 2011 (UTC)

Given the quality of food in the UK, I wouldn't be surprised if someone were to eat a load of fries as a meal. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.158.48.12 (talk) 19:52, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

frenched fries

French fries have nothing to do with France, it's pronounced frenched fries, frenched being a way of slicing something — Preceding unsigned comment added by 91.177.200.159 (talk) 14:16, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

While that etymology is correct, they are decidedly NOT called "frenched fries", as accurate as that may be. We (Americans) call them french fries. —tooki (talk) 19:28, 6 November 2011 (UTC)

Re Citation needed

Re Citation needed for the name: "pommes de terre frites".

Here is a citation from a French-language website of a grocery chain that serves the Province of Quebec. http://www.metro.ca/conseil-expert/jardinier/panier-legumes/legumes-tubercules/pomme-terre.fr.html

There are also restaurant menus online that use the name. Googling "pommes de terre frites" quebec finds some of these.

I think "aiguillettes" (as a name for very small fries) is more in need of a citation. Perhaps allumettes (matchsticks) is what was meant. Wanderer57 (talk) 12:22, 21 June 2011 (UTC)

The name "pommes de terre frites" [http://www.google.com/search?q=%22pommes+de+terre+frites%22&tbs=cdr%3A1%2Ccd_min%3A%2Ccd_max%3A1830&tbm=bks has been around for a long time, not just in Quebec; "pommes frites" is a shortened version. --Macrakis (talk) 14:17, 21 June 2011 (UTC)

Spiral fries

I have placed the 2 sections referring to spirally-cut chips here, & removed the 'unique' references in each sub-section. After all, a spiral is a spiral, whether it's a spring or a tornado :) Archolman User talk:Archolman 22:00, 5 July 2011 (UTC)

Why are we calling them spiral fries? The shape is not a spiral. It is a helix. HiLo48 (talk) 22:10, 5 July 2011 (UTC)

While a "spiral" and a "helix" are distinct as technical terms, a helix is sometimes described as a spiral in non-technical usage. Wikipedia is a good place to find answers to every pedant's questions. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.94.61.91 (talk) 22:37, 5 July 2011 (UTC)

They are already called 'spirally-cut'. Read the sub-sections concerned, I followed current usage. Anyway, they may not be helical in shape after frying. Don't have a go mate, I'm just trying to copy-edit this mess of an article, not start an(other) edit war :) Archolman User talk:Archolman 23:58, 5 July 2011 (UTC)

Asking a question is not edit warring. It's a serious question. Exactly who calls them spiral cut? HiLo48 (talk) 03:46, 6 July 2011 (UTC)

HiLo, If I seem sensitive about edit-warring, it's because the history of this page is full of them! Now, they're NOT already called 'spirally-cut', my bad, but I was using this, 'cut using a specialized spiral slicer' as my precedent. It makes sense to me to group them by shape. Have I committed the error of 'original research' by doing this? Should they be grouped together? Would 'spirally-cut' or'-shaped' be a better heading? As mentioned by 72.94.61.91, 'spiral' is the common, or non-technical, usage, which seemed appropriate for grouping them. Archolman User talk:Archolman 14:32, 14 July 2011 (UTC)

Tornado fries were NOT created in 2001 by south Korea.

<Tornado fries were created in South Korea around 2001 and introduced to North America in 2005.>

In actuality, I've seen those in fairs for the past 20 years in Ohio.

Wheller007 (talk) 19:58, 18 October 2011 (UTC)

So fix it. — tooki (talk) 19:26, 6 November 2011 (UTC)

• Looking for sources, this one is the best I could find. We should leave out the origin entirely for now until some reliable sources are found. All we know for sure (and can source) is that they exist.TMCk (talk) 16:23, 15 March 2012 (UTC)

• Looking further I found this article which has very useful links to reliable sources. According to those sources, the basic idea of "tornado fries" came in fact from South Korea but was not widely adopted (in the US) until more recently.TMCk (talk) 16:35, 15 March 2012 (UTC)

Potato Wedges

The opening paragraph states that in North America there is no distinction between the thickness of fries however, in North America they DO actually call the thicker-cut fries "potato wedges" so there is a distinction. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 118.243.32.83 (talk) 14:33, 29 November 2011 (UTC)

Aren't potato wedges a different thing altogether? They have a triangular cross-section. Sophie means wisdom (talk) 15:00, 29 November 2011 (UTC)

Also, what about Steak Fries? While I also typically see something more than a salt seasoning on items labeled as Steak Fries, I'm not sure seasoning makes a difference. In any event, there are also "Shoestring potatoes" for the very small ones, which makes the statement also incorrect regarding North American usage. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.155.225.231 (talk) 13:20, 10 August 2012 (UTC)

Not to mention waffer fries...

"The potato did not arrive in the (Meuse valley, Belgium) region until around 1735"?

We know for a fact (see the potato article) that the potato arrived in Antwerp in 1567, why would the short distance to the Meuse valley take 168 years? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Björn Felten (talk • contribs) 12:45, 16 February 2012 (UTC)

Clarification Requests

The sentence "McDonald's donates $x to Hindu and other groups" is a little confusing. It took me a minute to figure out that "Hindu" was meant to modify "groups." Can anyone think of a less awkward way to word that? Secondly, the last picture is captioned "Fries frying oil" which makes little grammatical sense without the word "in" or even making the word "fries" possessive. SchwarzeWitwe2 (talk) 14:51, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

Variants

In the French paragraph, this sentence occurs:

"Pommes gaufrettes" or "waffle fries" are not typical French fried potatoes, but actually crisps obtained by quarter turning the potato before each next slide over a grater and deep-frying just once.

Can someone make any more sense of it? As it stands, it makes little sense. (Tilde key broke)

Waffle fries look like this. They seem to be made using a crinkle cutter, turning the potato 90° about the axis perpendicular to the cutting plane between each cut. Ian01 (talk) 02:11, 20 June 2013 (UTC)

the Netherlands

The name Fritkot or Frietkot is not used in the Netherlands. The most common words are cafetaria, frietzaak or friettent (South) or patatzaak (North and middle of the Netherlands). — Preceding unsigned comment added by 62.194.157.241 (talk) 06:53, 6 September 2012 (UTC)

Though commonly you say you go out for fries, and don't name the place explicitely. Cafetaria is a more recent, deliberately introduced term, introduced in the late eighties by places that wanted to stress their differentiated nature more, to reflect that they also sell other food types (usually of the fastfood type, think Kebab or nasi/bami here), and that there is room to sit (like in a Cafe). However it has become common nowadays. 88.159.71.34 (talk) 11:22, 26 January 2013 (UTC)

Fries are only refered to as "French" in the McDonalds style or similarly thinly cut fries. Very coarsely cut fries are referred to as Flemish, and the rest is just fries(friet). (South of NL). People rarely say patat here. 88.159.71.34 (talk) 11:22, 26 January 2013 (UTC)

Thicknesses and other characteristics

It would be very useful to provide thickness ranges for all the types of fries. As is, I am have a hard time correlating the French versions for which thicknesses are provided (though not in a consistent format) to the American versions. For example, are shoestring potatoes equivalent to "pommes allumettes (matchstick potatoes), ±7 mm" or "pommes paille (potato straws), 3–4 mm"? Perhaps the thicknesses, cut shape, and once / twice fried for each type of fries could be presented in a table. (Some of the existing data points may need to be corrected. For example, the article states that the "two-bath technique" is standard for fries in France, but a "Shoe String Potatoes (Pommes Pailles)" recipe published in the March 2008 edition of Gourmet magazine states "Unlike thick-cut fries, which are traditionally fried twice (first to cook them through and then to crisp them), shoestrings are fried only once.". Note that this recipe sets the shoestring potato thickness to 1/8" - which corresponds to the 3-4 mm thickness for pommes paille stated in this Wikipedia article.) It would also be useful to move the references to the types of fries in each country into one section. As is, that information is spread across the 'Culinary Origin', 'Spreading Popularity', and 'Variants' sections.Penelope Gordon (talk) 03:04, 12 January 2013 (UTC)

Suggest we split the article into two articles called French Fries and Chips

It is a bit daft to lump chips in with fries as they are completely different things. It is somewhat offensive to lump them in with the American dish it would be far more appropriate for them to have their own article82.41.107.134 (talk) 23:06, 16 March 2013 (UTC)

Sounds crazy to me. This article covers styles of the dish from across the world, and the British (if you can even call it that) variant is not very different from many of the worldwide styles. Oreo Priest ^talk 15:56, 27 March 2013 (UTC)

It's neither offensive or daft because they are essentially the same, that is, a stick of potato that is deep-fried twice. This has been discussed before, with the same outcome, in that we can't agree on a neutral title for the article. I know how I like my chips, & North Americans know how they like their fries. :) Archolman User talk:Archolman 22:02, 4 April 2013 (UTC)

chips/fries, ending the debate

I think there is only one way to solve it, who invented the chip/fries and what did they call their new food? French fries is wrong for every time of chip apart from French fires (as in thin chips), perhaps fried potato might be neutral ground? (Fdsdh1 (talk) 18:20, 29 May 2013 (UTC))

Nobody knows for sure who invented it, and chances are they didn't speak English (not that this is how page names are determined either). Fried potato is also too vague; Hash browns and Rösti shouldn't be on this page. 'French fries' is not wrong for anything in this page in American or Canadian English. Oreo Priest ^talk 19:32, 29 May 2013 (UTC)

The potato originated from South America and was introduced into Europe by the Spanish in the 16th century. However the Spanish never fried their potatoes. The potato then became a staple diet amongst the people living in modern day Netherlands, Belgium and Northern France. So the origin of the Fried potato is from one of these countries or maybe from all three of these countries. --BrianJ34 (talk) 12:14, 3 October 2013 (UTC)

Flemish Fries

French fries aren't called Flemish fries at all in belgium. It is somewhat special that English needs an adjective, "French", before the "fries". It would be weird for a country (Belgium/Flanders) to constantly add "Flemish", an adjective referring to themselves, before the "fries". Could someone please remove the section that states this? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 52.129.32.50 (talk) 06:12, 19 July 2013 (UTC)

If you reread the article, you will see that it is about people in the (south of the) Netherlands calling them "Vlaamse frieten", and not about people in Flanders calling them that way. - Takeaway (talk) 07:31, 19 July 2013 (UTC)

Capitalization

I recommend that “french fries” be spelled with “french” lowercased. They have lost their connection with France sufficiently.--Solomonfromfinland (talk) 05:38, 4 September 2013 (UTC)

Featured

Why is this former Featured Article candidate only a Start-class article for WikiProject Belgium? If it's a former Featured Article candidate, shouldn't it nonetheless be a Good Article?--Solomonfromfinland (talk) 05:42, 4 September 2013 (UTC)

The Good Article process is a formal one that requires a nomination. Just looking at this article I can tell it would fail that. It isn't start class though, so I've upgraded it to B because it doesn't seem to be lacking much. Oreo Priest ^talk 15:24, 5 September 2013 (UTC)

Fries

French fries? Is this serious? Most people understand 'french fries', but 'fries' is actually used globally. At-least here in Britain, nobody says 'french fries' whereas 'fries' is used often to refer to thin chips. I know that when you go to some restaurants, it will say 'fries or chips', basically saying 'thick fries or thin fries', but 'french fries or chips' is never used from my experience. From what I can tell, 'fries' is internationally used, whereas 'french fries' is not, and as per Wikipedia policy, this should be moved to Fries or Fries (food). Rob (talk) 19:35, 8 September 2013 (UTC)

I agree that it should be renamed to Fries (food) (for the American variety) and Chips (food) (for the British variety), and a separate article for the McDonalds variety can be created under the name 'French' fries. I personally would not mind if it was redirected to Belgian Fries because that is where the original variety existed. Note that the article on Freedom fries already exists. --BrianJ34 (talk) 11:33, 3 October 2013 (UTC)

I strongly object to splitting this article into multiple based on the exact width of potato. I'd like to further add that 'Belgian Fries' is a neologism and Freedom fries is an article about the name and associated controversy. Oreo Priest ^talk 13:53, 3 October 2013 (UTC)

I strongly agree with Oreo Priest. The article should not be split by the size or nationality or type of restaurant. The whole range of fried potatoes from straw potatoes to steak fries should be covered in this one article. As for the name "Belgian fries", not only is it a neologism, but Wikipedia policy says that we should use the name in common use, not some other name based on historical origins, etc. Anyway, Jo Gérard's story is cute, but unsubstantiated and inherently implausible (as the article points out). --Macrakis (talk) 17:30, 3 October 2013 (UTC)

I also agree that the article should not be split. Most restaurants list French Fries on their menus, even most fast food establishments. ```Buster Seven Talk 18:22, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

Thread:Name Controversy

This section is completely unnecessary and should be reverted. Reason? It..."is just silly". ```Buster Seven Talk 18:26, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

I agree and I have removed it. Oreo Priest ^talk 19:05, 9 October 2013 (UTC)

Requested move?

The following discussion is an archived discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the move request was: not moved. Favonian (talk) 18:40, 3 December 2013 (UTC)

---

French fries → ? – So, I think this page should be located at either French fry (see WP:PLURAL for explanation of our preference for singular titles) or fries (see WP:CONCISE), both of which are unambiguous enough to redirect here. (Obviously fry is too ambiguous of a title.) I leave it up to you to decide whether to keep the article here, move it to fries in service of conciseness, or French fry in service of avoiding plural titles. Thanks for your time. Red Slash 00:58, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

• Use Fries ; WP:IAR, because we're going to ignore plural. -- 65.94.78.70 (talk) 08:21, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

• Oppose by WP:COMMONNAME. The plural form is the most common and most easily recognized. jmcw (talk) 14:06, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

• Oppose moving to Fries; unfortunately that title is ambiguous with the contents of Fries (surname) and various topics relating to Friesland. I am neutral on the issue of singular versus plural forms, apart from noting that one does not normally encounter entirely singular examples of this food. 168.12.253.66 (talk) 15:36, 26 November 2013 (UTC)

• Oppose the singular per WP:IAR/WP:COMMONNAME/POLA. Oppose fries per WP:NCDAB #1 (use natural disambiguators). —  AjaxSmack  04:15, 27 November 2013 (UTC)
• Oppose. Much better as is. Unambiguous and common. -- Necrothesp (talk) 14:38, 27 November 2013 (UTC)
• Oppose per jmcw, Necrothesp. Oreo Priest ^talk 18:51, 27 November 2013 (UTC)
• Oppose per WP:IAR/WP:COMMONNAME/POLA. Kaldari (talk) 17:19, 28 November 2013 (UTC)

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

France/Belgium origins

Starting discussion per recent edits and to stop edit warring. There is currently a source saying both countries claim to be the creators of French fries. More on the debate can be added, but we must report on the debate itself, not choose sides. EvergreenFir (talk) 16:43, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

Again: French claim: 1789. Belgian claim: 17th century. That's clear. Moreover: Fries are not the national dish of France and even French consider fries a Belgian thing. --Wester (talk) 18:25, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

The source for the earlier Belgian claim (for fries in particular) does not seem to be available. So it's shaky. A reference exists in France from 1775 : Causes célebres curieuses et interessantes, de toutes les cours ..., Volume 5, p41 ("a few pieces of fried potato") and P. 159 ("fried potatoes").

edited by Nicolas-Toussaint Le Moyne Des Essarts http://books.google.com/books?id=DhMEi6nMuRAC&dq=pomme%20frites&pg=RA1-PA81#v=onepage&q&f=false

Coffee is one of the national drinks of France; that in no way proves it originated there, any more than tea originated in England. Foods cross borders and take on different importance in different places. This said, I don't know that anyone can really make a final statement on this particular question, not least because the northern part of France and neighboring parts of Belgium share a great deal of culture. But I don't see any Google Books reference to early French fries in Belgium. 69.228.32.21 (talk) 02:20, 19 February 2014 (UTC)

article rename

Shouldn't this article be called chips? as french fries are a sub type within the wider category. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.41.41.184 (talk) 01:51, 16 March 2014 (UTC)

That distinction is specific to the UK afaik. See the first comment on this talk page above. EvergreenFir (talk) 05:01, 16 March 2014 (UTC)

The distinction applies in Australia as well, which probably means it also applies in New Zealand. As it stands, the article title is completely US-centric. Maybe that can be justified but we do need to face up to these linguistic differences and their impact. Part of the problem is that the common term in the UK and Australia, Chips, goes to a pretty ugly disambiguation page, not this one, leaving the UK and Australian usage somewhat disenfranchised. An Aussie typing "chips" is going to hit a page with 48 different meanings. That's ridiculous! HiLo48 (talk) 05:12, 16 March 2014 (UTC)

In Canada, they're called French Fries too. And the disambiguation page is due to the fact that there are lots of things called chips. Oreo Priest ^talk 16:48, 16 March 2014 (UTC)

Yes, that's an explanation, but not an excuse. It doesn't solve the problem, which is that the name that is the common name to many is buried on a page with 48 different meanings. It's not good enough. HiLo48 (talk)

Isn't this position a little inconsistent with your attitude towards the naming of football / soccer? After all, French fries is the single globally understood common term for the item that you call chips. ;-) Jmorrison230582 (talk) 15:31, 17 March 2014 (UTC)

And what, pray, is my position on the global naming of soccer/football? That posts reinforces my view on the poor logical thinking, knowledge and discussion skills of those involved in the discussion on the naming of Soccer in Australia. Your position has just been weakened further. And you have half derailed THIS discussion. Sad. HiLo48 (talk) 19:38, 18 March 2014 (UTC)

In your opinion. It also seems to be your opinion that every other editor except you is incompetent. Maybe we should all just leave you to edit the site by yourself, then everything would be perfect. Jmorrison230582 (talk) 08:56, 19 March 2014 (UTC)

Do you have any thoughts on the topic, rather than me? HiLo48 (talk) 00:10, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

HiLo48, note that an American typing 'chips' looking for potato chips is going to end up on that same page. And 'chips' meaning 'French fries' is hardly buried when it's the first thing at the top of the page! Oreo Priest ^talk 18:45, 17 March 2014 (UTC)

Congratulations on completely missing or ignoring my main point. HiLo48 (talk) 19:38, 18 March 2014 (UTC)

Leaving the sarcasm aside, what, then, was your main point? Oreo Priest ^talk 19:59, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

Systemic bias. HiLo48 (talk) 21:21, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

But this is akin having the an article about all types of beer called lager on is a a subset of a larger set, as such it makes sense to name the article for the overarching set. french fries are a specific sub type of chip, for example you can specify as the option for a burger meal, chips, fries or wedges. Maybe the easiest solution is to give chips its own separate article? and focus this one solely on the thin cut fries. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.41.41.184 (talk) 16:19, 18 March 2014 (UTC)

The chip company cited in the article clearly differentiates between chips and fries http://www.mccain.co.uk/mccain-products/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.41.41.184 (talk) 16:32, 18 March 2014 (UTC)

The notion that chips is the 'common term' in Australia for french fries is just another bullshit HiLo48 WP:IDONTLIKEIT attempt at convincing us that because he thinks a certain way or uses a certain word, the rest of Australia does. Absolute rubbish. I'm Australian, and I use the term fries or french fries all the time. I use the term chips at times too, often combined with the words 'Hot' / 'Fish' - ie. Hot chips / Fish'N'Chips. But to say that chips is the _most common_ term used by Australians when referring to french fries, is rubbish. Can you provide supporting evidence of this claim other than the fact you're (or at least you think you are) a good faith editor, and you speak on behalf of all Australians? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.13.128.104 (talk) 02:22, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

My apologies. I was mistaken in my choice of words. I should have said "'Chips' is A common name among all Australians." HiLo48 (talk) 05:14, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

"French fries" reference predates supposed use by American soldiers in Belgium

To add under Culinary Origins:Belgium after "Some people believe that the term "French" was introduced when British and American soldiers arrived in Belgium during World War I and consequently tasted Belgian fries.[16] They supposedly called them "French", as it was the local language and official language of the Belgian Army at that time, believing themselves to be in France.[13]"

However, an 1899 item in Good Housekeeping says: "The perfection of French fries is due chiefly to the fact that plenty of fat is used" Good Housekeeping, Volumes 28-29 159 Vol XXIX No 1 July 1899 Whole No 249 http://books.google.com/books?id=G_ImAQAAIAAJ&dq=%22french%20fries%22&pg=RA1-PA159#v=onepage&q&f=false

Also under "France and other French-speaking countries" 'One enduring origin story holds that French Fries were invented by street vendors on the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris in 1789, just before the outbreak of the French revolution.[18]" ADD However, a reference exists in France from 1775 to "a few pieces of fried potato" and to "fried potatoes".

Causes célebres curieuses et interessantes, de toutes les cours ..., Volume 5, p41 and P. 159 ("fried potatoes"). edited by Nicolas-Toussaint Le Moyne Des Essarts http://books.google.com/books?id=DhMEi6nMuRAC&dq=pomme%20frites&pg=RA1-PA81#v=onepage&q&f=false

69.228.39.189 (talk) 02:35, 27 March 2014 (UTC)

Not done: No clear request. Start a new section (not an edit request) if you want to discuss adding more sources about the origins of the term. Also, I'd note that Good Housekeeping might not be the best source. EvergreenFir (talk) 17:04, 1 April 2014 (UTC)

For what it's worth, the Good Housekeeping source was proof that the term predates WWI. Oreo Priest ^talk 17:08, 1 April 2014 (UTC)

Soggy fries

Is it known why some fries are crisp while others are like mashed potatoes inside? Does this have to do with how they are prepared, or are they allowed to sit too long after frying? Do some businesses serve soggy fries because they are too cheap or because they don't know how to make them crispy? If someone has a source on this it might be good material for the article. 72.208.148.85 (talk) 04:16, 3 August 2014 (UTC)

Maybe some businesses serve soggy fries because they or their customers prefer them that way. HiLo48 (talk) 04:23, 3 August 2014 (UTC)

I think the factors at play would be variety of potato, and temperature of the cooking oil. I believe that cooking them in two stages can be a positive thing too. HiLo48 (talk) 04:25, 3 August 2014 (UTC)

mini edit war on cancer

Alexbrn brought the information on cancer risk up to snuff with WP:MEDRS in this dif and was reverted by Takeaway in this dif with edit note "re-added Dutch research, removed by previous edit, showing the contrary, that it can increase the chance of kidney cancer", and was re-reverted by Alexbrn in this dif with edit note: " Yes, but it fails WP:MEDRS - we need quality sourcing for health content." And fortunately it stopped there.

Takeaway started a discussion on Alexbrn's Talk page that I saw, so I have started this. Takeaway, the dutch study is a primary source (see Wikipedia:Identifying_reliable_sources_(medicine)#Definitions) and we do not base health-related content in WP on primary sources, nor on news reports about them, be those news reports in The Daily Mail or Nature - they are still just news reports. We based health-related content on statements by major medical and scientific bodies or on reviews in the biomedical literature. Thanks. Jytdog (talk) 15:20, 15 September 2014 (UTC)

baton?

Why do we define a common word with a word that is, certainly in its use here, not common? My American Heritage Dictionary has no definition of "baton" that fits. Likewise, the Merriam-Webster's online dictionary has no definition of "baton" that would be appropriate in our sentence defining French fries. Only by extension, can one use any of these definitions to make sense of the sentence -- and then it would indicate rounded rather than cuboid strips. How about some-thing like " strips / cuboids or cylindrical cuts of potato? Kdammers (talk) 01:07, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

• I agree Kdammers the term baton is odd and the linked reference does not mention baton KylieTastic (talk) 09:37, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

See "batonnet" (little baton) at List of culinary knife cuts. Just plain Bill (talk) 15:11, 10 December 2014 (UTC)