[neilep (OP)]

Dearest French Fry Fanciers (or as they are really called ' Chips')

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Yummy eh ?...mouth watreing yes ?....read on !!!



I saw a vid recently where a chappy bought a selection of fast food burgers and fries and some gourmet made burger and fries. He placed each one in individual jars and sealed them and filmed the results over a period of ten weeks or so.



The gourmet burger and fries soon went off...followed by the fast food burgers....fungus, mold, gloopy liquids all over the place..............but...to his astonishment....right up to ten weeks the fries (like the above) showed no sign of deterioration...at all !!!!

I can back this up when I once came across a fast food french fry that one of my kids had dropped underneath my car seat....and this was months later !!

What on earth is going on in the fast food french fry to enable such longevity !! ?


....these are in yours, mine and our kids stomachs !!


I actually think I know the answer but I hope I'm wrong !!


Bon apetit !

[Karen W.]

I think with the fries they tend to dry out really fast so therefore have no time to turn icky as their moisture leaves them quickly. So rather then mold or get icky like that they dry out and petrify! LOL Now in the refrigerator they can actually get all mouldy as they can retain some moisture but will still soon dry out I believe!

I think without the moisture there is less likely a chance for them to get moldy as they become moisture free!

[neilep (OP)]

I think with the fries they tend to dry out really fast so therefore have no time to turn icky as their moisture leaves them quickly. So rather then mold or get icky like that they dry out and petrify! LOL Now in the refrigerator they can actually get all mouldy as they can retain some moisture but will still soon dry out I believe!

I think without the moisture there is less likely a chance for them to get moldy as they become moisture free!

Thanks Karen,

But these were sealed , still hot, in a jar..so I think it's safe to assume that there was condensation created !!......

My theory is that they are saturated with so much fat that it just seals it all in !!

What do others think ?

[Karen W.]

That indeed would keep them moist! Interesting... You have a good point about the fat! I was not thinking about everything being in the same jar either. Yes that is odd that they wouldn't mold under those conditions!

I was thinking more in the lines as to the fry you found in your car! LOL

[Bored chemist]

If they were still hot they would be pretty near sterile, but that just raises the question of how the other chips went off.
The overall moisture content of a thin chip will be a lot lower than that for a thick cut one. Perhaps that and the bucket of salt that gets added to fast food chips are the reason for the difference.

[neilep (OP)]

If they were still hot they would be pretty near sterile, but that just raises the question of how the other chips went off.
The overall moisture content of a thin chip will be a lot lower than that for a thick cut one. Perhaps that and the bucket of salt that gets added to fast food chips are the reason for the difference.

THANK YOU BC.

The other chips were used as an example of preparation. They had been purchased from a place who bought in fresh potatoes , washed cut and prepared the chips all by themselves.............whereas the restaurants de la fast food joy receive them in mass quantities already prepared for frying.

The salt in question is a very good point...perhaps also the oil they are fried in is moot too.

THANK YOU

[Karen W.]

Salt is a preservative as well as having a drying effect!

[neilep (OP)]

Salt is a preservative as well as having a drying effect!

Excellent points too Karen mam.

[Karen W.]

So is yours!