‘Smashed’ fries a toothsome hit

LITTLE ROCK — Take everything you love about a french fry - that crisp, golden-brown crust enveloping an oh, so fluffy interior - and flatten it.

In fact, go ahead and smash it.

Lately, I’ve been frying up smashed potatoes, and they’re everything I could want in a french fry and more. Each bite is like a tiny taste of culinary nirvana: crunchy yet delicate, full of flavor. Not to mention, smashed fries are the perfect width for dipping into your favorite sauce.

And they’re so simple to make. Boil a batch of small new potatoes, then carefully smash them with a fork. Panfry them in a shallow layer of oil just until the outer layer is richly golden, then gently lift them out, careful to remove any leftover crispy bits from the oil as well. (Aren’t the crispy bits at the bottom always the best part?)

You’ll probably be tempted to eat them straight out of the frying oil, but spare your fingers and taste buds the burn. Give the fries a minute or twoto cool on a rack, enough time to sprinkle them with a little salt as you admire their rustic beauty. Then dig in.

In case you were wondering, this is not a low-fat dish. So go ahead and embrace your creation. Gild the lily.

Turn your snack intosomething a little more substantial: poutine. In the unofficial comfort food of Canada, fries are topped with cheese curds and gravy in a delicious mess. Cheese curds, which are popular in the Midwest, are mild and firm yet a little more salty than cheese, and they have a distinctive “squeak” when you bite into them. But if you can’t find them, substitute grated cheese - cheddar or mozzarella will work fine. Then ladle over warm gravy to complete the dish.

If you’re going to gild the lily, might as well do it right.

Smashed Fries

2 pounds fingerling or very

small new potatoes 2 quarts water 2 tablespoons salt, plus more

for seasoning Canola or vegetable oil, for

frying

Place the potatoes, water and salt in a large, heavybottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook the potatoesuntil just tender, 15 to 20 minutes more.

Drain the potatoes and set aside until cool enough to handle. (The recipe can be prepared to this point up to three days in advance;

refrigerate the potatoes until needed, then continue with the recipe.)

Using a fork, gently smash the potatoes. The thicker the smashed potatoes, the fluffier the fries; conversely, the flatter the potatoes, the more crisp the fries. Set the smashed potatoes aside while you heat the oil.

Fill a heavy-bottomed deep pan with oil so the oil comes up the sides of the pan by 1/2 inch.

Heat oil to 350 degrees; the oil will shimmer in the pan.

Fry the potatoes in the oil until crisp and golden, about 2 minutes, careful not to crowd the potatoes (fry a single layer of potatoes at a time; this will need to be done in batches).

Drain the potatoes on a rack until all of the potatoes are fried.

Season the smashed fries with additional salt to taste, and serve immediately.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.