I meant to follow the recipe, I really did! Nadia G made these Oh! so good looking sweet potato fries with gravy and cheese curds that I thought would be just the thing for my spiffy new mini deep fryer. Then, I got to thinking about the rest of dinner, and those pork chops I’d been meaning to use, and I came across this recipe which also made a very nice gravy.
Oh well, I’d also forgotten to buy curds, so just decided to wing it.
INGREDIENTS
•2 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced to a
uniform size
•Ice water
•Canola or peanut oil
•Gravy – this pork-based buttermilk gravy was really wonderful – especially as leftovers with the the next evening’s salmon and toasted pecan relish (the image above), but, if you have the curds and need a gravy – here’s Nadia G’s recipe.
•Cheese curds or shredded cheese
•Fresh minced parsley
Soak your sliced sweet potatoes in ice water for an hour, then drain and dry really well – using a salad spinner works a treat. You are going to be deep frying these suckers, so it is important to have them as dry as possible – well, after soaking in ice water for an hour…
Add your oil of choice to the maximum on your deep fryer (for my Cuisinart mini this is a 32 oz. bottle), or half way up the sides of a heavy pot (trust me, get the fryer).
Heat the oil to 375º.
Cook the sweet potatoes in small batches in the hot oil for five minutes or so, then drain and turn out onto a wire rack over a paper towel lined pan in a 200º oven 
to keep warm while you finish frying the potatoes.
2 potatoes, peeled and sliced, made for 4 batches in my small fryer, so that rack o’er the pan in the warm oven is a good thing.
I waited to add salt until I had finished cooking all the potatoes.
When ready to serve – top the potatoes with whichever gravy option you like 
(TRY the buttermilk), then top with cheese curds -ermmm, like I said, I forgot teh curds, but I had a whole lotta nice cheddar in my cheese drawer, so just shredded some of that, and the fresh, minced parsley.
Nice.
And don’t skip on the parsley – a bunch is usually less than a buck, and it adds a nice bit of flavor to the fries.
These were good, but not what I would call crispy – tho’ they were better the next evening after I reheated them in a hot oven – and went equally well with smothered pork chops and salmon with toasted pecan and pepper relish. Da Google recommends everything from adding a bit of white vinegar to the ice water to frying twice.
I am partial to vinegar on fries anywho, so will try that option next time.