22 Comments
User's avatar
MCH's avatar

Gonna need to try these, they look delicious!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

:-)

Expand full comment
Nico Vera's avatar

Wonderful bit of history! BTW, the Peru's Sacred Valley link doesn't seem to point anywhere, did you want to point readers somewhere? Cheers to the potato!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Thanks, Nico, for your kind words and for my error with Peru's Sacred Valley link!

Expand full comment
Caren christensen's avatar

We have a restaurant in Prescott called The Barley hound and they serve duck fat french fries and duck fat hamburgers that are out of this world!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Coolio!

Expand full comment
Lisa Horstman's avatar

Using butter to make chips--that never occurred to me! It sounds menacing and wonderful. Also, thumbs up on Maldon salt. Fun post!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Thanks Lisa!

Expand full comment
Jim  Mason's avatar

Another fascinating newsletter!

My wife and I first encountered cassoulet in Carcassonne. I make it on special occasions using duck confit from Rougié (cheaper than D'Artagnan) and Rancho Gordo tarbais beans. I like to use the leftover fat from the confit to make salted duck fat caramels for dessert. I'm not by any standard a good cook, but the caramels always get rave reviews.

My daughter gave me the two different containers of duck fat as Christmas stocking stuffers. I haven't yet used the Maple Leaf frozen version, but you have inspired me to try the Cornhusker Kitchens aerosol version in your potato chip recipe. I will report back on the results.

Do you suppose Jane Fonda eats potato chips?

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

I'll have to watch Grace & Frankie with a keen eye to check for potato chips, but I do know she is a huge martini fan . . . .

Expand full comment
Kate McDermott's avatar

I remember going to Hearst Castle when I was six but haven’t been since. The tour then included indoors and out, upstairs and down. I was fascinated by the kitchen even way back then. I look forward to hearing about your visit.

Expand full comment
Domenica Marchetti's avatar

I so enjoyed this delicious deep dive. The idea that there are 4,000 varieties of potato in Peru alone is astounding. And yet, we are lucky if we get three or four kinds to choose from at the supermarket. Here in Italy (where I am for a few more days), my favorite potatoes are yellow ones from outside of Avezzano, in Abruzzo. It's said that the low plains in which they are grown are an ancient lake bed, filled with minerals that give the potatoes their great flavor. Also, thanks for transporting me momentarily back to Saratoga Springs, where I went to college.

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Happy to oblige!

Expand full comment
Pat Willard's avatar

Two things: using duck fat to fry potatoes! One reason for my high cholesterol but thank god for modern meds to keep doing it! AND TWO--thank you thank you thank you for recommending my newsletter. I'm so grateful for your support. It means a lot sitting in a little room typing away into the void.

Expand full comment
Peter Moore's avatar

“Duck fat potato chips” A magical incantation!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

I had to look up "incantation" and I have to thank you for using it and I luv it! Teach me more words, oh, literary one . . . .

Expand full comment
Peter Moore's avatar

One of my favorite words this time of year, as the amount of daylight shrinks, is “crepuscular,” referring to animals that forage at dusk and dawn.

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Bravo!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

Another foodie word—"allotriophagy"—right back at ya!

Expand full comment
Paula Christensen's avatar

Potato chips are my favorite food! Some folks call me the chip queen. The best chips to me are thin, crunchy, salty, and have a fold in them! Never made my own, but sure enjoy them!

Expand full comment
WAYNE CHRISTENSEN's avatar

So are you a fan of Mrs. Fisher's these days?

Expand full comment
Paula Christensen's avatar

Like others better now. 😪

Expand full comment