The Spice Lab: Ghost Pepper Crispy Oven Fries

The myth. The legend. The Ghost Pepper.

I have heard about the Ghost Pepper and even seen people taste it but their reaction was always to the intense heat with very little to report on taste. Scary stuff. I’m a girl that loves heat and spice but I want flavor too. My best description is that this pepper tastes like a non-latin red pepper, but with attitude. The notes are actually good and intense but end with a touch of smokiness. Not like a chipotle or a poblano, so there is where I come off with the “non-latin” description. It’s good……like, really good. After I tasted the salt as-is, I not only respected Mr. Ghost Pepper but could not wait to try it in a recipe. But wait for me to get some more water 🙂

Potatoes are usually bland so I felt they were the perfect pairing, plus I am always in that race to use up every Russet potato I purchased in the bag because then what I paid is not a super bargain. These fries are simple to make and only take 25-30 minutes to cook. You are left with crispy and I mean extra crispy fries from the oven. I am not overstating that here, because I have tried so many oven fries recipes and ended up with floppy sticks….no flop here.

Let’s get started…..

• 3 to 4 Russet Potatoes (washed but with peel….I said this was easy)
• 1/8 cup of Pecorino & Romano cheese blend (grated and if you just have Parm, that will do)
• 1/8 cup of All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 cup of White Rice Flour
• 1/8 teaspoon of Onion Powder
• 1/8 teaspoon of Granulated Garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon of Oregano (dry)
• 1/4 teaspoon of Parsley (dry)
• 1/8 teaspoon of Dill Weed (dry)
• 1/8 teaspoon of The Spice Labs Ghost Pepper Infused Salt (or more if you dare 🙂 )
• Smoked Salt (to taste) and I used The Spice Labs Applewood Smoked Salt
• Black Pepper (to taste)

 

• Baste- 1/4 cup of Buttermilk and 1 tablespoon of Peanut Oil (or a oil with a high heat point of your choosing). I find Peanut Oil gives me the perfect crisp!

Cut your potatoes into fries and soak them in cold water for an hour, just make sure to change the water about 3 times. Removing the starch helps aid with the crisp factor.

Take a bowl and just add all the above dry ingredients and mix, then set aside.

Once the hour passes of your fries swimming in water, I spin them in a salad spinner to dry them. Patting them with paper-towels until completely dry works too.

 

Place the fries in a bowl and allow them to bathe in the 1/4 cup of Buttermilk. You will think a 1/4 cup is too little but as long as you come by and give them a stir, you will see that it covers nicely without waste. If you feel your bowl needs more Buttermilk, feel free to add more because this is just for the fries to soak in it for 30 minutes. Once the fries have been basting in the Buttermilk for 30 minutes or so, add the Peanut Oil and toss making sure to coat the potatoes well.

Turn on oven to 425 degrees. I used the convection setting.

Then comes the dunk! I take the fries by the handful (leaving whatever Buttermilk/Peanut Oil that did not soak up behind) and dump them in the batter. I make sure each fry gets a nice crust adhered to it and then place it on parchment paper.

It took me two pizza pans (the ones with holes) to get all my 3 potatoes to fit. I spaced them enough and in the oven they went for 25 to 30 minutes. At the half-way point, I made sure to get them out and give each fry a flip, so it would cook evenly. If you cut your fries bigger, they may need a little more time to finish but always taste-test to know if they are done.

 

These fries are crisp and have heat, so I paired them with a dip and chose a Caesar dressing! It’s yogurt based and went really well with them, plus saves you from the heat when needed.

 

Get Your Ghost Pepper kick and many others at:

• The Spice Lab On-line– http://shop.thespicelab.com/
• Via Facebook– https://www.facebook.com/TheSpiceLabInc
• Twitter– https://twitter.com/TheSpiceLab

Don’t forget to pick-up their wonderful Applewood Smoked Salt too and they carry so much, you will get lost in Spice Lab’s World!

I received the above products free of charge from The Spice Lab.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

 

 

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Bob’s Red Mill: Gluten Free Zucchini Fries made with Rice Flour and Pecorino Romano & Parmesan Cheese

With the Big Game taking place this weekend, I wanted to try making a recipe that was not just healthier, but tasting delicious was a must. I started from scratch and this is my first time working with Rice Flour. My oven also decided to die on Wednesday (he needs a new igniter) and of course the part is on back-order and it won’t be fixed until the middle of next week, so this girl needs to find a way to still celebrate this weekend!

I started by cutting raw zucchini into sticks to resemble fries. Since I was experimenting, I used half of a zucchini because this was a large sized one to begin with. I poured buttermilk and allowed the vegetable to soak for about 30 minutes. I then mixed the ingredients for the batter.

Soak 1/2 to 1 Zucchini in buttermilk for about 20 to 30 minutes. I used about 1/2 a cup of buttermilk.

Coating/Batter:
1/4 cup of Bob’s Red Mill Rice Flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon of Pecorino Romano & Parmesan cheese blend (you may use any grated hard cheese)
Smoked Salt (to taste)
Pepper Medley (to taste)
Dash of Parsley Flakes
Dash of Cayenne Pepper

You simply take the above ingredients and mix until incorporated.

I then took the french fry style zucchini sticks and simply coated them until they were nicely covered.

While I coated the rest of the zucchini, I started to warm the oil (I used Peanut oil but you can use any oil that suits you best). Once the oil reached a 375 degree temperature, I began to fry. You will notice that the amount of oil needed is not much and these begin to brown almost instantly.

Like, within 30 seconds you will notice color change so be ready to flip. The rice flour cooks up to a nice golden brown and because the cooking time is quick, this not only a easy recipe to make but the vegetable does not get soggy or mushy in texture. You get crisp and light fries you can enjoy. You may serve with ranch or even a light marinara, or just as is with a dash of flake salt and black pepper.

Try the above with onion petals and you can mix it up 🙂 For a fun way to serve, I used a sheet of parchment paper and made a cone. Cut the top with one of those decorative scissors that leave a pretty edge (or just swag up and down when cutting). I then stapled the end because tape does not stick to parchment paper. Cheap and an easy was to give them that classic “Pomme Frites”!

Enjoy your weekend!

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I received the above product free of charge from Bob’s Red Mill. I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion. My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.