THE OFFP: Twenty-one Things You Never Knew About French Fries

The French Fry is a very complex food, with a rich history and a culture unto itself. Here are 21 things you probably never knew about them.

  1. Nobody is sure what to call them. Americans say "French Fries," but they're not really French. (Different countries, different names.)
  2. The French call them "Pommes Frites, (pawm-fritt)" but that means "apples, fried."
  3. "Pomme _de terre_" is French for "potato." A "pomme (pawm)" is an apple. A "pomme-de-terre (pawm-doo-tair)" is an "apple of the dirt."
  4. Germans call French Fries "pommes (paw-mess)" and spell it "pommes frites" like the French.
  5. "Apfel (ahp-fell)" is German for "Apple."
  6. Germans call a potato a "Kartoffel," except some in the north and west who call it an "Erd-apfel (aird-ahp-fel)," which is "dirt-apple," which is what the French call potatoes, too.
  7. In America, French Fries are usually eaten with the fingers; in Europe, they are usually eaten with a miniature, two-tine fork usually made of wood.
  8. French Fries are vegetables.
  9. So is ketchup, because it's made of tomatoes.
    see Questions about this point.
  10. When you smother French Fries with ketchup and eat it all, you've probably eaten two servings of vegetables, about one-third of the US Recommended Daily (nutritional) Allowance. Probably.
  11. A small order of French Fries at McDonald's weighs less than four ounces (112g).
  12. One small order of French Fries at McDonald's is not enough.
  13. French Fries are the number two "drunk food" – what people eat when they've had too much to drink.
  14. Pizza is number one.
  15. French Fries don't taste very good when baked on a pizza.
  16. Neither does salad.
  17. Frozen French Fries which you buy in a store have already been partially cooked.
  18. You still have to cook them some more at home.
  19. French Fries are a more American food than apple pie and hot dogs, which are both German.
  20. Even though they call French Fries "chips" in England, if you ask for French Fries, they'll know what you're talking about. Probably.
  21. You won't get your French Fries served in old newspapers in England anymore. They made a law against it.

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