tyke are one of those foods that are so scrumptious we ca n’t facilitate but speak of them like drugs . They are an addiction , rather than a passion . ( consider theirbrain - rewarding comboof table salt and juicy , it ’s not a high-risk comparison . ) “ Do you want fry with that ? ” should in all likelihood be included in every English phrasebook for travelers visiting the U.S. There ’s aNational French Fries Day(for those who keep up with unnoticeable food holidays ) . And it ’s an international love : Poutine is considered one of Canada ’s unofficialnational dishes . Belgium has a story of fries on itstourism website .
In his forthcoming bookFries : An Illustrated Guide to the World ’s Favorite Food , fry enterpriser andBoise Fry Companycofounder Blake Lingle dive into the history and land of the kid around the populace . Here are nine fact we gleaned from his fritespertise .
1. BELGIANS EAT MORE FRIES THAN ANYONE ELSE.
Belgium consume more fried tater per capita than any other country — some 165 pound a somebody annually , grant to2010 statistics . By direct contrast , the mediocre American eats48 poundsof all varieties of white potato over the course of study of a class ( though the USDA reports that nipper fiddle a major role in making white potato vine the country ’s most democratic veggie ) .
2. THOMAS JEFFERSON BROUGHT FRIES TO AMERICA.
Thomas Jefferson probably first meet sliced , deep-fried potatoes while serving as the American ambassador to France , where fries have been enjoyed since at least 1760 . He would go on to detail a recipe in his piece of writing sometime between 1801 and 1809 . According to Lingle ’s research , this is one of the earlier fry recipes lie with . Jefferson used the French verbfrire , to bass fry , rather than the word for pan - frying , bolstering his claim to the title of Founding Father of American Fries .
3. ONE COMPANY MAKES A THIRD OF THE WORLD’S FRIES.
McCain Foods is the earthly concern ’s largest producer of wintry fries , those wangle in factories and then reheat in restaurants and homes . One in three fries in the world comes from McCain .
4. THERE ARE FRY VENDING MACHINES.
A companionship executive director demonstrates a fry vending car on its installation in Brussels in 2013 . Photo good manners Getty Images .
Inthe 1990s , Ore - Ida Foods had more than 300 vending machines that could make a piping - spicy serving of fries in less than a moment using hot air . Gallic fry machines are still around , though we could n’t find any contemporary acknowledgment of an Ore - Ida simple machine . Belgian grocery storesare home to a machine that will fry your potatoes in bitch fat and patter them out in 90 seconds . Another image fry pitch machine was found at a Dutch universityin 2015 .
5. FRIES AREN’TENTIRELYUNHEALTHY.
A few studieshave foundthat fry tater in oilincreasesthe amount of antioxidant in the dish . Antioxidants probably wo n’t deliver you from obesity - related health issues , but it ’s not the risky excuse to indulge in a frite bite every once in a while .
6. THE FIRST FAMILY LOVES THEM.
Getty Images
Barack Obama is recognise to takefellow world leadersforburgers and friesin D.C. at times he evenoffers constituents friesfrom his own plate . ( Hereportedlyhas a penchant forFive Guys . ) As part of her healthy eating initiative , Michelle Obama vowed to “ take a break ” from fries in 2014 , after calling them her favorite food for thought in a2009 consultation .
7. FAKE FRIES MAKE REAL MONEY.
In 1990 , artist Stefan Bohnenberger exhibited a amber - cast sculpture depicting two hybridize French fries , calling itPommes d’Or . In 2012 , a gallery drop off the two regular fries used as fashion model for the golden sculpture , and Bohnenberger successfully action for2000 euros(then worth about $ 2650 ) . Even non - gilded fry replicas are valuable . In 2005 , McDonald ’s auctioneer off aprop frydesigned to resemble Abraham Lincoln that had appeared in a Super Bowl commercial message that class . ( Yeah , guess how the latestviral adcampaign is going to voice in 10 year . ) It ended up sellingfor $ 75,000 , which was donated to Ronald McDonald House Charities .
8. THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY HAS TESTED HOW FRIES WOULD FARE IN SPACE.
In a 2014 study , a pair of Hellenic researchers team up with the ESA to test how sobriety pretend deep frying . Using a centrifuge , they discover that as soberness gets stronger , Fry get crispier . The perfect crispy Roger Eliot Fry would be made atthree timesEarth ’s gravity . lamentably for the astronauts on the International Space Station , the enquiry indicate that fries in microgravity wouldbe soggyand awful .
9. THERE’S AN ODE TO FRIES.
In 1982 , Quaker writerJohn Calviwrote “ French Fries , ” a melodicargumentfor fried Irish potato as harbingers of world peace . Here ’s one stanza : “ Some mean the U. S. Army , the bombs and the gas / Will one day save all of our life , / I do n’t trust it — heat up your pans / Make peace , and lots of french fry . ”
