Do you like your chips baked or fried?

Waking up coughing, I looked on as the door of my bedroom opened and the most gorgeous man I have ever seen in my life walked in through the door.  Dressed all in his fireman togs, I was then completely unaware of the rancid black smoke that wafted around him.  The hero of my ten-year old future dreams always played out with a macho fireman whisking me away from my dangerous foes.

Looking back, well before the days of oven chips in their dozens stocking supermarket shelves, we used to have to fry anything that needed chip style cooking.   My mother can make a mean roast, but she’s never been an adventurous cook, so all I learned from her was the basics.

We used to have a big ordinary pan as a chip pan, 16-year-old brother managed to come home steaming drunk and fall asleep while he heated up the fat for a late night feast.  Needless to say, both occasions ended up in a visit from the fireman and a grounded teen, but only one ended up with the macho fireman at my bedroom door.

We had no chip pan from then on and even though I do have one now, and it has a thermometer and a lid, it only ever comes out for Xmas Day and the Tattie Balls that my family refuse to do without.  I even do my roasties in the oven.

The rest of the year, we make do with oven chips, or just plain old regular potatoes.  The man keeps threatening to pull out the fryer and use it more often, but that means he would also have to clean it, so it’s never actually happened despite the threats.    The kids do like chips though and we go through a fair few bags over the space of a year.

The kids current favourite is McCain Oven Chips, so I was happy when they asked us to sample some of their Healthier Chip Range and the 5% fat, straight cut oven ready chips, made with just a dash of sunflower oil.  It was a bit of a no brainer here as they’re the popular ones anyway.

With 6 people to feed, the big bags are what we need and we were happy with the level of crispness from the oven that all chips should have.  I really dislike soggy chips.   I did have to cook them for longer than it said in the instructions in my oven, but it was no big deal.

I’d like to give the 3% fat rustic chips a go, so I’ll have to keep an eye out for those next time I am in the supermarket.

Thanks McCain, the chips got the thumbs up from the kids.