Slap Chips — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

Thick-cut, soft and floppy South African fries that are the antithesis of crispy French fries, twice-cooked at low temperature and doused in salt and vinegar.

Ingredients

1kg potatoes, peeled and cut into thick chips
2 litres vegetable oil for frying
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tsp salt

Instructions

1 Cut the peeled potatoes into thick chips about 1.5cm wide, then soak them in cold water with vinegar for 30 minutes to remove excess starch.
2 Drain and thoroughly pat dry the chips, then fry in oil heated to 130C for about 8 minutes until cooked through but still pale and soft.
3 Remove the chips and let them rest for 10 minutes, then return them to the oil at 150C for another 5 minutes until just lightly golden but still soft and floppy.
4 Drain briefly on paper towels, sprinkle generously with salt and extra vinegar, and serve immediately while hot and deliciously soft.

Did You Know?

The word slap is Afrikaans for limp or floppy, and true slap chips must never be crispy, with South Africans passionately defending their soft fries against international criticism.