Potato Chips. Truffle Potato Chips.

Things that are freshly fried taste better than things that were fried and then put in a bag for a week.

The quote above I just made up, but it is every bit as important to know and to understand that whatever Mr. Brillat-Savarin may have put in his books. If you fry something and then eat it as quickly as you can without actually setting your mouth on fire, then you will understand one of the truly great flavors that made this country what it is. Also: fairs and carnivals.

Potato chips are simple things. There are basically three ingredients that you need. You need oil at 350°F. You need thinly sliced potatoes. And you need salt.

To slice the potatoes, I used a mandoline. A mandoline is a beautiful device that is, in essence, a toboggan ride for food that ends in a pre-measured bit of the food getting sliced off. Then it's repeated, until no more food remains. It is quick, it is efficient, and if we weren't cutting vegetables, it'd be really gross.

Also, it's very dangerous, so always use either the guard or some cut-resistant gloves.

I have made a quick movie demonstrating the use of the mandoline. This is my first time using a mandoline, and I didn't cut any limbs off, so I count it as a win.

Once you have your potatoes sliced thinly, heat up your oil to 350 degrees. I use the French oven and a candy thermometer, but there are plenty of ways of skinning this particular cat (as it were. I know the mandoline is still fresh on the mind, but that was purely a metaphor. Plus, we've moved on to frying. Keep up).

Once the oil is at temperature, add in some slices of potato. Two things to note: gently place the chips in so that the first bit that touches oil points towards you, and the last part that touches the oil faces the wall, so that any oil splashes go away from you; also, make sure you have space in-between all of the slices and that you don't over-crowd the pan.

Here's another video of me frying the first batch. I fiddle with it far too much, but you know how first batches are: you always end up wanting to fiddle. After the first batch, you'll get a feel for how they brown. Ideally, you'll want to just flip them once. Fiddling will draw heat away from the oil, which will in turn make them soggy. Don't do it.

For drying the chips, take a jelly roll pan, line it with paper towels, and put a cooling rack upside down on the paper towels so that the grid is touching the paper towels. When you remove your chips, place them on this rig. Sprinkle with salt, let cool, and enjoy.

It should be noted that, for chips, kosher salt is not your ideal choice. The flakes are too big and won't stick all that well. Instead, use a popcorn salt, table salt, or…

You see, I was all out of the regular small-grained salts. I did have a jar of truffle salt, which is a small-grained salt with tiny pieces of truffle mixed in, infusing the whole thing with the truffle aroma. Why not? It solves that small-grain problem I had, and of course, it's truffles.

The improvisation was wildly successful. These were gourmet beyond anything I'd tried in a bag. I highly recommend.

If I hadn't had the truffle salt, I probably would have sprinkled some chili powder on them, but you get the idea: find some flavors that are powdered and sprinkle on the chips with some salt. You can make any kind of chip you desire, and because it's fresh, it will be wonderful. And if it isn't, slice up another potato and try again.