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One of my favorite side dishes to a barbecue meal is beer-batter coated potato slices, fried in a deep fryer. These potatoes also go very well with batter-dipped fish, the kind that you make for fish and chips, as you can use some of the left over batter for the potatoes. Special
tools: Deep fryer
2
large red potatoes, I prefer red potatoes, but any variety of
baking potato will
work just fine Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise, then cut each half into thirds or quarters, depending upon the size of the potato. The idea is to get each piece about the same size, for uniform cooking. I prefer to leave the skins on the wedges, as I like potato skins and its less work. Break egg into mixing bowl, stir until white and yolk are blended. Reserve. In medium mixing bowl add one cup of Bisquick. Add beer, a little at a time to Bisquick, and stir with large mixing spoon, ensuring that mixture is blended well and that there are no lumps. The mixture should be blended to the consistency of pancake batter, without any lumps. If you get carried away with the beer and the mixture is too thin, add more Bisquick until the mixture is the correct consistency. It is very important to get the consistency correct. You won't need all of the beer, and I'm sure you can find another "use" for it. Reserve. Place the remaining 1/2 cup Bisquick in another mixing bowl. Reserve.
Left: I've "wedged" a medium-sized red onion into quarters. Right: I carefully place the battered potato wedge into the hot cooking oil. Place potato wedges in microwave oven and microwave on high heat for about 45 seconds. The idea is to get the potato wedges "half baked" so they won't be crunchy after being deep-fat fried for only 3 or 4 minutes. If you're using very small wedges, this step can be eliminated. Heat deep fat fryer to operating temperature, which should be 350 degrees. Place a cutting board directly in front of you, and arrange the bowls clockwise, left to right. I place the potato wedges to my left, then the bowl of blended egg mixture, bowl of "dry" Bisquick, and the bowl of batter. The deep-fat fryer is to my right. I like to keep one hand "clean" and the other hand "dirty." Let me explain how I coat the potato wedges: Using my left hand, I dip a wedge into the egg mixture, then roll it in the "dry" Bisquick, making sure the wedge is coated evenly. Then I dip the wedge into the batter, again making sure its evenly coated and the batter sticks, and then I carefully place it into the deep-fat fryer. I repeat the process until I have 3 or 4 wedges cooking at the same time. Cooking time is about 3 or 4 minutes, or until the batter starts to barely turn golden brown. Serve immediately. Offer ketchup on the side for dipping. If you're a fan of "chunky" batter, you can crush some saltine crackers to the desired constancy to add to the Bisquick batter.
Left: Battered potato wedges cooking in the deep-fat fryer. Note the oil is clear, which is essential for a clean taste. Right: Beer-battered potato wedges are ready to enjoy! These
battered deep-fat fried potatoes don't win any awards with the
health food police, but your guests will love them, and you'll
find that they disappear quickly. I've found that a plate
of these make excellent an excellent appetizer. If you
really want to ohhh and awwwe your guests, put a bowl of ketchup
in the middle of a platter and arrange the potato wedges around
the ketchup, like spokes of a wheel. Your guests will
be coming back for more... Copyright(c) 2007 eRench Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. This site has been on the web since December 22, 2002. Web page design has been created by eRench Productions, Inc., custom photography for any occasion...
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