General: Turned Potatoes

Subject: Turned Potatoes
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: mktgjem at aol.com (Mktgjem)
Date: 21 Oct 2000 19:40:40 GMT
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On "Hot off the Grill" they were talking about "turned potatoes." I missed most of the show and can't figure out what this is - apparently one of the basics of French cooking schools. I looked it up on the Food TV website and allI saw was potatoes cooked in butter and parsley. Is that all there is to turned potatoes? What's so complicated or uniquel about that?
From: lovthatmac at my-deja.com
Date: Sat, 21 Oct 2000 20:54:59 GMT
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> On "Hot off the Grill" they were talking about "turned potatoes

This refers to the cutting of vegetables into football shapes. From the French word Tourner-- (turning the veg in your hand so you can cut it in said shape) Looks fancy---quite tricky to master..I leave it to Jaques Pepin. His handy work with garnishes and the like is amazing.
From: mktgjem at aol.com (Mktgjem)
Date: 22 Oct 2000 00:25:56 GMT
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> On "Hot off the Grill" they were talking about "turned potatoes

But what does it do to the taste of the potatoes - they just looked like smaller potatoes on the show. Do they taste any different or just look "fancy" (if smaller is fancier?) Why would anyone want football shaped fried potatoes?
From: Christine Ashby (cmashby at ozemail.com.au)
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2000 11:56:06 +1000
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> On "Hot off the Grill" they were talking about "turned potatoes

Actually, turned veggies are more likely to be boiled or included in a casserole than fried.

It doesn't have any effect on the taste. It's purely for aesthetic effect - classical French cooking is full of that sort of thing. Personally I think life is too short, but if you've got a large kitchen brigade to do the work, well...
From: penmart01 at aol.como (Sheldon)
Date: 22 Oct 2000 02:59:06 GMT
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>Actually, turned veggies are more likely to be boiled or included in a
>casserole than fried.

Preparing turned veggies is also very wasteful (aprox. half is lost) therefore they are usually served only in the most expensive restaurants where the exhorbitant tab covers the loss... supposedly the scraps were to be used for stock but that's rarely the case these days.
From: lovthatmac at my-deja.com
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2000 03:13:58 GMT
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Christine Ashby wrote:
> It doesn't have any effect on the taste.

None whatsoever--exactly, it's just for show. And if you can actually DO it, you're very, very patient. I think thay make them football shaped because students would hurl the rejects out the window...or at "Chef" Lol
From: John Schiaparelli (home at johnschiap.com)
Date: Sat, 21 Oct 2000 21:44:24 GMT
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Turning is a cutting technique and not a method of cooking. You "turn" root vegetables into evenly sized pieces (about 1.5 or 2 inches) using a small paring knife or tourné knife (bird's beak parer). The name comes from the motion of turning the vegetable piece in your hand, cutting a facet with the knife, turning it partially again and cutting again, etc. Classically, you should be able to use only 7 (I think) cuts to produce the identical veggies. Since they are all the same size and shape, the cook evenly and look good on the plate. I know I didn't do a good job of describing the motion, but a good cookbook should have illustrations if you want to learn.
From: lovthatmac at my-deja.com
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2000 03:15:46 GMT
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John Schiaparelli wrote:
>I know I didn't do a good job of describing the
> motion

It was perfect!!