i am a food blog

Em and Gina are hosting a potluck! There are a bunch of lovely people joining in and tons of delicious food being made. Check it out here and here!

Are you guys a fan of potlucks? I love having a bunch of people coming together and bringing out their favourite dish. There’ll inevitably be too many desserts (which is always a good thing) and usually, at least in the case of the potlucks that I’ve been to, the oven will be overstuffed with people trying to warm their dishes at the last minute. The solution? Bring something that doesn’t need to be warmed up in the oven. Of course, you could go with a lovely cold pasta salad or a fancy deviled egg, but if you’re anything like me, you’ll bring over all the fixings for banh mi fries.

I guess the flaw to bringing fries to a potluck is the fact that you’re going to bust out your host’s deep-fryer (or pot). But I’m pretty sure they’ll forgive you when they dig into these fries. Crispy, crunchy and topped with everything good inside a banh mi, these fries are fusion (ugh, does anyone else dislike the word fusion when describing food? But what else do we call it?!) food at its best.

Of course, if you’re totally averse to deep frying at someone else’s house, you can make this dish completely with store bought goods! All you have to do at home is make the pickles, slice up some jalapeños and wash off and chop some cilantro. Stop by your favourite Asian barbecue place and pick up some barbecue pork, then drop by your favourite fast food french fry joint, squirt on some kewpie mayo and sriracha and your dish is done!

What’s your go-to dish for a potluck? I’ve never actually brought these banh mi fries to one, but if you invite me over, consider yourself warned, I’ll totally do it! Hope you guys have a lovely weekend filled with food and don’t forget to check out the rest of the So Let’s Pig Out dishes here and here!

Banh Mi Fries Recipe
serves 2-4, scale up as needed

• 1 large russet potato, peeled
• oil for deep frying – I like to use rice bran oil or grapeseed
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup store bought Chinese barbecue pork, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup pickled daikons and carrots, recipe here
• 1 jalapeño, sliced
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro
• kewpie mayo and sriracha to taste

Slice the potato into thin matchstick fries, about 1/8 of an inch thick. Soak the fries in ice water for 20 minutes, swishing every so often. Rinse in cold water and pat dry before deep frying.

Over medium high heat, heat up an inch of oil in a deep sided pot until it reaches 350°F. Set up a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet.

Gently drop in a small amount of the fries, being careful not to crowd the pan. Be careful – these fries have a tendency to bubble up! Use a slotted spoon and stir every so often to ensure even browning. When lightly golden, about 3-5 minutes, remove from the oil and drain on the prepared rack. Continue until all the fries are cooked.

Bring the oil temperature up to 375°F and drop the fries in for another dip in the oil, until they are deeply golden brown and crunchy, about 1-2 minutes. Drain and season with salt and pepper. Top with barbecue pork, pickled vegetables, jalapeño slices, kewpie mayo and sriracha. Enjoy immediately.

PS – I totally have a whole arsenal of french fry topped dishes…would you guys be interested in a french fry book?! (Insert tears of joy emoji here!)
PPS – Here are all the links (think of it like a virtual potluck table)!

DRINKS // The Pig & Quill – Fizzy Herbed Pineapple Limeade // Cake Over Steak – Blueberry Mojitos // What’s Gaby Cooking – Strawberry Jalapeno Margaritas // Aida Mollenkamp – Peach Melba Coconut Cream Soda

MAINS // Predominantly Paleo – Caramelized Onion Buffalo Meatballs // Naturally Ella – Grilled Peach and Halloumi Skewers  // Earthy Feast – Chicken Fried Tofu Sliders with Spicy Peach Slaw // Fix Feast Flair – Mochiko Chicken Bites

SALADS & SIDES // Loves Food Loves To Eat – Smoked Salmon Dip // I Am A Food Blog – Banh Mi Fries // TastyYummies – Roasted Grape and Rosemary Goat Cheese Tarts // Beard & Bonnet – Grilled Watermelon and Halloumi Salad // Gluten Is My Bitch – Mexican Corn Off The Cob // A la Main – Almond Hummus // 80Twenty – Herby Wild Rice Salad

DESSERTS // Rubies & Radishes – Coconut-Lime Fruit Salad // Fix Feast Flair – Mini Matcha Butter Mochi with Adzuki Bean //  Dunk & Crumble – Marionberry Pie // Wit & Vinegar – Raspberry Fluff // The Sugar Hit – Toblerone Ice Cream Cake // Will Frolic For Food – S’meaches // So Let’s Hangout – Stone Fruit Crumble with Coconut Cream  // With Food + Love – Banana Cherry Cupcakes

Whew! Hope I got everyone!

carrotsdaikonfriesmayovietnamese