Crispy Sweet Potato Fries (Family Restaurant Mega Crunch Style)
The popular family restaurant menu at home! ‘Gamja Ppaseu’ (Candied Potato Fries) with crispy fried potatoes coated in sweet honey syrup
Taste exactly like the one you enjoyed at family restaurants! Easily make ‘Gamja Ppaseu’, also known as ‘Mega Crunch’, at home. Thinly julienned potatoes are fried twice for ultimate crispiness and coated in a sweet honey syrup, creating a delightful snack or side dish that everyone will love. Perfect as a treat for kids or an appetizer for adults!
Ingredients- 2 medium potatoes
- 2 Tbsp honey
- A pinch of black sesame seeds (for garnish)
- 1 cup vegetable oil (for frying)
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
First, prepare the main ingredient: potatoes. Peel the potatoes thoroughly and then julienne them into very thin strips, about 0.5mm thick. Slicing them as thinly as possible will ensure a crispier texture when fried.
Step 2
It’s crucial to remove excess moisture from the julienned potatoes. Use paper towels to press down firmly on the potato strips, absorbing all the water. Skipping this step can cause the oil to splatter dangerously when frying.
Step 3
Now it’s time to fry the potatoes. Instead of using a pot with a lot of oil, it’s better to use a frying pan with about 1 cup of vegetable oil for the first fry. Potatoes might seem crispy right after the first fry, but they tend to become soggy quickly as moisture escapes.
Step 4
After the first fry, remove the potatoes from the pan and let them cool slightly. Then, return them to the pan for a second fry. This double-frying process will make the potatoes much crispier and tastier. This is the secret to achieving that perfectly crunchy Mega Crunch (Gamja Ppaseu) texture.
Step 5
Check the texture of the potatoes after the second fry. They should be nicely browned and noticeably crispy. Fry them a bit darker than regular french fries to achieve that satisfying, cracker-like crunch.
Step 6
Next, make the sweet syrup. Unlike traditional candied yams (matang) or fruit preserves (tanghulu), Mega Crunch involves making the syrup directly in the pan and mixing it with the fried potatoes. Since this is for children, I used honey (2 Tbsp) instead of corn syrup or rice syrup, as I had plenty on hand. Place the honey in a frying pan over medium heat and bring it to a boil, looking for bubbles to form. Once the honey starts bubbling vigorously, add the fried potatoes and mix them quickly.
Step 7
The most critical part of making Mega Crunch is ensuring the potato pieces don’t stick together. This step is key to achieving a delicious ‘Gamja Ppaseu’.
Step 8
After quickly tossing the fried potatoes in the syrup, immediately spread them out in a single layer on parchment paper, making sure they don’t overlap. This allows them to cool and remain crispy. While a cooling fan would be ideal, as seen with a candy maker on a TV show, quickly cooling them by hand is the next best option if you don’t have one. This method helps maintain their crispiness.
Step 9
Once cooled, the ‘Gamja Ppaseu’ will have a beautiful, glossy sheen from the sweet syrup coating. Cooling them individually prevents them from sticking together, making them neat and easy to eat. Enjoy your delicious, sweet, and crispy ‘Gamja Ppaseu’!
