# Keeping fried foods hot and crispy



## ydnark

How do you folks keep your fried foods warm after cooking. I know the best way would be with a wire cooling rack over a sheet pan, with a radiant heat lamp setup, but I'm talking about at home. I have tried to put fish, potatoes, etc. in the oven on the "keep warm" setting in paper towel lined foil pans, but the it gets mushy. Brown paper grocery sacks work for a few minutes, but after a while, the results are the same. I know not to cover it up or the steam cannot get out and this causes the soggy result.

Can ya hook a brutha up?


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## kim e cooper

I use brown paper bags for the fish and roll the top up but i poke holes all in the bag the taters i use frozen they stay crispy in a pan with no paper towel .JWCOOP


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## Haute Pursuit

Don't use paper towels... use either foil or parchment paper. The paper towels absorb the excess oil and will make your fried stuff soggy.


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## Leemo

Haute Pursuit said:


> Don't use paper towels... use either foil or parchment paper. The paper towels absorb the excess oil and will make your fried stuff soggy.


Me-Know-Understand, the oil keeps the fish crisp?, explain please sir. thanks!


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## Haute Pursuit

Leemo said:


> Me-Know-Understand, the oil keeps the fish crisp?, explain please sir. thanks!


The oil will stay hot in the oven on the foil and not soak into it like a sponge (paper towels)... it will also be able to run away from the fillets. Using paper towels on fried stuff is no bueno unless you just do it for a second to remove excess grease/oil and remove it. Paper towels act like a sponge so your fillets are sitting on top of a big wet oil bath.

The best is the wire rack but I don't always have that handy and I get chewed out after using it for fish because according to the warden, that is for cookies only h:


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## chicapesca

Haute Pursuit said:


> The best is the wire rack but I don't always have that handy and I get chewed out after using it for fish because according to the warden, that is for cookies only h:


Now that is a good idea! I'm going to get one just for frying!


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## Freshwaterman

If paper towels absorb oil that leaks from the fillets, what's to stop the oil from leaking outta the fillets and onto the foil or parchment paper. Wouldn't the results be the same, then? Inquiring minds want to know.


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## Haute Pursuit

SpeckledTrout said:


> If paper towels absorb oil that leaks from the fillets, what's to stop the oil from leaking outta the fillets and onto the foil or parchment paper. Wouldn't the results be the same, then? Inquiring minds want to know.


Take a piece of foil and pour some water on it and then do the same with a paper towel. It will run off of the foil. Most fried foods aren't perfectly flat anyway. Paper towels will cradle the food in the oil they absorbed and the same food will only touch the foil in a few areas. I used to use paper grocery bags or paper towels all the time but since I switched to foil and the oven warmer, no more soggy fillets.


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## Freshwaterman

So, it's the sitting in the oil that leaked onto the paper towels that's bad? Is this right?

If that's the case, then you'd think that suspending the fish, on a rack, above the foil would work real good, correct?


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## Haute Pursuit

SpeckledTrout said:


> So, it's the sitting in the oil that leaked onto the paper towels that's bad? Is this right?
> 
> If that's the case, then you'd think that suspending the fish, on a rack, above the foil would work real good, correct?


That is the best way to do it. IMO


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## yakfishin

I do the same but place paper towels underneath the cooking rack (not touching the fish or fries). Turn the oven on to 200 and sever asap. Other reasons people have soggy fish is that they do not wait for the grease to return to the right temp before dropping in next batch.


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## dewberry

MY grandma always puts couple peices of bread underneith hers. It seems to keep fried foods cruncy and doesnt get them soft. If watched her do this for years and it works great.


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## ydnark

*Keeping fried foods krispy*

Thanks for all the good input!


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## rap

Line a pan with foil about 1" off the bottom of the pan and poke holes in the foil so the oil will drain away from the food, then put it in a heated oven with the door cracked open so the steam will get out.


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## Zereaux

I always put a layer of raw onion rings down first and put the fish on top. The onions
keep the fish out of the grease and give the fish a little extra kick...


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## Freshwaterman

Alright, I tried the foil idea on some oysters I fried, yesterday. These oysters were *nice and crispy before I place them in the oven* (200 degrees) with the door open. I did this immediately after draining all the excess oil from them.

The foil looked wet and had little droplets on it *when I pulled the oysters out and they were starting to get soggy*. What went wrong here?


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## Silverfox1

The fact about fried foods is that once you take the food out of the oil starts to deteriorate, there is nothing you can do to stop it.


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## Red3Fish

*One little trick...*

That I learned on this board....for potatos only...microwave a potato until it is about 3/4 done, and then cut into 8 wedges....then fry. I had the same issue as you with soggy french fries and tried this and seems to work pretty well....more like home fries than french fries, but keep crisp for a pretty good while..even when placed in oven to keep warm.

Later
R3F


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## Donnie Hayden

Simple remedy. I cant believe you guys didnt think of this. It is sooooo simple.





































Grilled seafood! Guess what, no soggy worries there 

I have tried all sorts of methods and the only one that actually worked for me was placing the seafood on a wire rack. I also use peanut oil, It lasts longer and wont burn. As was noted earlier, Make sure your oil is good and hot before placing the seafood in.


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## albert white

Aw heck, is that how you do it. I gotta better idea, eat it faster! Works for me.


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