McDonald’s may have made the curly fry a common snack, but the potato in this format was actually created by Gilbert Lamb, the founder of potato specialist firm Lamb Weston.
Some of Lamb’s other notable potato creations include crowd favourites such as hash browns and crisscut waffle fries.
Today, the company is building on Lamb’s innovation legacy by infusing uniqueness into its new product ranges, as well as crucial factors such as convenience and novelty, according to Lamb Weston Commercial Director for South East Asia Vicky Mukhi.
“Everyone loves a fry, but more and more people are getting bored with the typical shoestring fry and want something that is unusual and unheard of,” Mukhi said.
“This sense of experience is what Lamb Weston is building on, which has driven us to create new retail ranges for consumers such as Dippers — which can be used to scoop up sauces or guacamole or salsa — and our Grill Fries which are skin-on, crinkle-cut, salt-and-pepper fries designed for quick cooking in an oven or air fryer.”
In terms of convenience, the firm has also designed what it calls a Mash Cup. This is essentially a portable mashed potato in a cup, and though the concept on its own is not unheard of, Mukhi emphasised the speed and ingredients are what make this different.
“It just requires the addition of 120ml water and 10 seconds of stirring, and our technology ensures that consumers will never be able to tell it is reconstituted from a dehydrated state,” he said.
“The whole focus here is really the speed, the lessening of labour and the much less time spent prepping to make a mashed potato as we have already added all the butter, milk, cream, salt and so on necessary to make this a ready-to-eat item.”
What does it take to make a fry fly?
In addition, the firm has also launched a new range called the Snap Fry, specifically designed for consumption 30,000 feet in the air on a plane.
“Human tastebuds will change perception of taste and flavour in the air, so food made for ground consumption needs to be optimised if it is to be brought up high,” he explained.
“This is a well-known concept and how airline food is designed — but fries have rarely been part of this innovation as the value of fries lies in their crispiness, and this tends to go quite quickly for a regular fry once placed into the airline oven.”
The Snap Fry has been optimised for air travel in two ways, namely the coating and the packaging.
“The unique packaging is vented so that all moisture can escape in the airline oven, preventing sogginess; and the batter has been optimised for crunch and fluffiness in the air,” Mukhi said.
“Together, these ensure that the final fries are crispy and will remain so for an extended time once removed from the airline oven so they can be enjoyed with an airline beverage as a filling snack on a long flight.”
The added crunchiness also makes for extra crunch if consumed on the ground, adding to the novelty factor.
A fine balance
Fries are easily one of the most common western food items around the world, and innovating with this very familiar concept can be challenging.
“Consumers today like familiarity in their foods but they also want something new, so we need to balance both old and new concepts in our innovation,” he added.
“This is why when we innovate there needs to be the common items such as shoestring and hash browns to ensure we cater to those who want familiar items, but things like the Dippers and the Grill Fry which are really unique are also crucial to ensuring we have the attention of today’s consumers.”
