When: July 10
National French Fries Day on July 10th celebrates the world's most popular potato preparation and the subject of one of food history's best ongoing arguments. Are they Belgian or French? The answer involves World War I, a language misunderstanding, and a great deal of national pride. Either way, a properly made fry — twice-fried at two different temperatures — is a masterpiece of applied food science.
The name "French fries" has nothing to do with France — American soldiers in World War I encountered Belgian fried potatoes, and since the Belgian army spoke French, they assumed the fries were French.
Belgium and France have been arguing for decades about who invented the fried potato strip, and neither will concede. Belgium's case involves Liège records from 1680 describing locals frying small fish in fat in winter, and the tradition that when the Meuse River froze and fish were unavailable, they substituted potato strips. The city of Namur has a statue declaring "French fries are Belgian." France's case involves street vendors frying potatoes on the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris in the 1780s, called "pommes de terre frites," popular before the Revolution. Both have documentation. Neither has absolute proof. The name is an American accident. During World War I, American soldiers stationed in Belgium encountered fried potatoes being served by Belgian soldiers, who were speaking French — the official language of the Belgian army at the time. Not knowing Belgian from French, the Americans brought the name home with the recipe. Belgium has never forgiven this. The French find the whole...