The Not So Fried, But Baked Fries

INTRO: For this project, I baked french fries to test my question that "if I changed the average baking temperature of fries, will the fries taste different"

Quick Bio: It is believed that "french fries" origin can be traced back to Belgium in the late 1600's, not France. Poor Belgium villagers would go fishing to find and fry fish, but when fishing became impossible the villagers would grow potatoes and cut them into smaller peaces and fry the potatoes as they would fry the fish.

  Understanding The Science Of French Fries: When baking or frying french fries they both go through the chemical reaction know as the Maillard reaction. During this chemical reaction the fries have a physical change that changes the outside color of the fries. Also during this chemical reaction the fries gain their distinctive taste, due to the fact that the reaction does not get activated until the specific food gets to be at a temperature of  285 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. Which is why the temperature is a big factor to the fries, because if the temperatures are changed slightly the Maillard reaction gives the fries their distinctive taste depending on the temperature that you bake the fries at.

  Recipe: During this process i had three constants, baking the same number of fries each trial, adding the same amount of salt each time, and baking each trial for the same amount of time.

1. preheat your oven to 423, 426, and 428  degrees
2. place 10 fries in the oven
3. Let the fries bake for 25 minutes
4. EAT

  Results: In trial one the fries were hard and dry, because I baked the first trial at 423 degrees

                 In trial two the fries were soft, and crunchy, because I baked the second trial at 426 degrees

And lastly the third trial's fries were hard and crunchy due to the fact that I baked the fries at 428 degrees

So In Conclusion:

  The fries go through a chemical reaction known as the Maillard reaction in which the reaction changes the definition of the fries and gives the fries their distinctive taste. So does the temperature of the fries play a big part in the taste? And the answer is a resounding yes, because the Maillard occurs because of temperature, and this reaction gives the fries its distinctive taste. Which is why none of trials tasted the same.