Potato
We eat it everywhere, all the time, a lot. In salads, fried, steamed, baked, boiled, in chips. But it is in a tray in the form of French fries that we appreciate it the most. Welcome to the Hauts-de-France, the potato’s cornet.
The potato to fries!
Nearly ⅔ of the potatoes grow in the Hauts-de-France, ¾ when it comes to those intended for starch, and 7 out of 10 when it comes to frozen fries. All tuber surveys converge : the potato is in the regional best-of. Nearly 200 varieties are grown from Dunkirk to Compiègne, from Santerre (Péronne) to Cambrésis. In short, everywhere. This represents no less than 5,800 farms. In Ch’ti, we call this “breaking the bank”. And French fries have a lot to do with it. In our region, 1000 tons of these crispy sticks are produced daily. A real culinary treasure. In fact, they have the golden color and, very rarely, two holidays commemorate it!
A very feminine potato family
There are so many varieties of potatoes ! One of the best known, because it is used for French fries, comes from the Netherlands : the Bintje (pronounced bintch) alias Bénédicte in French. Because in potato language, we often call each other by our first name. Victoria, Manon, Samba, Amandine, Charlotte, Monalisa, Lily Rose… Enough to fill an almanac by themselves. In this vast feminine team that can be found on every table, there is one that plays the precious game : the Pompadour Label rouge. Renowned for its fine skin and firm flesh like the favorite of the Sun King, it grows only along the Picardy coast. Not far from the Ratte du Touquet, which is recognizable by its elongated shape and its little taste of chestnut.
