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A Little More Confused

30 comments - 02.13.2008

I find it odd that you can’t get laundry detergent, shampoo, shaving cream, or deodorant that’s not perfumed around here.

lesfritessansodeur

But French Fries?

They’re available sans odeur.

Categories:

Whining

30 comments

  • By Meg on February 14, 2008 3:52 AM

    Oh that is totally believable; the French have a veritable obsession with cooking odours. My neighbor – an otherwise cosmopolitan, sane, lovely woman – takes her deep fat fryer out onto the terrace when she makes fries to avoid the dreaded smell of food cooking! And after all, there is a reason that open plan kitchens are called “American kitchens” here – only we Americans would be mad enough to put up with the smells of a working kitchen! ; )

  • By TACE on February 14, 2008 5:15 AM

    odorless French fries……….sounds so appetizing, here’s some food you can’t smell..mmmm….now if they only made them tasteless as well…and I’m not a big fan of texture so perhaps that could nix that as well……..and last but not least a blind fold so you don’t need to see them while you eat them and then it;s like you’re eating nothing at all…brilliant!

  • By David on February 14, 2008 5:30 AM

    Meg: I always thought “American kitchen” here meant forehead-high countertops!

  • By flavia on February 14, 2008 7:30 AM

    That is really odd coming from the french (and I am one of them …). We eat cheeses like the Vacherin or the reblochon that we can smell from a block away!!! On a more delicious note, David, I went to Regis Dion to buy my fleur de sel to bring to Brazil, and he made me buy a Fleur de sel with rose petals.. I tried that yesterday with green beans and have to tell you, it was amazing!!

  • By flavia on February 14, 2008 7:35 AM

    David, Just saw you (courtesy of Chez Pim…) on the Gourmet page!! Looking good!! Congrats!!!

    Here

  • By dana on February 14, 2008 8:11 AM

    That is very interesting! I wonder if they are targeting people who cook in dorm rooms or something? Or, maybe it is a clumsy attempt to underline the fact that since the fries are made in the oven you don’t get the oppressive, lingering smell associated with deep frying?

  • By bekkah on February 14, 2008 8:44 AM

    WTF yet again

  • By Christina on February 14, 2008 9:22 AM

    Sans odeur … What does fries with odor smell?

  • By Eileen on February 14, 2008 9:38 AM

    Only in France! I love it.

    Eileen

  • By Jocelyn on February 14, 2008 9:59 AM

    I saw the bag and thought you were going to comment on the back up business that one of our presidential candidates has going (just in case)!

  • By Patrick on February 14, 2008 10:31 AM

    Puzzling… I love coming inside and smelling wonderful food cooking. It’s like foreplay.

  • By Louisa on February 14, 2008 11:26 AM

    I use my deep-fryer outside too! It’s very freeing actually. It’s like cooking over a campfire – but not. ;)

  • By Christy on February 14, 2008 11:58 AM

    I’ve gotta say, I use our deep fryer outside, too. (And I’m American.) We use it mainly for deep frying pakoras, samosas and koftas when we’re making a big Indian meal and the smell of deep fried along with curries and such is too much! (Maybe I was French in another life?)

  • By David on February 14, 2008 12:03 PM

    Christy & Louisa:: Well, if I had a deep-fryer, I’d make my fries outdoors too.

    But these are ‘au four‘…for the oven. (And if I could, I’d probably be able to drag my oven outside….if it had a handle!)

    : 0

  • By Hellga on February 14, 2008 1:37 PM

    BWA! I cooked for an upscale ‘dude ranch’ in NorCal for many years. My solution to a meal that I felt that was less than perfect was to saute a ton of garlic and run it through the dining hall to permeate the smell of cooking, then place the pot hidden in the buffet. It never failed – “Oh it smells so GOOD in here, I bet dinner will be fabulous!” was the universal response. Ahh the tricks we use as young chefs! So here’s one vote FOR the smell of food!

  • By EB on February 14, 2008 3:51 PM

    What??? No mention of your Diary of a Foodie appearance???! You look fabu! So glad to have caught it.

  • By Nicole on February 14, 2008 4:24 PM

    Hilarious! Happy valentine’s day, David!

  • By TARA on February 14, 2008 4:40 PM

    WTF!

  • By Joanna in the kitchen on February 14, 2008 5:30 PM

    Well, how to say that…Another WTF moment…???
    No. It should rather be…Another WTF moment!!!

  • By Jessy on February 14, 2008 6:05 PM

    Wow. Thats wicked funny.

  • By Alejandra on February 14, 2008 7:39 PM

    Ha…that is hysterical. I happen to love the “odour” of fries though so I think it’s a bit of a rip-off, actually. Are the odorless kind priced differently? (just curious…)

  • By Alexandra on February 14, 2008 9:47 PM

    lol…interesting…now I wonder if it’s tasteless too…seeing as smell has a ton to do with taste!!

  • By mb on February 15, 2008 3:57 AM

    Lol! Hysterical!!! XD I may have tried those once and they aren’t good. But I don’t make fries at home because of the smell! lol!!! Although I have a friend that had a deep-frier with a built-in filter in the lid and it worked great. I have a couple of restaurants (not in Paris) where I go if I’m dying for fries, the greasier the better, lol! Vive le steak-frites! :D

  • By Hillary on February 15, 2008 4:44 PM

    Haha weird…

    At first I thought this was going to be some sort of “McCain” joke.

  • By parisbreakfast on February 16, 2008 7:39 PM

    One thing you can get down on your knees and be grateful for is the Paris Metro is not submerged in disinfectant like the New York MTA and all US trains and just about everything else…
    It’s is truly horrid here :(

  • By parisbreakfast on February 16, 2008 7:42 PM

    PS
    As for “American” countertops..
    There was one at my last rental..well they called it an “American Bar”. You could only use a straw to eat your food with a counter at collar-bone level?!

  • By Teena on February 19, 2008 7:15 PM

    Hahahaha thanks David, you made me burst out laughing at the ‘sans odeur’ for the frites – oh j’adore les francais!

    :-)

    Teena, and antipodean with a lust for Paris

  • By Jérôme on August 12, 2009 1:38 PM

    If you read carrefully you would notice that the “sans odeur” is linked to “cuisson”. It doesn’t mean that the fries have no smell or taste once they’re in your plate.
    I would never buy McCain fries but I must confess that smelling like a giant frie all day long is not pleasant at all.
    Bravo for your writing, I love each sentence you have been writing here and in your book. Huge (french) fan here.
    Have you ever been to Lyon (that’s where I live) ?

    Bises.

    Jérôme.

  • By david on August 12, 2009 1:50 PM

    Salut Jérôme: Yes, Lyon is a wonderful city, I love Bernachon chocolate! I wish I could get there more often.