test please delete

[NickFitz]

Go for the SSD - should be lightning quick for the OS. You can always stick bulk things on an external drive as you suggest.

Yep, I think that's the way to go. And, of course, upgrading the memory to 32GB myself with parts from Crucial, rather than getting Apple to do it - around £120 versus £480

[NickFitz]

Just went to the doc's to get my regular monthly prescription, which I ordered online last Thursday. No record of it, so now I have to wait until tomorrow

[NickFitz]

Rumours of new 21" iMacs with 4K displays coming out tomorrow. I still want the 27" 5K one, but there's always a chance they'll announce something like a processor or graphics card update for them, too. I shall stay away from the "Order" button until later in the week

[NickFitz]

Chicken casserole in the fridge, but no spuds for chips. I could go to the shop, but if I'm venturing outside I might just get some from the chippy instead

[Pondlife]

Proper fryer. I eat a lot of chips, and a proper fryer with temperature control is essential to achieve optimum quality

it arrives tomorrow. Nom

[covbob]

Chicken casserole in the fridge, but no spuds for chips. I could go to the shop, but if I'm venturing outside I might just get some from the chippy instead

What was the result?

[NickFitz]

it arrives tomorrow. Nom

My method is as follows, for what it's worth:

1. Cut the spuds up into chips. (I peel them first, but some prefer not to.)
2. Stick them in a saucepan with a tablespoon of distilled malt vinegar and enough cold water to cover them. The vinegar isn't there to impart flavour, and doesn't: it greatly reduces the breakdown of the potato when boiled, due to some chemical process.
3. Bring to the boil. Keep simmering for at least five minutes, no more than ten. (I usually go for seven or eight.)
4. Strain in a colander, and rinse with hot water.
5. Leave to stand for an hour or more, to cool down and dry. Stirring occasionally while they're still warm will help them dry more.
6. Heat the oil to 160°C.
7. Put the chips in the basket and fry for two or three minutes, until they're just starting to change colour. Lift them out and leave to drain.
8. At this point, they can be bagged and frozen, if you want to make loads of batches and save doing all the previous steps every time. Either way, they benefit from being left for at least fifteen minutes.
9. Heat the oil to 190°C, and whack them in. They'll bubble furiously, and the bubbling will gradually subside as they turn golden and crispy. Give them two to four minutes. If you like them really crispy, give them an extra minute when you think they're done (though don't let them burn, of course).
10. Add condiments to taste, and eat!

It's a bit of a faff, but the results are sublime

[NickFitz]

What was the result?

The casserole should have heated through by now, so I'm just about to go to the chippy

[NickFitz]

The casserole should have heated through by now, so I'm just about to go to the chippy

…and very nice it was

[covbob]

Glad to hear it! Sausages and mash here tonight - proper thick Lincolnshire sausages from our butcher.