Q. With the economy turning around so slowly, I’ve exhausted my skills at trimming labor costs and substituting expensive cuts of meat for less utilized cuts like hanger steak. I’ve put salads and pastas on the menu with chicken, salmon and shrimp, instead of more exotic choices. Now what? Can you help with some Idaho® potato tips?

A. Of course. First, I am constantly amazed at the ingenuity of chefs and operators in finding ways to keep value in the menu but creatively control costs. Potatoes are an excellent way to do this. Why not re-invent comfort favorites like ham and scalloped potatoes with other proteins and make it a center of the plate entrée? Or, move hash from breakfast only to an upscale side or new brunch item with other colorful vegetables? Making homemade potato skins from left over baked Idaho® potatoes is another option, but try this variation on a potato salad – place the crispy skins on the plate, top with a chilled potato salad that has tiny shrimp or seafood in it.

One of the biggest cost savings moves is to re-evaluate your serving portions. Is a one pound Idaho® baked potato worth the bragging rights or can a nice 70 count be a more sensible choice? Can a platter of fries go further if placed in a cup instead? Can a couple of big spoonful’s of Au Gratin potatoes be substituted with a baked off casserole version in an individual portion ceramic crock? Years ago in the pizza business cheese costs went down by having prep include using a portion cup instead of a handful. The odd part is that the pizzas actually tasted better as all the ingredients were in a balanced ratio rather than one dominating over others. Portion it, weigh it and watch the food costs come in line.

Q. Unfortunately it’s just too hard to make mashed potatoes from scratch anymore; with the labor costs at our unit and the high volume. Mashed potatoes are a popular side dish so we sell a lot of it. Do you have any suggestions on keeping this a signature item? We probably will go with a pre-made garlic or white cheddar mashed.

A. You raised several issues. First of all, know that you are giving up something when you switch from making Idaho® potatoes from scratch to a convenience product. Recently, we did an ideation at a chain and compared “store bought” to homemade mashed potatoes and I have to tell you the mouth feel and density was easy for an “expert” like me to tell the difference, but so could all of the chefs in the room. However, when reality sets in and you are trying to do large quantities without a lot of labor, convenience is a good and viable solution. Your choices are dry (or dehydrated), frozen, or refrigerated. Each has a different cost profile so be sure to compare. Typically dry is the least expensive per pound of finished product (after all you are adding the liquids and not paying to have shipped) and refrigerated is a little more than frozen. Real progress has been made with dry Idaho® potatoes for mashed, some even re-constitute with lumps for added texture, so don’t dismiss it as a choice. Use taste panels of staff and customers to get their reading too.

Below is a list of chains that do white cheddar mashed potatoes, so you are not alone. How can you make yours different? Can you spec a specific brand of cheese or fold in a grated cheese after warming up the potatoes? Can you do something to make it a signature item such as adding in Tillamook sharp cheddar and chorizo?  Think about the options and try them out before switching over. Best of success with the change and be sure to always use Idaho® potatoes.

Excel Chart of Chains that do White Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

Q. I can save nearly ten dollars a case by switching to “line flow” French fries, it sounds like a good idea, what do you think?

A. With the downturn in the economy a lot of restaurant operators are looking for ways to save money.  This isn’t a wise one, even though it seems perfectly logical.  The plus side is that if you buy line flow fries you are saving on the carton cost but it is offset by the minuses.

Shorter fries.  Let me repeat that, line flow means you get a lot more shorter French fries.  Shorter fries end up costing you money because you’ll use more potatoes to fill up the same bag, cup, container or plate.  The easiest way to explain this is to take a 1 pound package of dry spaghetti noodles and divide it in half; then place half in a tall glass so they stick out of the top. Now take the other half and break the pasta into 3 or 4 pieces so that there are a lot of short ones and fill a similar size glass.  Which one looks full?

Shorter fries mean more outside surfaces to absorb the oil when cooking. So, the money you can easily measure (cost per bag or carton of potatoes) gets replaced by the unknown of “how much more oil will I end up using?”

Here’s how the French fry grading system works for 1/4″ Shoestrings:

Grade Strips are measured as over 3″ Strips, Under 2″ strips, and Slivers & Shorts

PXLF (Premium Extra Long Fancy) over 3″ Minimum 35%,  Under 2″ Maximum 17%  and Slivers & Shorts Maximum 5%

LF (Long Fancy) over 3″ Minimum 20%,  Under 2″ Maximum 25%,  and Slivers & Shorts Maximum 10%

FA (Line Flow) — Under 2″ Maximum 40%

So, when you buy line flow you are guaranteed short fries.  And, usually a premium fry will have higher solids too.  Line flow fries are processed leaving a lot of moisture in the fry.  You pay for more water than fries.

All of our Idaho potato processors have terrific tools on their web sites to illustrate the advantages of buying a premium fry over line flow or low solids fries.

Remember, you make profits on the number of servings you sell, not on the price you pay per pound.