1. How Belgium Protects Its Fried Potato Stall Culture
In Belgium, small stalls and huts called "frietkot" sell fried potatoes and other fried foods all over towns. This entire food culture has been recognized in Belgium as an "intangible cultural heritage." This means that the regional governments within the country decided it is an important culture they want to protect. It was reported that the Flemish Community recognized it first in 2014, and the French Community followed in 2016, and the German-speaking Community and the Brussels-Capital Region joined in 2017 [8]. However, this is not a UNESCO World Heritage listing. At the time of that report, no official application to UNESCO had been made. So, it is a national recognition within Belgium, not an international one.
Given how highly this food is valued, why is it called "French"?
2. The Belgian Story of Frying Potatoes Shaped Like Fish When the Meuse River Froze
The story behind the Belgian theory is told like this. People living along the Meuse River in Namur, Andenne, and Dinant used to fry small fish caught in the river. When the river froze in winter and fishing was impossible, they supposedly cut potatoes into the shape of small fish and fried them. This story is attributed to Belgian historian Jo Gérard. It is said to have happened around 1680 and is based on a family manuscript from 1781 [9]. However, this account comes from an introductory page, and Gérard's original book is said to date from 1984. It is safer to read this as a legend or tradition rather than established historical fact.
3. Why the Dates in the Belgian Story Do Not Match
This old story has a problem with dates. The story is set around 1680, but potatoes are said to have entered this region around 1735 [1]. This means the story takes place more than 50 years before potatoes are said to have arrived there (1735 minus 1680 equals 55). Food historian Pierre Leclercq states that this story comes from a "fundamental misreading" of the 1781 manuscript [1]. He also says that frying oil was expensive and was not something farmers used every day.
Leclercq explains that the phrase "frying potatoes" in the 18th-century documents cited by Gérard refers to thin slices browned with a little fat. This is different from today’s French fries, which are stick-shaped pieces dipped in oil [3]. The interesting point is that Belgians themselves are questioning the Belgian theory.
4. The Theory That French Fries Were Born on Paris Street Corners
According to Leclercq’s theory, the modern French fry—potato sticks fried in oil—was born in the streets of Paris. It is said that street stall workers in Paris sold them in paper cones [1]. It was a food linked to ordinary people in 19th-century Paris, such as workers and street performers [3].
The exact time is described differently in various sources. In introductions to Leclercq’s theory, it is said to be as early as the 1790s, or at the latest by the 1820s [1]. A French science website writes that old Paris documents show sales at the Pont Neuf in the 1780s, but it does not explain if they were sticks or thin slices [5]. A Belgian newspaper reports that Leclercq stated they appeared in cookbooks a little after 1850, and were initially slices fried with little fat [4]. The date cannot be pinned down to one year. Paris as the birthplace is one strong theory, but it is not written as the definitive answer.
5. How a Bavarian Musician Named Frédéric Krieger Brought Paris Frying to Belgium
There is a story about how the Paris style of frying spread to Belgium. It involves a musician and street vendor from Bavaria named Frédéric Krieger. Krieger is said to have learned how to fry potatoes at a roast shop in Paris in 1842 and started his business in Belgium around 1844 [2]. He founded a company called "Fritz" and sold "Paris-style fried potatoes" from cloth-covered stalls in towns and at fairs [4].
These years come from secondary sources. If this story is correct, then Belgium adopted and nurtured a dish from elsewhere. Leclercq is introduced as concluding that what is Belgian is that Belgians adopted the dish [4].
6. Where the Name "French Fried Potatoes" Came From and How It Reached America
The phrase "French fried potatoes" first appeared in English print in Eliza Warren’s cookbook in 1856. According to World Wide Words, the first clear example of the short term "French fries" is from 1902 [6]. This is what can be verified in print; the actual use of the name may have started earlier.
In the United States, there is a story that the third president, Thomas Jefferson, spread them. However, the "fried potatoes" in Jefferson’s notes were round slices, not sticks [1]. Leclercq says there is no evidence he spread them in the US, and they remained a dish for wealthy homes. The common belief that French fries were served at a dinner in 1802 is pointed out as not matching the diary of a minister from that time [7]. Early US documents, such as a cookbook from 1824, mention "frying thin slices of potatoes" [7]. Other stories about the name’s origin are widely told but are considered folk etymologies [6].
7. How to Investigate the Origin of French Fries Yourself
Things you can do at home: Compare the shape of potatoes you eat at home or frozen foods from shops. Besides sticks, there are slices and wedge shapes. Think about whether each shape is closer to the "sticks" or "thin slices" mentioned in this story.
Things you can do when out: Look closely at the containers for potatoes at burger shops. You might notice they use paper bags or paper containers. Comparing them to the old paper cones in Paris can help you imagine the history.
At the library: Books on food culture and culinary history may contain the history of frying. For how potatoes spread, notes on the history of potatoes can also be a reference.