If it would be working so reliably as in your videos, I would not ask in this thread, Jim.
First video btw pretty much is like we would do "Bratkartoffeln" in Germany: pan, plenty of fat or oil, just at the very end maybe ad some cut onion and garlic, white salt and black pepper, I also add rosmary and thyme.
I did more research the past hour, and one thing I learned is that I base on a wrong asusmnption sicne 50 years
, and obviously many understand it wrong as well: for some reason I always thought floury potatoes have lots of starch and firm potatoes have less. My mother also fell for this error, as well as my neighbour and friends of mine. It is exactly the other way around, and if I ever would have given it a second thought, this absolutely makes perfect sense. Where should the solid structure of firm ones come from, if not from more starch? But one tries hard to get starch out of it before frying, you wash the cut potatoes, you let them water some time, just to clean off the starch. So - I now go and get myself some soft, floury potatoes (which I usually avoid) with less starch.
I also read a tip that indeed you boil them before frying - and that you should use not just water, but also some vinegar in it. There is some chemistry magic going on with the vinegar, and the slices/cuts/sticks after 5-10 minutes should get cooled in cold water and then dried again before frying.
The experimenting monster has been awakened. I either succeed until I make perfect Fritten - or I vomit myself to death. This now is a fight for life and survival.
Kocht sonst die tollsten Sachen, aber schafft keine simplen Fritten - ich blamier mich ja bis auf die Knochen...