Deep fat fryer.. fries that are not fully Vegan

[Sproutskies]

Do you consider fries from a fast food chain Vegan? The dirty truth is that the majority of fast food restaurants use fryer oil for multipurpose and only filter at limited times per day. Those hundreds of orders of chicken tenders get tossed into the same vat as your naked potatoes and flour to ultimately absorb the combination of canola and chicken fat. That Avocado roll from your favorite sushi restaurant is kissed by the fish juice that often gets transfered from the unwiped Makisu bamboo rolling mat that the sushi chef reuses. If they do clean it, often this will only dilute the fish juice with an acid cleaning agent that renders bacteria useless (aka sanstar).

Where do you draw the line with food that is advertised as Vegan but in actuality contains trace amounts of animal flesh?

 

[IC_]

I definitely do not trust any "Vegan" food from restaurants that are not fully vegan.

 

[Brian W]

Are McDonald's fries vegan? (Updated for 2021)

In the UK, McDonald’s fries are known as chips and they are made from potatoes, vegetable oil, sugar and salt. However, in other countries, the ingredients list is pretty long and may include beef, milk and various chemicals.

In some countries, the ingredients list for McDonald’s fries is pretty shocking. Vegans who like to travel should be aware that Mc Donald’s fries are not vegan in every restaurant in the world. In some cases, they’re not even suitable for vegetarians.

 

[1956]

Even before COVID I didn’t eat out often and when I did it would be mostly in Vegan or Vegetarian restaurants.
I haven’t eaten in a fast food place in ages.
If possible I like to support small local places, not big chains...

 

[silva]

I'm particularly sensitive to oil tastes and have only liked the fries from Five Guys Burgers and Fries. They use peanut oil, fresh cut potatoes, and the fryer is solely used for the taters.

 

[Lou]

I have other (better?) reasons not to go to fast food places.
but I have no issue with cross-contamination.
IMHO, its silly to worry about accidental or incidental tiny amounts.
I don't think it can harm you. And its not like you just ordered a McChicken.

I also wonder about " advertised as Vegan". Are they? I remember that law suit with the vegan and BK. I may mis-remember but I thought that part of the defense was that it wasn't advertised as Vegan. just plant based.

McDonalds in the USA don't claim that they fries are vegan.

there are probably restaurants (strictly burger places) that don't put anything in their fryers besides French fries.

 

[silva]

I have other (better?) reasons not to go to fast food places.
but I have no issue with cross-contamination.
IMHO, its silly to worry about accidental or incidental tiny amounts.
I don't think it can harm you. And its not like you just ordered a McChicken.

I also wonder about " advertised as Vegan". Are they? I remember that law suit with the vegan and BK. I may mis-remember but I thought that part of the defense was that it wasn't advertised as Vegan. just plant based.

McDonalds in the USA don't claim that they fries are vegan.

there are probably restaurants (strictly burger places) that don't put anything in their fryers besides French fries.

Fries and occasionally Subway are the only fast food things I get, and the only one I know limits the oil to fries is Five Guys. It's been soooo long, but I do love them! They have peanuts in the shell you can eat while you wait for your order, and it's worth waiting! They also have malt vinegar.
I think the reason I've disliked other fries is the cross contamination-for me it's about the taste

 

[Danielle]

Yes, because it's not buying an animal product. It's understandable why people would choose to avoid that.
There's shared oil, there's cross contamination on conveyer belts. They say they clean them, but who knows?

 

[KLS52]

I eat fast food maybe twice a year. I wouldn’t worry about cross contamination depending on the situation, such as if I was on the road and stopped to use a rest area where the only food available was a fast food restaurant.

 

[Sproutskies]

I have other (better?) reasons not to go to fast food places.
but I have no issue with cross-contamination.
IMHO, its silly to worry about accidental or incidental tiny amounts.
I don't think it can harm you. And its not like you just ordered a McChicken.

I also wonder about " advertised as Vegan". Are they? I remember that law suit with the vegan and BK. I may mis-remember but I thought that part of the defense was that it wasn't advertised as Vegan. just plant based.

McDonalds in the USA don't claim that they fries are vegan.

there are probably restaurants (strictly burger places) that don't put anything in their fryers besides French fries.

It's not just cross contamination, which implies an error. Those globs of chicken fat are rendered down and become apart of the frying medium altogether. Especially Going to a busy chain which will "filter" (this really does nothing to remove anything but large particles) their oil typically after hundreds of orders in-between.. you could prob do the math on what percentage of the oil has become diseased animal fat.

It's like comparing the mistake of a drop falling in.. to the reality that your potatoes are actually swimming in animal fat.

Would you also consider purchasing your veggies from a seasoned butcher? is more of the moral question here

 

[Lou]

It's not just cross contamination, which implies an error. Those globs of chicken fat are rendered down and become apart of the frying medium altogether. Especially Going to a busy chain which will "filter" (this really does nothing to remove anything but large particles) their oil typically after hundreds of orders in-between.. you could prob do the math on what percentage of the oil has become diseased animal fat.

It's like comparing the mistake of a drop falling in.. to the reality that your potatoes are actually swimming in animal fat.

Would you also consider purchasing your veggies from a seasoned butcher? is more of the moral question here

I don't know, I never worked in a place with a fryer but I am under the impression that changing the fat in a fryer was a regualar thing. that the chemical composition of the oil changed with uses. and that in-between oil changes they would filter the oil. Anyway, I don't think its as bad as the picture you painted.

Not sure what a seasoned butcher is but I think you want me on a slippery slope. The little market that I go to has employees. Some who work with meat. Some who work with cheese. Some who work with produce. But the grocery store makes money from all the departments. Should I not buy vegetables at the grocery store?

That brings up a subject that comes up in other threads. Most recently when Danone bought Silk. do I have to stop buying Silk soy milk because they are owned by a company that owns dairy cows? Do I have to stop buying Method soaps cause they got bought by Unilever?

It is a slippery slope. Those things are always difficult.

 

[1956]

Here in Ireland we have butcher shops which sell some veggies, not sure if maybe he was thinking of something like that...
When I first moved to France I found what I thought were the Best potato chips/ crisps, Les Chips Artisanal - however, they are mostly sold at butcher shops. So when I turned vegetarian I stopped buying them, sometimes it’s possible to find them at a deli type place just depends on where you are. I shop in places that also sell meat but, I don’t shop in places that primarily sell meat...

 

[Sproutskies]

I don't know, I never worked in a place with a fryer but I am under the impression that changing the fat in a fryer was a regualar thing. that the chemical composition of the oil changed with uses. and that in-between oil changes they would filter the oil. Anyway, I don't think its as bad as the picture you painted.

Not sure what a seasoned butcher is but I think you want me on a slippery slope. The little market that I go to has employees. Some who work with meat. Some who work with cheese. Some who work with produce. But the grocery store makes money from all the departments. Should I not buy vegetables at the grocery store?

That brings up a subject that comes up in other threads. Most recently when Danone bought Silk. do I have to stop buying Silk soy milk because they are owned by a company that owns dairy cows? Do I have to stop buying Method soaps cause they got bought by Unilever?

It is a slippery slope. Those things are always difficult.

Being under the assumption that oil is changed out completely on a daily basis is a high hope and typically only reserved for a very busy place doing over a thousand "covers" per day. In most cases for your typical grill or even a fine dining establishment this is plainly incorrect.

Something like an auto-fryer allows for filtering out larger particles that could burn and therefore keeps the chemical composition and smoking point of the oil stable. Because the margins of making money as a restaurant are tight you will find that industry standard is to change out the fryer oil completely on a bi-weekly basis to at minimum a couple of times per month. This is my understanding based on working close to a decade in food service partially as a manager doing both inventory and purchasing for multiple places.

The butcher analogy is something I ask myself having also done this very thing for a living. It's up to each of us to determine the how large the negative impact is of the companies that support factory farming and animal abuse. There is no matter of fact here.. only a moral question of would you buy from a food business knowing that they make the bulk of their profit from churning out chicken sandwiches and steaks from abused animals.

Whatever "slippery slope" you feel you are on is purely of your own illusion.

 

[Brian W]

McDonalds in the USA don't claim that they fries are vegan.

But most people would assume that fries are vegan unless told otherwise. It needs to be made clear by the company.

 

[Lou]

But most people would assume that fries are vegan unless told otherwise. It needs to be made clear by the company.

I don't think so. Maybe because I'm old enough to remember the whole McDonald's French fries scandal. but I don't expect French fries to be vegan. but vegans are generally pretty knowledgable and careful.

 

[silva]

Being under the assumption that oil is changed out completely on a daily basis is a high hope and typically only reserved for a very busy place doing over a thousand "covers" per day. In most cases for your typical grill or even a fine dining establishment this is plainly incorrect.

Something like an auto-fryer allows for filtering out larger particles that could burn and therefore keeps the chemical composition and smoking point of the oil stable. Because the margins of making money as a restaurant are tight you will find that industry standard is to change out the fryer oil completely on a bi-weekly basis to at minimum a couple of times per month. This is my understanding based on working close to a decade in food service partially as a manager doing both inventory and purchasing for multiple places.

The butcher analogy is something I ask myself having also done this very thing for a living. It's up to each of us to determine the how large the negative impact is of the companies that support factory farming and animal abuse. There is no matter of fact here.. only a moral question of would you buy from a food business knowing that they make the bulk of their profit from churning out chicken sandwiches and steaks from abused animals.

Whatever "slippery slope" you feel you are on is purely of your own illusion.

So....you're really saying you feel it's wrong to support places that make the most profits over animals, not really just contaminated fries
I'm with that!
I've yet to find a fast food place give a dam about adding any plant based offerings--they either raise the price, or it's so co-mingled with animal products you have to fight to get it plain. Dunkin' Beyond sausage has to be customized, and then it's all dry....I did have that. Pizza Hut has Beyond sausage--higher price, no discounts, no vegan cheese. I think they're one place that wouldn't let me sub a veg for the cheese--cause cheese is 'included'.
There are places I'd never step foot in, like Arbys, KFC, but others, like Subway, Chipoltle....... I'm glad are around.
I sure hope things change. I find it crazy that there isn't an all vegan fast food chain already

 

[Danielle]

Pizza Hut got rid of their Beyond Meat. I tried to order it 2 weeks ago, couldn't find it on their menu. I checked their facebook, it's gone.

 

[Sproutskies]

So....you're really saying you feel it's wrong to support places that make the most profits over animals, not really just contaminated fries
I'm with that!
I've yet to find a fast food place give a dam about adding any plant based offerings--they either raise the price, or it's so co-mingled with animal products you have to fight to get it plain. Dunkin' Beyond sausage has to be customized, and then it's all dry....I did have that. Pizza Hut has Beyond sausage--higher price, no discounts, no vegan cheese. I think they're one place that wouldn't let me sub a veg for the cheese--cause cheese is 'included'.
There are places I'd never step foot in, like Arbys, KFC, but others, like Subway, Chipoltle....... I'm glad are around.
I sure hope things change. I find it crazy that there isn't an all vegan fast food chain already

Yeah, maybe that's the main idea I was getting at. Maybe more about striking the balance than being overly strict. Meta-burger out here in Denver claims to be 100% plant-based and is setting the example for other future restaurant owners. Still kinda overpriced food though which is the theme for most Vegan places right now.

 

[silva]

Beyond Meat should get a partnership in vegan fast food franchises!

 

[VeganDawn]

Beyond Meat should get a partnership in vegan fast food franchises!

Carl's Junior, Del Taco, KFC, I think they have an off again on again relationship with McDonalds. Typically grilled on the same grills and fryers of meat with no clean between for most chains.