And that's because all over the world, pretty much everyone loves the taste of McDonald's French fries.

這是因為在全世界，幾乎每個人都喜歡麥當勞炸薯條的味道。

So what's the secret?

祕訣是什麼？

The fries.

薯條

What about them?

他們怎麼辦？

They're 5% too crisp.

它們有 5%太脆了。

Oh, they're perfect.

哦，它們太完美了。

Well, today, we're climbing over the counter to figure out why McDonald's fries are so different.

今天，我們要翻過櫃檯，看看麥當勞的薯條為什麼如此與眾不同。

But before we get started, be sure to subscribe to the Weird History Food channel.

在我們開始之前，請務必訂閱 "怪誕歷史美食 "頻道。

After that, please leave a comment and let us know what other iconic fast food menu items you would like to hear about next.

之後，請留言告訴我們您還想了解哪些標誌性的快餐菜單。

OK, time to keep your eyes on the fries.

好了，該盯著薯條了。

Crispy on the outside, soft and buttery on the inside, the McDonald's French fries are about as close to perfection as humanity has ever come or probably ever will.

麥當勞的炸薯條外脆裡嫩，是人類有史以來最接近完美的炸薯條。

Originally created by the franchise's founders, Richard and Maurice McDonald, the fries made their debut in 1949 at the very first McDonald's location in San Bernardino, California.

麥當勞薯條最初由特許經營創始人理查德-麥當勞和莫里斯-麥當勞創造，1949 年在加利福尼亞州聖貝納迪諾的第一家麥當勞店首次亮相。

McDonald's, it should be noted, wasn't the first fast food chain to sell fries.

值得一提的是，麥當勞並不是第一家出售薯條的快餐連鎖店。

That honor goes to White Castle, who put them on the menu in the mid-1940s.

這一殊榮屬於白色城堡（White Castle），該公司於 20 世紀 40 年代中期將其列入菜單。

French fries actually started becoming popular in the US after GIs developed a taste for them during World War I.

實際上，炸薯條在美國開始流行，是因為美國大兵在第一次世界大戰期間喜歡上了炸薯條。

But it took a while before the restaurant industry caught up.

但過了一段時間，餐飲業才迎頭趕上。

And back in those days, it was still pretty rare for fast food places to serve fries because they were time consuming to prepare and it was difficult to keep the quality consistent over various batches.

在那個年代，快餐店還很少供應炸薯條，因為製作費時，而且很難在不同批次中保持穩定的品質。

Potato chips were much easier to make and were, therefore, far more common.

土豆片更容易製作，所以也更常見。

But the McDonald's brothers were pretty clever guys and they eventually came up with a system for making fries that would become so successful, it would make, do you want fries with that, a permanent part of the American lexicon.

但麥當勞兄弟是相當聰明的人，他們最終想出了一套製作薯條的方法，這套方法非常成功，使 "你要薯條嗎 "成為美國詞彙的永久組成部分。

According to an employee who worked for the brothers at the original McDonald's, their method of fry production started with locally sourced Idaho russet potatoes.

據一位曾在最初的麥當勞為兄弟倆工作過的員工說，他們製作薯條的方法是從當地採購愛達荷赤褐色洋芋開始的。

Those potatoes would sit outside for several days to cure in the San Bernardino desert air.

這些洋芋會在室外放置幾天，在聖貝納迪諾沙漠的空氣中醃製。

And there are folks who credit that air with giving those original fries their extra crispiness.

有些人認為，正是這種空氣讓最初的薯條變得格外酥脆。

Once the potatoes were ready, they would be brought to a shed located right behind the original restaurant, where they would be peeled and chopped into shoestrings.

洋芋準備好後，會被運到位於原餐廳後面的一個棚子裡，在那裡削皮、切成鞋帶。

Those shoestrings would then sit in water for about an hour prior to cooking to rinse them of excess starch.

在烹飪前，這些鞋帶會在水中浸泡約一小時，以沖洗掉多餘的澱粉。

After that, they would be dried and then tossed into a fryer that was filled with oil the brothers purchased from a company called Interstate Foods.

之後，它們會被晾乾，然後被扔進一個油炸鍋，裡面裝滿了兄弟倆從一家名為州際食品公司（Interstate Foods）的公司購買的油。

At that time, most French fries were made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, which, long story short, has a longer shelf life than oil that isn't partially hydrogenated.

當時，大多數炸薯條都是用部分氫化植物油製作的，長話短說，這種油比沒有部分氫化的油保質期更長。

But the equipment needed to partially hydrogenate the oil was crazy expensive and Interstate couldn't afford it.

但部分氫化油所需的設備非常昂貴，州際公路公司負擔不起。

So instead, they sold a blend of 7% vegetable oil and 93% beef tallow.

他們出售的是 7% 的植物油和 93% 的牛脂混合油。

And it was that beef tallow which is generally credited with giving McDonald's original fries their classic taste.

麥當勞原味炸薯條的經典口味一般都是由牛脂製成的。

After the fries came out of the oil, they would be salted, shoveled into small paper bags, and sold to delighted customers.

薯條從油裡撈出來後，會用鹽醃一下，鏟到小紙袋裡，然後賣給高興的顧客。

Those customers included a traveling salesman named Ray Kroc, who liked the fries so much, he decided to get into business with the McDonald's brothers and turn their little hamburger stand into a fast food empire.

這些顧客包括一位名叫雷-克洛克的旅行推銷員，他非常喜歡麥當勞的薯條，於是決定與麥當勞兄弟合作，把他們的小漢堡包攤變成一個快餐帝國。

In 1954, milkshake mixer salesman Ray Kroc became curious about why a little hamburger stand called McDonald's needed so many of his mixers.

1954 年，奶昔攪拌機推銷員雷-克洛克（Ray Kroc）開始好奇，為什麼一家名為麥當勞的漢堡包小店需要這麼多他的攪拌機。

So he set off for San Bernardino.

於是，他動身前往聖貝納迪諾。

There, he got his first look at McDonald's, met the brothers, and fell in love with their food, particularly the fries.

在那裡，他第一次見到了麥當勞，見到了麥當勞兄弟，並愛上了他們的食物，尤其是薯條。

I love them.

我愛他們。

Golden brown on the outside, fluffy white inside.

外表金黃，內裡鬆軟潔白。

And they're not too oily, salty, crunchy.

而且不會太油、太鹹、太脆。

Who are you?

你是誰？

After buying the franchise, Kroc from the McDonald's brothers in 1955, Kroc would become borderline obsessive about making sure those fries were always up to the company's high standards, regardless of which restaurant a customer walked into.

1955 年，克羅克從麥當勞兄弟手中買下了特許經營權，此後，無論顧客走進哪家餐廳，克羅克都會近乎痴迷地確保薯條始終符合公司的高標準。

In fact, in his autobiography, he would later recall, the fry would become almost sacrosanct for me.

事實上，他後來在自傳中回憶說："油炸食品對我來說幾乎是神聖不可侵犯的。

It's preparation, a ritual to be followed religiously.

這是準備工作，是需要虔誠遵守的儀式。

We feel the same way, Ray.

我們也有同感，雷。

But ensuring consistency was no small task.

但是，確保一致性並不是一件小事。

For starters, most locations didn't have a desert in which to dry their potatoes.

首先，大多數地方都沒有晾晒洋芋的沙漠。

And to conquer that hurdle, Kroc would have to invent entirely new methods of curing.

為了克服這一障礙，克洛克必須發明全新的治療方法。

He also began dispatching teams of specialists to his restaurants to keep tabs on whether or not their spuds had the correct water content and solidity levels.

他還開始派遣專家小組到他的餐館，檢查他們的洋芋含水量和堅固程度是否正確。

But that was only part of the problem.

但這只是問題的一部分。

You can't give them an inch.

你不能讓他們得寸進尺。

The organization cannot trust the individual.

組織不能信任個人。

The individual must trust the organization.

個人必須信任組織。

Because it was quickly discovered that no matter how well individual locations adhered to Kroc's carefully calculated cooking times and temperatures, the fries would still vary in crispiness.

因為人們很快發現，無論各個分店如何嚴格遵守克洛克精心計算的烹飪時間和溫度，炸薯條的酥脆程度仍然會有差異。

To address the issue, in 1962, Kroc hired a Motorola engineer named Lou Martino and put him to work doing mad scientist French fry research at the McDonald's R&D lab.

為了解決這個問題，1962 年，克羅克聘請了一位名叫路-馬蒂諾的摩托羅拉工程師，讓他在麥當勞研發實驗室從事瘋狂科學家的薯條研究。

Long story short, Martino eventually determined that placing cold fries into hot oil lowers the temperature of the oil a variable amount each time.

長話短說，馬蒂諾最終確定，將冷薯條放入熱油中，每次都會降低不同程度的油溫。

The oil then needs to recover a certain amount of that lost heat before the fries will come out right.

然後，油需要恢復一定量的熱量，才能炸出合適的薯條。

To make sure that happened every time, Martino invented a so-called potato computer, which would alert employees as to when the ideal temperature had been achieved.

為了確保每次都能做到這一點，馬蒂諾發明了一種所謂的洋芋計算機，它會在達到理想溫度時提醒員工。

And sacrilegious as it may seem, Kroc would even tinker with the recipe for that oil, changing it over to a most cost-effective mix of vegetable oil and beef tallow.

儘管看起來有些褻瀆神明，但克洛克甚至會在油的配方上做手腳，把它改成最經濟實惠的植物油和牛脂混合油。

That mix was named Formula 47, a reference to the $0.47 price of the original McDonald's meal and the average life expectancy of anyone who eats too much of them.

這種混合物被命名為 "47 號配方"，意指麥當勞原味餐的價格為 0.47 美元，而吃得太多的人平均壽命也會縮短。

Only the good die young.

只有優秀的人才會英年早逝。

Once standardized across the country, McDonald's fries quickly became the most popular item on the menu.

麥當勞的薯條在全國標準化後，迅速成為菜單上最受歡迎的食品。

And they were so iconic, they were even embraced by usually more discriminating culinary influencers like Julia Childs and James Beard.

它們是如此具有標誌性，甚至得到了朱莉婭-查爾斯（Julia Childs）和詹姆斯-比爾德（James Beard）等通常更為挑剔的烹飪影響者的青睞。

That being said, not everyone was over the moon about them.

儘管如此，並不是每個人都對它們讚不絕口。

In 1966, after surviving a heart attack, businessman Phil Sokoloff founded the National Heart Savers Association, which immediately went to war against foods high in cholesterol and fat.

1966 年，商人菲爾-索科洛夫（Phil Sokoloff）在心臟病發作後倖存下來，他成立了全國心臟救護者協會，並立即向高膽固醇和高脂肪食品開戰。

Being a super rich guy, Sokoloff was able to pour millions of dollars into the effort, which was mostly directed at McDonald's, particularly the French fries.

作為一個超級富豪，索科洛夫能夠投入數百萬美元，主要針對麥當勞，尤其是薯條。

McDonald's did their best to fend him off.

麥當勞竭盡全力抵擋他。

But in 1990, they finally caved and agreed to cook their fries in vegetable oil rather than beef tallow.

但在 1990 年，他們終於妥協，同意用植物油而不是牛油來烹製薯條。

The substitution drastically changed the taste of the fries, which McDonald's tried to mask with something called natural beef flavor.

這種替代品極大地改變了薯條的味道，麥當勞試圖用一種叫做天然牛肉味的東西來掩蓋這種味道。

But the difference was as plain as the googly eyes on a fry guy's face.

但兩者之間的差別就像油炸人臉上的鵝蛋臉一樣明顯。

And fans of the original recipe have never stopped complaining about the change.

而原版食譜的粉絲們從未停止過對這一改變的抱怨。

But at least they were healthier, right?

但至少它們更健康，不是嗎？

Well, not so much.

好吧，也不盡然。

Turns out the trans fats in hydrogenated vegetable oil aren't much better for you than beef fat.

原來，氫化植物油中的反式脂肪並不比牛肉脂肪對人體更有益。

So in 2007, Mickey D's had to change to a different oil with less trans fat in it.

在 2007 年，米奇 D 不得不改用另一種反式脂肪含量更低的油。

Maybe they should have just left well enough alone.

也許他們本該息事寧人。

Thanks to McDonald's, French fries quickly became standard fare at pretty much every fast food place.

由於麥當勞的出現，炸薯條迅速成為幾乎所有快餐店的標配。

Somewhere around the 1980s, that situation turned into a heated competition between major fast food chains over who could lay claim to having the best fries.

大約在 20 世紀 80 年代，這種情況演變成了大型快餐連鎖店之間的激烈競爭，爭奪誰能擁有最棒的薯條。

And at the end of the 1990s, that competition erupted into a war, the Great French Fry War of 1998, that is.

20 世紀 90 年代末，這場競爭爆發成了一場戰爭，即 1998 年的薯條大戰。

It all started in January of 1998 when Burger King, confident that it had finally come up with a fry that was superior to McDonald's fries, initiated a PR blitz enticing customers to come try some of the new fries for free.

事情要從 1998 年 1 月說起。當時，漢堡王自信自己終於研製出了一種比麥當勞薯條更好的薯條，於是發起了一場公關閃電戰，吸引顧客前來免費品嚐新薯條。

And the move definitely brought customers in the door.

而這一舉動無疑也為門店帶來了顧客。

There was just one problem.

只有一個問題。

Those customers did not really like the fries.

這些顧客其實並不喜歡薯條。

Despite giving away somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 million orders of fries, Burger King failed to make a dent in McDonald's business.

儘管贈送了大約 1500 萬份薯條，漢堡王還是沒能在麥當勞的生意上有所作為。

And they weren't the only ones.

而且不只他們。

During this period, several of McDonald's competitors, such as Wendy's, attempted to dominate the fast food fry market to varying results.

在此期間，麥當勞的幾個競爭對手，如溫迪公司，都試圖在快餐油炸食品市場佔據主導地位，但結果各不相同。

Hearing chains boast about changes to their fry recipes, seasoning, crispiness, or even shape became a regular occurrence.

聽到連鎖店吹噓自己的油炸食品配方、調味料、酥脆程度甚至形狀都有了變化，這已成為家常便飯。

And several franchises even changed things up more than once due to customer dissatisfaction.

有幾家特許經營店甚至不止一次因顧客不滿而改變經營方式。

That being said, we can find no hard evidence that any of them surpassed McDonald's fries in popularity.

儘管如此，我們還是找不到任何確鑿證據證明它們中的任何一種在受歡迎程度上超過了麥當勞薯條。

OK, so we've given you the whole greasy history of these delicious golden wedges.

好了，我們已經為您介紹了這些美味金楔的整個油膩歷史。

But what exactly is in them?

但其中到底有什麼呢？

And how are they so damn tasty?

它們怎麼會如此美味？

Obviously, it all starts with potatoes.

顯然，一切都要從洋芋開始。

McDonald's only uses what they call premium potatoes, which includes varieties like Russet Burbank, Russet Ranger, Umatilla Russet, and Chepity.

麥當勞只使用他們所謂的優質洋芋，其中包括 Russet Burbank、Russet Ranger、Umatilla Russet 和 Chepity 等品種。

Those potatoes are first peeled, then blanched, and then cut with a tool called a water knife, which shoots them along at a mind-boggling 60 to 70 miles per hour.

這些馬鈴薯首先要去皮，然後焯水，再用一種叫做水刀的工具切割，水刀以每小時 60 至 70 英里的驚人速度切割馬鈴薯。

But potatoes are just one of the ingredients.

但洋芋只是配料之一。

Depending on how you count them, McDonald's fries actually contain anywhere from 10 to 19 ingredients.

根據不同的計算方法，麥當勞薯條實際上含有 10 到 19 種配料。

And the next two added are dextrose and sodium acid pyrophosphate.

接下來添加的是葡萄糖和焦磷酸鈉。

The dextrose is basically just sugar.

葡萄糖基本上就是糖。

It affects the taste and is partly responsible for the famous yellow color of McDonald's fries.

它會影響口感，也是麥當勞炸薯條呈現著名的黃色的部分原因。

That's also the function of the sodium acid pyrophosphate, which are added during the second phase, ominously dubbed the ingredient bath.

這也是酸性焦磷酸鈉的作用，它是在第二階段加入的，被稱為配料浴。

After that, the fries are dried out and then partially fried before being frozen for shipping.

然後，將薯條晾乾，再進行部分油炸，最後冷凍裝運。

This initial fry is what gives the fries their crisp exterior.

最初的油炸使薯條外皮酥脆。

The rest of the frying, which takes place at a steamy 325 degrees, is done after the fries arrive at the restaurant.

其餘的油炸過程在 325 度的高溫下進行，在薯條運抵餐廳後完成。

That's also when the rest of those ingredients are added, which, for the record, include salt and vegetable oil, which in turn contains canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, and some chemicals that help preserve freshness and keep the oil from splattering.

這也是添加其餘配料的時間，其中包括鹽和植物油，而植物油中又含有菜籽油、玉米油、大豆油以及一些有助於保鮮和防止油脂飛濺的化學物質。

There's also that natural beef flavor we mentioned earlier, which contains wheat and milk derivatives.

還有我們前面提到的天然牛肉味，其中含有小麥和牛奶衍生物。

And yes, that means McDonald's fries are not vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free, a fact that costs them $10 million in a false advertising suit.

是的，這意味著麥當勞的薯條不是素食、純素或無麩質的，這一事實讓他們在一起虛假廣告訴訟案中付出了 1 000 萬美元的代價。

That being said, if you happen to be in the United Kingdom, McDonald's fries, or chips as they're called, aren't made with any animal products.

儘管如此，如果你恰好在英國，麥當勞的薯條（或稱薯片）並不是用任何動物產品製成的。

So if you're really in the mood for some of Ronald's vegan stash, you can always hop the pond.

如果你真的想吃羅納德的素食藏品，你可以跳過池塘。

The inclusion of ingredients that use animal products obviously limits who wants to eat McDonald's fries, to some extent.

含有使用動物產品的成分顯然在一定程度上限制了誰想吃麥當勞的薯條。

But based on public sentiment, it's not all that much.

但從公眾情緒來看，這並不算多。

Because when it comes to fast food fries, McDonald's remains as dominant as ever.

因為說到快餐薯條，麥當勞仍然一如既往地佔據著主導地位。

In fact, while rising prices have brought down fast food sales overall, one study showed that 50% of fast food consumers still favor McDonald's fries over all others.

事實上，雖然價格上漲使快餐的總體銷售額下降，但一項研究表明，50% 的快餐消費者仍然青睞麥當勞的薯條，而不是其他任何食品。

Meanwhile, competitors like Wendy's, Chick-fil-A, Burger King, Arby's, and KFC didn't crack 15%.

與此同時，Wendy's、Chick-fil-A、Burger King、Arby's 和 KFC 等競爭對手的份額都沒有超過 15%。

Even Gen Z customers, who apparently favor Chick-fil-A over McDonald's in general, preferred McDonald's fries to any other brand.

即使是 Z 世代的顧客，他們顯然更喜歡 Chick-fil-A 而不是麥當勞，但他們更喜歡麥當勞的薯條而不是其他品牌。

Also worth mentioning is that while no one would ever call McDonald's fries a health food, they're actually not as bad for you as most other fast food fries.

另外值得一提的是，雖然沒有人會把麥當勞的薯條稱為健康食品，但實際上它們對人體的危害並不像其他大多數快餐薯條那樣嚴重。

In fact, a recent WebMD study found only Sonic Drive-In's fries had less calories and fat.

事實上，WebMD 最近的一項研究發現，只有 Sonic Drive-In 的薯條熱量和脂肪含量較低。

Since then, Sonic has allegedly changed the recipe in a way that ups both of those.

據稱，從那時起，Sonic 就改變了配方，從而提高了這兩方面的性能。

So strange as it may sound, McDonald's might have the healthiest fries around.

說來奇怪，麥當勞的薯條可能是最健康的。

So what's behind their unique flavor?

那麼，它們獨特風味的背後是什麼呢？

The exact components are a secret.

具體的成分是個祕密。

But the simple answer is that mysterious beef flavoring, which was meticulously developed by the McDonald's brothers and Ray Kroc.

但答案很簡單，那就是神祕的牛肉香精，它是由麥當勞兄弟和雷-克洛克（Ray Kroc）精心研製的。

And if it took three guys to invent the greatest fried potatoes in history, maybe there's no such thing as having too many cooks in the kitchen or too many clowns.

如果有三個人發明了史上最美味的炸洋芋，那麼也許廚房裡就不會有太多廚師，也不會有太多小丑。

So what do you think?

你怎麼看？

Do you love McDonald's french fries?

你喜歡麥當勞的炸薯條嗎？

Or does another fried potato have your heart?

還是另一種炸洋芋讓你心動？

Let us know in the comments below.

請在下面的評論中告訴我們。

And while you're at it, check out some of these other Weird History Food videos.

在觀看的同時，您還可以看看其他一些奇怪的歷史美食影片。