你也許曾經讀過「麥克雞塊不是雞」之類的文章，速食背後的加工過程早已是眾所皆知的秘密
今天我們就來了解深受大人、小孩，甚至老人都熱愛的麥當勞薯條到底是什麼做成的？
POTATOES 馬鈴薯
Mickey D's uses varieties like the Russet Burbank, which have a nice oval shape and just the right balance of starch and sugar. Excess sugar can cause a fry to have brown spots where it's over-caramelized, leaving a burnt taste and deviating from the uniform yellow-arches color. Just in case, the spuds are blanched after slicing, removing surplus sugar.
麥當勞使用像Russet Burbank這類品種的馬鈴薯，這種橢圓形馬鈴薯的澱粉和糖分比例較均勻。過量的糖分會使薯條油炸後表面較黑且產生焦味，無法呈現麥當勞招牌的金黃色，因此會將馬鈴薯多餘的糖分先清掉再切片。
*Mickey D's = McDonald's
*Oval (adj.) 橢圓形的
*Starch (n.) 澱粉
*Burnt (adj.) 燒焦的
*Just in case 以防萬一
*Spud (n.) 馬鈴薯
SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE (SAPP) 酸式焦磷酸鈉
Taters can turn a nasty hue even after they're fried—iron (鐵質) in the spud reacts with the potato's phenolic compounds (酚類化合物), discoloring the tissue. The phosphate ions (磷酸鹽離子) in SAPP trap the iron ions, stalling the reaction and keeping the potatoes nice and white throughout the process.
馬鈴薯中含有鐵質和酚類化合物，直接油炸會發生化學反應，形成不討喜的顏色。酸式焦磷酸鈉中的磷酸鹽離子可以鎖住鐵離子，延緩反應發生，使馬鈴薯在整個製作過程中維持討喜的外觀。
*Tater (n.) 馬鈴薯
*Hue (n.) 色調，色澤
*Compound (n.) 混合物；化合物
*Discolor (v.) 變色
*Tissue (n.) 組織
VEGETABLE OIL 植物油
In the good old days, McDonald's fries were cooked in beef tallow. But customer demand for less saturated fat (飽和脂肪) prompted a switch to vegetable oil in the early '90s. Here, that means oils of varying saturations combined into something reminiscent of beef tallow. There's canola (菜籽油) (about 8 percent saturated fat), soybean oil (16 percent), and hydrogenated soybean oil (94 percent). And to replace the essence of beef tallow? “Natural beef flavor,” which contains hydrolyzed wheat and milk proteins that could be a source of meaty-tasting amino acids (氨基酸).
在美好的過去，麥當勞薯條使用的是牛油。然而隨著消費者意識抬頭，從飽和式脂肪酸改用不飽和脂肪酸，越來越多速食業者開始使用植物油，但在口味上，還是要讓顧客聯想到牛油的美好，植物油中依然含有各種不同的飽和脂肪：菜籽油(8%飽和脂肪)、大豆油(16%飽和脂肪)與氫化大豆油(94%飽和脂肪)。為了取代牛油的「天然牛肉味」，又添加具有肉味氨基酸的水解小麥蛋白及牛奶蛋白。
*Tallow (n.) 牛油
*Essence (n.) 精髓，精華
MORE VEGETABLE OIL 更多的植物油
That's right, the fries get two batches of vegetable oil—one for par-frying at the factory and another for the frying bath on location. The second one adds corn oil and an additive called TBHQ, or tertbutylhydroquinone (特丁基對苯二酚), which at high doses can cause nasty side effects in rats (mmmm … stomach tumors). McDonald's uses this oil for all its frying, so the stuff usually sits around in big vats, which means it can go rancid as oxygen plucks hydrogens from lipids. TBHQ acts as an antioxidant (抗氧化劑), replacing those pilfered hydrogens with its own supply.
沒錯！更多的植物油。薯條會經過兩次的油炸，第一次先在工廠預炸，送到門市後會再進行第二次油炸，同時會添加玉米油及一種名為特丁基對苯二酚的物質（被證實對老鼠有害）。麥當勞所有的油炸食品都是使用這些油，他們的廚房隨處可見這種大桶裝的油，如果氫氧化合作用發生還會使得它飄出腐臭味。特丁基對苯二酚是強效的油溶性抗氧化劑，避免食物變色、變味。
*Batch (n.) 一批 + of
*Additive (n.) 添加物
*Vat (n.) 大桶，缸
*Rancid (adj.) 腐臭的
DEXTROSE 葡萄糖
A brief dip in a corn-based sugar solution replaces just enough of the natural sweet stuff that was removed by blanching. The result is a homogeneous outer layer that caramelizes evenly. You'll add more sugar later when you squirt on the ketchup.
炸好的薯條會再浸泡至玉米糖漿溶液一段時間，補足最初清洗馬鈴薯所流失的糖分，就像裹上一層糖衣。如果再沾了番茄醬一起吃，那麼攝取的糖分真的很可觀…
SALT 鹽巴
Sprinkled on just after frying, the crystals are a uniform diameter—just big enough to get absorbed quickly by crackling-hot oil. Now add ketchup and you've achieved the hedonistic trifecta: fat, salt, and sugar.
撒上大量鹽巴是製作薯條的最後一步，看似簡單卻也一點都不馬虎，連每顆鹽粒的直徑大小都是統一的，確保鹽巴能夠被熱油快速吸收，簡單來說，麥當勞薯條就是脂肪、糖分、鹽巴三重奏！
*Sprinkle (v.) 灑，噴淋
*Crystal (n.) 晶體
*Diameter (n.) 直徑
參考資料：Wired Magazine
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