Thursday, June 22, 2006
The Kount of Monte Krystal
| While I am a big fan of the Alexandre Dumas novel, and various movies, if you are turning to the Krystal Adventure blog for your serious literature fix, you've taken a wrong turn! We're talking tasty burgers here, not deception and revenge! So have you ever heard of a Monte Cristo? The Monte Cristo, basically is a fried sandwich. I am of course over simplifying, but you get the idea. Make a ham and cheese (and turkey) on white bread, then you're going to batter it and fry it. They are usually served with various toppings. Frankly I don't go crazy for them, but I know folks who do. My fascination began with the fact that 'Monte Cristo' was just too darn similar to 'Monte Krystal' to ignore. But upon further review, I really got into it. Lets face it, few things can make a Krystal better, but with eggs and hot oil or butter, who can resist. That's right, folks, tonight I took Krystals where they've never gone before. In my research (yes, I do research for these posts!) I found 2 general schools of thought on Monte Cristo sandwiches: one uses a flour based batter similar to pancake batter, and another uses an egg and milk based batter like french toast. Since the internet seemed split 50/50, I decided I would have to do both and see what works batter.. I mean better.  First we start with 4 cheese krystals (with or without pickles, your choice) Smash em flat for better cooking and easier handling. (You can put toothpicks through them to hold em together.) First the flour batter version
Now the egg batter version
My Conclusions:The flour battered version turned out to be a lot like a Krystal filled donut. It puffed up and got very 'doughey' if that's a word. I didn't care for it very much. However, having the deep fryer going I could toss my fries in and make em extra crispy between Krystals!The egg batter version was excellent! Eggy, buttery, krystal-y. Top notch tasty. But I think I can take this one step further. More research is needed. So Saturday I will drag my George Foreman grill out and see how he does. I figure cooking on both sides at the same time can't hurt, and I get those tasty Monte Krystals twice as fast! (Thanks George!) Now I know I never even touched on the condiments. Normally a monte cristo comes with a tart fruity jelly (currant or raspberry) and/or powdered sugar. Possibly maple syrup or mustard. Well since the Krystal has the mustard inside no need to put any on the outside. And frankly I have tried maple syrup on a Krystal and it was utterly revolting. So on Saturday to get the komplete package deal I'll try the jelly and/or powdered sugar and let you know. Maybe if you're all good boys and girls I'll share the recipe with you! The great thing about this is, if Krystal wanted to start making them, they could start tomorrow. They already have all of the things it takes to make em: Krystals, eggs, water, salt, pepper. The topping might be tricky, but how hard is it to find raspberry jelly?  |
