Mix the potatoes around in the bowl and drain the water a couple of times until the water is no longer cloudy. This removes some of the excess starch.

Spread the potato matchsticks out on kitchen towels on a sheet pan and place in the fridge for at least an hour. This helps remove some of the moisture from the matchstick potatoes.

When ready for the first fry, remove the matchstick potatoes from the fridge. Have more kitchen towels on a sheet pan ready for the first-fried fries.

In a deep pan no more than half filled with oil (or a deep fryer) being the temperature up to 160°C (320°F). Fry the matchstick potatoes in batches until they are opaque and just starting to firm up again and have a very light crust.

Once these have all had their first fry and are laid out on the sheet pan, they can go back in the fridge for at least an hour. At this stage they can be kept in the fridge for a couple days days – handy if you want toffy them last minute for a burger night.

For the final fry, the oil should be at 180°C (355°F). Have more kitchen towels on a sheet pan ready for the second-fried fries. Carefully place the matchstick fries into the oil in small batches. Keep moving the fries around with a slotted spoon. The fries will cook a little unevenly if you've cut them by hand – but this is part of their charm. Remove with a slotted spoon when the lighter ones are golden brown and spread out on the sheet pan.

Keep working in batches until they're all fried. You should serve these immediately, but you can keep them warm in a warm oven at around 100°C (210°F) for 5 minutes before serving.

Before serving, place the fries in a large bowl and sprinkle over the salt. Don't toss the fries like you would with normal ones as the matchstick fries will break.