• Cut potatoes into french fries, place into a bowl of cold water for about an hour. Remove cheese curds from fridge, allow to come to room temperature as you work on everything else.
• If using, chop bacon into small pieces, fry until crisp. Set aside

For the sauce:

• In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add flour and pepper, stir well until fully incorporated.

  Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until flour mixture becomes the color of peanut butter.
• Once roux has obtained the right color, slowly add broth. It will steam like CRAZY, so be careful.

  Stir as you go, until sauce is smooth. Taste, add more pepper if necessary.

  Allow to simmer on medium heat for a few minutes, until slightly thickened.

  This is NOT supposed to be a thick gravy! Once the sauce is a good consistency, remove from heat and set aside.

For the Fries:

• Heat oil to 360 degrees F
• Remove fries from water, blot dry. In small batches, cook fries for 10 minutes. This will NOT brown them, merely cook them. As each batch comes out, put aside.
• Once all fries are par-cooked / blanched, turn the heat up to 375, and allow oil to reach temperature.

  In small batches, re-fry the potatoes until browned and crispy, about 3-5 minutes per batch.

To assemble the Poutine:

• Mound hot fries on serving plate.

  Add a handful or so of cheese curds, stir slightly. Smother with sauce, top with bacon and green onions.

  Serve immediately.