How to Make the Perfect Potato Chips at Home: Recipes, Tips & Gourmet Pairings
Potato chips are famous worldwide for providing comfort and are a comfort food for many. They are crispy, crunchy, salty and fun to eat. They have evolved from a shelf-stable and convenience food to an artisan made food. Assuming you love chips or want to take your snacking to the next level, knowing how to create potato chips and pairing them with sophistication can turn your kitchen into your snacking rendezvous.
This guide will cover selecting a potato and provide several different cooking options, including oven-baked, air-fried, fried and a mixture of oils. You will also learn how to play with natural flavors and seasonings. Lastly, we will show you distinctive pairings and why small batch snacks from The Epicurean Trader can elevate your potato chip experience.
Let us take you through everything you need to complete your potato chip recipe journey.
Choosing the Right Potato: Variety, Texture & Flavor Impact
The key to really crispy, delicious chips starts with the right potato. It is essential to choose potatoes that yield the desired texture, flavor and ultimately, the cooking and quality results.
Best Potatoes for Chips
Russet potatoes are the best for making quality chips. They have extremely healthy starch and little moisture, producing a crunchy, golden colored chip that is light and not greasy. Yukon gold potatoes have a buttery, slightly sweet flavor. This enables you to have a creamier potato consistency, leading to a somewhat tender chip.
Sweet potatoes taste better, are earthier and have better colour and nutrients than russet or Yukon gold potatoes. One of the advantages of sweet potatoes is that if you want something different for your snack with nutritional value, you cannot go wrong with sweet potatoes!
Organic or Conventional?
The relative advantage of getting organic is that they may produce fewer additives or chemical residue, allowing the potato flavor to shine. If you are attempting to make naturally flavored chips, but want your chips to be clean (after all the frying and cooking raw potatoes go through) and/or clean-tasting, organic potatoes may be a better choice to spend a little more on.
Texture and Starch Considerations
Potatoes high in starch and low in moisture, such as russets, are best for producing the crispiest chips. Starch gel assists with creating crispy, flaky crusts while frying (or baking). Excess moisture leads to sogginess.
Step-by-Step Potato Chips Recipe for Oven, Stovetop & Air Fryer
Making homemade potato chips is surprisingly easy once you follow a straightforward method and adapt it to your cooking style.
The Basic Ingredients are:
- Potatoes (Russet, Yukon Gold, Sweet Potato)
- A neutral oil with a high smoke point (avocado oil or sunflower oil is best)
- Salt to taste
Oven-Baked Chips
Cut the potatoes about 1/16 of an inch thick to make oven-baked chips. A mandoline works best for evenly thick slices. Soak the potato slices in cold water for at least 30 minutes to draw out some starch. Dry the slices after soaking with a couple of kitchen towels. Moisture on the potatoes will prevent crispness.
Once dry, spread the slices out on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper. Spray the slices with oil and sprinkle them with salt. Fry the chips in a scorching hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes at 400°F/200C. Halfway through cooking, flip the slices. Fry the chips until they turn golden brown and crispy.
Stovetop Frying Method
Fry chips on the stovetop by heating the oil to 350°F/175 °C in a heavy pan. Attaining too many chips in the oil will pack out the pan and keep browning chips out of the oil. Fry chips in batches, stirring the pan occasionally to avoid chips sticking together.
Then, fry the chips until they become golden. Remove them from the pan and allow them to dry on paper towels. Salt the chips immediately after they have cooled a little from the oil. Salting the hot chips brings out more flavor in them, so try not to avoid this step.
Air Fryer Method
Using the air fryer method, place potato slices in a bowl, spray or brush with oil lightly or use one teaspoon for coating. Next, place the slices in an even layer in the air fryer basket and fry at 360°F (180 °C) for 10 to 15 minutes, shaking the basket often.
As such, these chips will not have as much of an oil coat as those fried initially. Hence, they will not be golden brown or crisp.
Tips for Getting Potato Chips Extra Crispy Every Time
Master the crispy potato chip process to get that perfect crunch when you bite into a chip.
Soaking & Drying Steps
Soaking chips helps remove some surface starch on each slice. Surface starch contributes to potatoes sticking together or creating a gummy texture. After washing, always pat each slice dry. Drying the slices before cooking is essential as residual moisture causes steaming instead of crispness.
Slices, Thickness & Slicing
Thin slices will cook more evenly in the oven or when using frying methods. A mandoline slicer can create the ideal thickness for each method of cooking:
Oven : 1/16inch
Frying : slightly thinner to allow for quicker cooking
Air fryer: like the oven thickness
Oil, Temperature and Timing:
Maintaining the ideal oil temperature is critical. If the temperature is too low, chips will absorb oil and be greasy. If the oil is too hot, it will burn. Use a thermometer to keep a stable temperature or heat, especially when frying.
Cooling After Cooking
Place chips on a wire rack to cool. The wire rack will circulate air to help the chips crisp completely as they cool. Avoid storing cooked chips; stacking them while they cool will trap steam, creating a soft crisp rather than a true to crisp potato chip.
Flavor Variations to Try at Home
To produce irresistible flavor potato chips, use naturally occurring seasonings (which may already be in your pantry!) rather than chemical seasonings.
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper: Can’t beat a classic. Employ a good finishing salt and fresh cracked pepper. Avocado or olive oil pairs well with this flavor combination to provide richness.
Smoked Paprika and garlic: Smoked Paprika’s depth and a touch of spicy heat make a great flavor combination. Sprinkle immediately after cooking for optimal hold.
Rosemary and truffle salt: A sophisticated combination perfect for entertaining. Truffle salt is potent, so use it sparingly.
Cinnamon and coconut sugar: Delicious on sweet potato chips. This flavor reminds one of warm, holiday flavors, perfect for the holidays.
What to Pair with Your Homemade Potato Chips
Take advantage of your snack with thoughtful pairings.
Gourmet Dips and Spreads
Our small-batch varieties of black garlic aioli, whipped feta and hummus from The Epicurean Trader’s Gourmet Dips and Spreads line perfectly complement chips.
Craft Beverages
Try some light and refreshing drinks like sparkling botanicals or citrus seltzers. They help balance the savory crunch of the chip. The Epicurean Trader's craft beverages have some artisan options.
Cheese and Charcuterie Boards
Remember to add potato chips to a carefully curated cheese and charcuterie board. The texture contrast is fantastic. The crispy potato chips complement creamy cheeses and salty cured meats.
Throwing a Party with Chips
Consider hosting a ‘DIY Chip and Dip Bar,’ with chips of different flavors, gourmet dips and matching drinks to create a festive, interactive party setup. Themes like Mediterranean Night can add an international flair to your get-together.
From Pantry to Plate: Why The Epicurean Trader Loves Small-Batch Snacks
Here, at The Epicurean Trader, small batch quality is our way of life. Our artisan snacks focus on bold flavors, earth-friendly ingredients and originality.
- Quality over quantity: artisan oils, unique recipes, boldly flavored enhancements.
- Curated snacks and dips: artisan potato chips, salsas and gourmet spreads, selected by hand.
- Perfect pairing packs: seasonal sets that combine chips, dips and drinks. Quality gifting with ease, great for entertaining an assembled crowd.
Please look at our Artisan Snacks collection for more original options to enhance everything beyond the snack experience.
Elevate the Humble Chip Into a Homemade Classic
Classic potato chips have come a long way from a simple snack food to a blank canvas for creativity and flavors that fall into the gourmet category. The right potatoes, the proper cooking technique and the correct natural seasoning turned a basic recipe of potato chips into a well-done, homemade classic.
Natural flavorings are much healthier and tastier than artificial flavorings, while small batch and artisan alternatives represent the new standard of quality in snacks. Whether you make chips yourself or use the local artisanal potato chips from The Epicurean Trader, you’ll be set to indulge in something simply delicious and wholesome.
Are you ready to go from snack time to show stopper? Check out our small-batch chips, gourmet dips and finely curated beverage pairings- all hand-picked by food lovers at The Epicurean Trader.
Ready to go from snack time to showstopper? Discover small batch chips, gourmet dips and curated beverage pairings - all handpicked by food lovers at The Epicurean Trader.