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Recipes: Then & Now - Potato Chips - by Douglas Carpenter
posted: Jan. 08, 2010
Potato Chips
The other day while thinking about what to fix for lunch, I realized it has been a long time since I'd had potato chips. Well, I don't partake often because they are so. . . well. . . you know, 'not good for you'. The more I thought about lunch the more I needed chips to go with the sandwich I had decided on. Not having any in the house and not wanting to go out to get some, I looked to see if I had any fresh potatoes. Ahh, just enough!
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
Potato chips as we know them originated when a customer in a restaurant kept sending back his order of fries 'till the chef got fed up and sliced them so thin they were now chips. Well you guessed it, the customer loved these new crunchy potatoes. For many years what we just call chips were known as Saratoga Chips, named for the restaurant where the chef got fed up with his customer.
Though these are not a healthy food by any means, but if you do want to try making some, here is what to do:
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
Potato Chips
Potatoes
Oil for frying
Salt to taste
Peel the potatoes or not, whichever you prefer. Slice very thin with a sharp knife. Or better yet use your vegetable peeler. It will make the perfect potato chip. Place the slices on paper towels to blot up any moisture and let them sit to air dry for a few minutes. Heat the oil over medium high heat to about 350 degrees. I found any higher and the chips burn too fast. Slip the potato slices into the hot oil until the top surface of the oil is just covered with floating chips. You don't want to crowd them too much. Stir occasionally to keep them browning evenly and remove as they brown. Place on paper toweling to drain and sprinkle with salt. Cool and serve immediately.
I also thought I would try making oven fried chips - they just were not the same. I was hoping for something that might be a little less greasy, but it did not turn out that way. I tried three methods on one cookie sheet lined with parchment. First were left completely plain. The next were sprayed with cooking spray, and the last were tossed in a little oil. The sprayed were not good at all. The ones left plain were no more that toasted dried potatoes. Yuck! The ones tossed in oil were ok, but tasted too much of the oil. The real deep fried were by far the best.
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
image courtesy of Douglas Carpenter
Douglas Carpenter is an avid recipe and cookbook collector. He has over 400 cookbooks in his library and he has published two cookbooks of locally-collected recipes. He has won sweepstakes and blue ribbons in the Culinary Arts division of the Indiana State Fair. Email your cooking questions to
douglas@BroadRippleGazette.com
douglas@broadripplegazette.com