All That and a Bag of Chips

I was inspired when I read an easy, no deep-fry required potato chip recipe on Bakingsheet's blog. This chip recipe only requires a microwave. The chips are more healthy than the deep fried chips we all know and love. It sounded too good to be true but I found that this recipe works. Homemade potato chips in minutes.

The original recipe I was working off suggested using baking potatoes or russet potatoes. I thought I would change up the recipe a bit and use multi-colored heirloom potatoes. I liked the notion of using this type of potato due to its variation in color and their smaller scale.

I made some chips using the russet potatoes and some with the heirlooms just to see the differences in taste and textures. I found that I do like the taste of the heirloom potato chips over that of the russet potatoes. I love the small scale of the heirloom chips and the beauty of the color variations.

Next, I decided that I wanted to try to soak the potatoes in vinegar to make my own version of "sea salt and vinegar chips". I found that if I soaked sliced potatoes in vinegar and placed them in the fridge for at least an hour or two the chips had a nice vinegar taste. I tried to soak the sliced potato without refrigeration but the vinegar flavor was better with a longer soaking time and at a colder temperature.

There are a few tricks in making them crispy. The slices of potato need to be extra thin. Think paper!
Use a mandoline if you have one. The thicker the chips, the more likely they will be chewy and not the crispy texture that is desired. Also-the chips all need to be the same thickness. I noticed that when some of the chips were slightly thicker than others, it was more difficult to have the chips cook evenly. If some chips were thicker and required more cooking time, the thinner chips needed to be rescued early so they didn't burn.

I played with slicing the potatoes lengthwise and using the small rounds of their widths. It was fun to change it up and have the different shapes and sizes in the finished bag.

I went to the farmer's market over the weekend. Fresh dill was in abundance. I thought that it would make a nice addition for the chips. So-I added a few sprigs to the vinegar soak before I placed the mixture into the fridge.

Sea Salt with Fresh Dill and Vinegar Microwave Chips

Scrub potatoes. I prefer to leave the skins on. Slice potatoes paper thin trying to keep the slices even and consistent. Place the slices in a large bowl. Coat the slices with vinegar until all of the slices are covered. Add a few sprigs of fresh dill. Cover mixture with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours.

Use olive oil to coat a glass baking dish. Place potato slices in a single layer. Add sea salt evenly over the potatoes. Lightly sprinkle dill on top as the final seasoned layer. Place dish into microwave.

The chips will take between 4-7 minutes depending on the power of your microwave and the thickness of the chips. Watch the first batches closely to learn how your microwave responds. Remove the chips as soon as they are brown and crisp. Be careful as the glass pan does heat up. Repeat proceedure until you have the size bag of chips you desire.

I used about a dozen heirloom potatoes and about four cooking batches later I had enough chips for three people. The downside of using the small heirlooms is it will take alot more potatoes to get a good size bag of chips.

-Fer