Chips are considered to be one of the most easy and munchy snack to take. There are different types of chips, they can be in a flat, crispy, or shaped in any form. Some chips are flavored especially if they are branded. This adds extra taste and uniqueness it. While some chips are full-time snacks, others are made into dishes to serve as appetizers, side dish or eaten with other food to get the best of it. In this article we will take a journey round the different types of chips, their prices, root ingredients, flavors and a whole lot more.
What are the Different Types of Chips
There are varieties of chips some come with extra flavor that will tingle your taste buds. below are some of it.
1. Plantain Chips: These are made from the plantain fruit. They can also be called mariquitas or chifles. Usually the unripe plantain (green in color) serves the purpose. They could be cut into tiny round or long flat shapes as the case may be. They are now deep fried and seasoning added. It is a popular snack in Africa, Ecuador and many other countries. They are very natural and flavors aren’t added.
2. Potato Chips: Potato chips are one of the most famous types of chips. They come in both branded and locally packaged forms. The potatoes are cut into tiny slices and are then fried, baked and processed as desired. Potato chips has the highest use in the commercial industry for creating snacks. Lets take a look at some of them.
i. Pringles: Pringles is a well known brand of potato chips. The chips comes in different flavors that gives it its sweet to salty to cheesy taste. The flavor could be original, onion, cheddar, sour cream, cheddar cheese, loud margherita pizza, salt and vinegar, hot and spicy and lots more.
ii. Kettle Brand Potato Chips: This is another crunch and crispy brand of potato chips. Unlike other potato chips, the golden brown chips are thicker, sweeter and well flavored. The chips are made from potatoes as the main ingredient, vegetable oil and sea salt.
They also come in different flavors like sea salt and vinegar, jalapeno, salt and fresh ground pepper, truffle and sea salt, habanero lime, barbeque. The kettle brand potato chips is owned by the Campbell soup company. It costs $2.98 and is a widely sold product in the U.S
iii. Pop chips: Pop chips is snack brand that gives you tasty potato chips that haven’t even been fried. Instead of frying, the chips are made by processing the potatoes into tiny pellets, mixed in a hopper, put into molds and popped from a combination of heat and pressure. They are considered to be a more healthy brand of potato chips and of course the taste is on point.
This brand is also popular in the U.S and have different flavors like sea salt, barbeque, sour cream, Thai sweet chili, sea salt and vinegar etc. They are sold for about $2.88 although prices may differ due to size, quantity and flavor.
iv. Lays: Lays is a well known brand that has been in existence for over 75 years. It is a product of PepsiCo and is the perfect snack to keep your mouth busy. It has low sodium levels and calories. They also come in various flavors some of which include barbecue, Spanish tomato tango, cooked jalapeno, kettle cooked mesquite, salt and vinegar, sour cream and onion.
v. Jacker: Jacker is another potato chip snack with unique taste. It is a product of Oriental food industries and was introduced in 1978 in Malaysia. It also comes in various flavors like the hot and spicy, honey butter, cheese, barbecue, tomato flavor and natural flavor.
Others Types of Chips are
3. Parsnip chips: This is another type of mouthwatering chip. The main ingredient here is the parsnip itself. The parsnip is a root vegetable with a creamy yellow color. They look more like carrots. They contain vitamins, minerals potassium and manganese as well as fiber. Although parsnip are used mostly as an ingredient in stews, chicken broth and soups, it is also a very great snack when sliced into chunky shapes and baked into chips. They are crunchy, sweet, rich and have fewer calories.
4. Doritos: Doritos is another tasty branded snack chips. It is also a product of the Pepsi Co company. They are made from corn, Vegetable oil, flour, garlic powder and lots of other ingredients. It is a well flavored snack that has a variety of flavors. It is widely sold in the U.S and many other countries.
5. Nori chips: Nori chips is another exciting snack. It is made from the seaweed which are shredded, pressed into thin sheets and then baked. They are common in Asian countries. The nori chips are also very healthy.
6. Beetroot chips: This is a healthy vegetable chip commonly taken by the Asians. The beetroot is the main ingredient used for this snack. It is known for its several benefits in blood pressure regulation, fighting inflammation, increased blood flow to the brain due to the presence of nitrates. The beetroot chips are made from beetroots which are sliced, processed with some salt and olive oil and then baked in a pre-heated oven for about 45 to 60 minutes.
7. Cassava chips: Cassava chips are quite popular in India and Asian countries. It is rich in starch and has golden brown color after frying. It is an easy to make snack that can be made even at home. All you need is the cassava, oil, salt and some chili powder. The cassava just has to be sliced seasoned and fried to desired taste. Cassava chips can also serve as a side dish to Kokoda (a Fijian dish).
8. Parmesan kale chips: This is a healthy snack that has lot of nutritional value. While potato chips may reduce its nutritional value when made as chips, kale retains its own. Kale is rich in fiber, vitamins, calcium, potassium and antioxidants. The kale leaves are cut to their desired sizes, seasoned with chili flakes, salt, sesame seeds and oil, then baked in a pre-heated oven for about 12minutes and served.
9. Pumpkin chips: Pumpkin chips are a great natural chips made from pumpkin. They can either be fried or baked. The extra crunch can be achieved by topping some aromatic bread crumbs. They can be served together with salad or roast. It is gluten free and has low calorie content.
10. Banana chips: Banana chips are made from unripe banana seasoned wit salt and pepper and then fried to give its golden-brown color. The Saba and Nandra cultivars are preferable specie for the production of banana chips because they are firm and contain more starch.
11. Cheesy grits: chips Grits are made from corn that have been grounded that are deep fried and seasoned with salt. Cheesy grits are made from cheddar, Monterey jack cheese or even grated parmesan. They are delicious and make a good choice of snack.
Are Chips Healthy
Generally, consuming lots of fried and fatty foods are not recommended health wise. The process of making chips includes frying in most of the cases and this together with other factors make them less beneficial when consumed excessively.
Chips contain fat: Since they’re fired in oil, chips tend to have higher fat content. The fat content may fill you up and give energy but the nutritional value is low.
They have high sodium content: Chips are always seasoned with salt or flavored making their sodium content high. Excessive sodium is unhealthy for the body especially the heart.
Reduction in nutritional value due to the the method of cooking: Potato chips that are made from potatoes. Potatoes contain rich nutrients like fiber. Fiber has a lot of benefits when it comes to regulating blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Once these potatoes are processed and fried, they tend to reduce in their nutritional value coupled with the fact that preservatives and artificial flavors.
They may come out tasting very superb but with lesser nutritional quality. Taking them occasionally is okay but excessive consumption is not advised.
The process of cooking chips could introduce harmful by- products: The acrylamide molecule usually present in starchy foods that have been cooked at high temperature is one of the negative by products of the cooking method of most types of chips. When they accumulate in your body, they can trigger certain diseases which are harmful to one’s health.
Although some chips are baked or popped they still have a tendency of containing acrylamide. Vegetable chips with low fat and low salt content are less likely to contain this molecule.
SUMMARY
The different types of chips we have great taste and offer nutritional value. Most can be prepared at home or preferably the branded ones are available in stores. Chips are an incredible snack, while we enjoy it, we also curtail the amount we eat to ensure our health is in tact.