How to Make Homemade Potato Chips
These crispy, crunchy homemade potato chips will rival any store-bought brand! Thinly sliced russet potatoes are soaked in water, dried, then deep-fried until golden-brown.
Servings: 2 servings
Equipment
- 2 Large Kitchen Towels
Ingredients
- 1 russet potato
- 4 cups water
- Salt for soaking and seasoning
- Neutral oil, for frying (enough to fill the pot about 2 inches deep) such as canola or peanut oil
Instructions
- Prep the potato: If desired, peel 1 russet potato completely. Otherwise, if you'd like to keep the skin on, slice off one end of the potato to create a flat surface (this helps it glide safely across the mandoline blade).
- Slice: Using a mandoline, a slicer guard, and cut-proof gloves, carefully slice the potatoes about 1/16-inch to ⅛-inch thick (I prefer chips just in between these two thicknesses). The slices should be somewhat translucent.
- Soak: Rinse potatoes in a fine-mesh sieve a few times until the water runs mostly clear. Transfer to a bowl with 4 cups water and 1 tablespoon Diamond-Crystal Kosher Salt (or 1 ½ teaspoons of any other salt). Soak for 1 hour.
- Dry: Drain potatoes, then transfer to a baking sheet lined with a clean kitchen towel. Dab excess water with another kitchen towel. Arrange slices in an even layer, and allow to air-dry, about 1 hour. This step ensures a crisp result!
- Grind the salt: Meanwhile, grind 2 teaspoons Diamond-Crystal Kosher Salt (or 1 teaspoon of any other salt) in a spice grinder until almost as fine as a powder. Set aside in a small bowl. Set up your draining station: Line a large baking sheet with a wire rack. Line with 2 - 3 large paper towels.
- Fry: In a small Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, add enough neutral oil to fill the pot about 2 inches deep. Heat to 350℉. When the oil is hot, carefully add half of the potato slices to the pot with a spider or slotted spoon, frying in batches to avoid overcrowding. Stir continuously until deeply golden brown, about 3 - 5 minutes.
- Drain: Scoop cooked potatoes out of the oil with the spider, draining any excess oil back into the pot. Transfer to the paper towel-lined baking sheet and immediately sprinkle with salt. Repeat, frying the remaining batch, then allow the chips to cool for a few minutes until no longer hot to the touch.Serve immediately, and enjoy!
Note: Stirring the chips continuously allows for more even frying. If possible, cook until there are no pale bits on a chip (as those pale bits can sometimes be chewy). The temperature will drop when you add the chips; as long as the oil stays between 275℉ and 325℉, you should be fine!
Note: You may not need all of the salt!
Notes
Russet potatoes have the ideal amount of starch for potato chips! Do not use any waxy potato like Yukon Gold.
This recipe makes enough potato chips for 2, but you can easily double or triple the amount! Just make sure that you have at least 2 inches of frying oil in your pot, and fry in batches to prevent overcrowding.
Grinding the salt allows for better stickage and coverage; don't skip this step!
FAQs:
Q: Help! My chips are not cooking evenly.
A: First, check that you're not overcrowding the pot. Second, are you stirring continuously? Third, ensure the chips are thinly and evenly sliced. Finally, make sure the temperature is within the ranges I suggest!
Q: Do I need to use a mandoline?
A: Yes, unfortunately! It is near impossible to slice the chips that thinly without one.
