21 June 2007

Stylish Chip

I'm not a regular chip-eater; in fact I try to avoid it, because, duh. I did buy a few singles to keep myself awake during duty nights (and to ward off the hunger). Some of my favorites were Jack n' Jill's V-Cut (original is best, but Sweet Chili is not bad) and Oishi Natural Potato Chips. The nutrition information claimed that Oishi didn't have any saturated fat. I think for some reason it now does.
Kettle Chips Honey Dijon and Salt and Ground Pepper
On a whim, I bought Kettle Brand potato chips because the packaging was beautiful (hey, a designer has to judge a book by its cover), and it came in Honey Dijon-- one of my favorite flavor combinations. Never mind it cost P70 ($1.40) for 2oz. It toppled all the pedestals (?) I put my previous chips on. And I was brainwashed-- I always say now that it's not worth it to spend your money on any other chip.

I had to tell my family about my discovery-- at the same time, selling that it had no trans fats, blah blah blah. Eventually we bought other flavors: Thai Spice (fiery hot with a hint of ginger and lime, yum yum), Cheddar Beer (reminds me of why I hate beer), Yogurt and Green Onion (tastes too much like other brands' combinations), Lightly Salted, Classic Barbecue (one of the best barbecue chips I've tried), Sea Salt and Vinegar (addictive), Buffalo Bleu (not bad but I prefer classic barbecue), and Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper.

Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper is just a step above Honey Dijon for me. Many posters on the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts and Letters forums actually say that it's one of the best chips they've tasted (some other imported brands and Terra Blue also were mentioned).

So, I learned something. Pepper is everything. I experimented on a bag of Ruffles (bleagh, too salty) by adding Cayenne Pepper and Fresh Ground Pepper from my mill. The third pepper in the spice mix of Kettle Chips is ground Jalapeno, but I don't know where to get that. Anyway, I added it to a small batch, shook to distribute, and behold:

Instant improvement in flavor. Not as great as Kettle, but at least I got rid of the boring taste of salt and oil. As you can see, it's not mixed well enough (some spots of red there), but working in small batches should help. TRY IT with your next plain chips. I don't think you'd want to eat your chips any other way afterwards.

Unless you are a vinegar fan, which I am not.

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