Tortilla Chips

The only tricky part is getting the corn tortillas the right thickness. Too thin, and it will be hard to dip in salsa or queso without it breaking into pieces. Too thick and it won’t cook right and will be too hard on the outside and too soft inside. It should have uniform crispiness, so it needs to “right” thickness. The same goes for hard taco shells and for use in enchiladas.

You can use the corn tortilla recipe already linked to or buy corn tortillas at the store(why would you do such a monstrous thing?). Well, the reason to buy at the store is that it is likely the correct thickness, but look around and compare the different brands.

I am not going to write this as one of my normal recipes because it is so simple.

Cut the corn tortillas into triangles. A pizza cutter works great, but any sharp knife should do.

In a deep fryer or on the stove using a heavy pot(cast iron works great) fill it with enough oil with a high smoke point(peanut, grapeseed, avocado or if you must, vegetable). You only need it deep enough so that the tortillas will float. In my large cast iron pot, that is about 2 inches deep.

On medium heat on the stove, or on the deep fryer setting, heat the oil to 350 F(177 C).

Place enough cut tortillas in, so it is not overloaded. Cook for about 2 minutes or until golden brown, remove from the oil and place on a plate with paper towels on it to soak in the oil. Let the oil heat back up to 350 F and cook the next batch.

It doesn’t take long to cool, while the current batch is cooking throw the cooked chips into a large bowl. Add salt to taste.

And that is it. In about a half hour, I can go from flour to a decent-sized batch of tortilla chips.

Notes: it is very important to use a high smoke oil. It will take the oil a good while to heat up, so starting that while making the tortillas is not a bad idea if you have stove space.