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These tasty oil-free air fryer chips will totally blow your mind - and satisfy your craving for something crunchy and delicious without compromising on health.
The first thing I wanted to make when I got my air fryer (Thanks Amazon!) was make chips. Chips are definitely a snack food that I miss since I have been making an effort to eat healthier and stay away from too much oil. Air fryer recipes are awesome if you're trying to consume less oil.
Pretty sure I went through about 15 potatoes trying to perfect these oil-free air fryer chips. They were either underdone, overdone, or a combination of both. But baby, I DID IT.
Most of the air fryer chip recipes out there contained oil, which I wanted to avoid. And they called for air-frying them at a really high temp, which I found made the chips brown on the edges and underdone in the middle. Somehow, I stumbled onto The Pioneer Woman's recipe for Perfect French Fries. Although a totally different recipe, she recommends frying the fries at a lower temp to cook them through and then boosting the temp to make them crispy.
I figured it would not hurt to try the same method with air fryer chips and I was pleasantly surprised!
How to make
First, you will need to thinly slice a couple of potatoes. I find that red potatoes work the best for air fried chips.
I recommend buying a mandoline if you do not already own one. It makes slicing the potatoes so much easier and will promote even cooking. I have a mandoline slicer and use the thinnest (1.5mm) blade.
Then, soak the potatoes in water for 30 minutes with some salt. This helps pull the sticky starches out - which is a key to making the potatoes crunchy.
Next, pat the potatoes dry with a towel. Toss the potatoes with freshly crushed garlic and vegan parmesan. Or whatever flavor you prefer. Just salt and pepper is delicious, too.
Finally, layer the potatoes in the air fryer. Place them in no more than 4 layers. Adding too many potato slices to your air fryer will cause uneven cooking. Fry at 170 degrees for 20-25 minutes (flipping and shaking around the basket every 5 minutes or so), or until the potatoes are dry to the touch and no longer flimsy. Bump the temperature up to 400 degrees for 5 minutes or until the potatoes have crisped up.
The result?! Perfect air fryer chips! Not overdone, not soft in the middle. Perfect.
Garlic Parmesan Flavor
This super delicious flavor combination can be achieved with my homemade vegan parmesan recipe. It is SO good, I put it on as many dishes as I possibly can. I love it on popcorn and figured it would be HEAVENLY on chips. P.S. It is.
I like to sprinkle it on before (along with the fresh garlic) and after air-frying the chips.
You can absolutely use garlic powder instead of fresh garlic if that's what you have on hand - a ⅛ teaspoon of garlic powder is equal to 1 clove of garlic.
Recipe
Oil-Free Air Fryer Chips (Garlic Parm Flavor)
Ingredients
- 2 Large Red Potatoes
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 4 garlic cloves crushed or minced
- 2 tablespoon homemade vegan parmesan
Instructions
- Thinly slice the potatoes. I recommend using a mandolin (I use a 1.5mm blade.)
- Place the sliced potatoes in a bowl and fill with water. Mix in 2 teaspoons of salt. Let soak for 30 minutes.
- Drain and rinse the potatoes. Pat dry.
- Toss the potatoes with crushed garlic and vegan parmesan.
- Layer half of the potato slices in the air fryer, in no more than 4 or so layers. Don't overload the air fryer or the chips won't cook evenly.
- Fry at 170 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-25 minutes, or until dry to the touch and no longer flimsy. Stir and toss the basket every 5 minutes or so.
- Bump the temperature up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and fry for an additional 5 minutes or until the potatoes have become crunchy.
- Remove from the air fryer and top with more vegan parm or salt.
- Repeat for the other half of the potato slices.
- Snack away!
