Celeriac chips: 'More virtuous, and less filling, than potato'
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Version 0 of 1. The Guardian’s alternative chip week, where I try your suggestions for new versions of the potato chip, reaches the end of the road. I’ve expanded the original test – plantain, cassava and the mighty chickpea – to include porridge, polenta and breadfruit. There were other chip alternatives that had me (and you) wondering, but, alas, I could not try them all – I didn’t have any overgrown marrow in the garden to improve upon the courgette chip, as suggested by one commenter, nor did I have access to burdock root to fry up, as seen in pubs in Japan, proposed by another. Of all the tested alternative chip types, I can confirm that there is no change to the original results. The velvet-centred, and subtle-flavoured chickpea chip took to oil and salt the best. It sits up there, with full marks, alongside the potato – both of them offering great supporting acts to burgers. After the chickpea chip, the polenta chip, a dangerously moreish morsel thanks to its wonderously crispy shell, takes second place. In third place, now, waving the flag for all the vegetable chips out there is celeriac (suggested by Diana Price, madjens1, Scrood and even billed as “the best chip substitute I’ve ever tasted” by gavanelli), which I respectfully present to you here. Shopping: At this time of year, these fantastically knobbly-faced vegetables seem to be everywhere (though they are available year round). Method: I opt for a parboil after the vegetable has been peeled and sliced into batons. After three minutes, it has some give, so I drain it and allow it to steam dry before frying. The celeriac cooks a treat, with the edges catching and turning a golden brown. Verdict: While it crisps out on the outside, it remains a squidgy chip, somewhat similar to a chippy chip. In fact, that’s precisely where it should sit – alongside fish. Subtle enough not to steal the limelight, it has it’s own nutty moreish flavour. Because it’s slightly more vegetal than a potato, it’s also more virtuous and less filling, which means you can enjoy more of them. Surely a plus. Score: 4/5 |