Keeping Chips Fresh – The Ultimate Guide
Crunch! Crunch! The satisfying crunch of chips is what people are typically attracted to when they eat chips. There is just something special about that crunch. But it’s just awful when your chips get stale and they are missing the perfect crunch factor.
How can you keep chips fresh? Do you have to do different things for different types of chips to keep them fresh? The best way to keep chips fresh is to store them in a cool, dry place.
If you can remove them from their original packaging and place them in an airtight resealable bag, that is the best option. Otherwise, you can purchase bag clips to help seal the chips in the original packaging.
But that’s not all! We have all the tips, tricks, and details you might need and we want to share them with you.
The Ultimate Guide to Keeping Chips Fresh
Stop worrying about those chips and let us walk you through a guide on everything you should know about chips and how you can keep your chips fresh.
The great news is that it’s actually super simple to keep your chips fresh.
You just need to know the inner tidbits and make sure that you proactively take the steps to protect your chips so they are fresh every time you use them.
Keeping Chips Fresh – The Best Way
There are a few primary rules that you should follow when you are storing chips. First, note that even homemade chips can be stored with these rules. They do not have to be stored in the fridge.
Here is the best way to keep chips fresh:
- Always store in a cool, dry location.
- Store well sealed, this is extremely important.
- Store in a sealed container for best storage results.
- Freezer options are available.
- If storing in the bag, remove excess air and make sure there are no rips or tears on the bag that will allow outside air in. Roll tightly to seal.
- The key to chip storage is to be airtight.
If you keep these minor steps and tips in mind for your chip storage, then you will ensure that your chips remain fresh for an extended period of time. There will be no stale chips for quite some time!
We cannot express strongly enough that the key to having fresh chips is to ensure that they are sealed in an airtight manner as much as possible.
Clearly, you will have to open your bag or storage container in order to get chips out. When you do so, be sure to close and seal the chips right away.
The longer the chips remain open, the more that they are subjected to the surrounding air. It is that air that will cause the chips to become stale and will strip them of that fresh crunch and flavor that you want to maintain.
We recommend that you seal the chips immediately after retrieving what you need at the time. This is the best way to ensure that they do not get left open or sealed improperly and ensure that your chips will be fresh the next time you reach for them.
How to Seal Chips So They Stay Fresh
Check out this list for some recommendations for sealing your chips.
- Seal your bagged chips tightly by releasing the air from the bag and tightly rolling down the top.
- Attach a chip clip to the tightly closed bag. If you don’t have chip clips you could try clipping your bag down with a paperclip or a clothespin.
- Seal your chips into a Ziploc-style bag and seal well.
- Store your chips in an airtight container and get rid of the bags completely.
These methods can be used together or apart from each other. As we previously mentioned, the key to keeping your chips fresh is to protect them from open air for extended periods of time.
If your chips are open to the air, they can quickly become stale.
5 Types of Chips to Always Keep Fresh
Now that you know how to keep chips fresh, here are the 5 types of chips that we recommend prioritizing and keeping fresh in your home.
These are the 5 types of chips we will cover in this guide to keeping chips fresh:
- Potato chips
- Kettle chips
- Tortilla chips
- Vegetable chips
- Homemade chips
Every individual has their own tastes and preferences. Each of these types of chips serves a purpose of some kind and you may determine you prefer one type of chip over another.
Most other types of chips are simply used for snacking or as part of a meal. The flavors allow them to be versatile so you can choose what you enjoy.
1. Potato Chips
Potato chips were the original version of chips. Every other type of chip on the market was created from the inspiration of the potato chip. Potato chips continue to be one of the most popular snack foods purchased.
Why are potato chips to popular? Not because they are a healthy treat, but because nearly everyone who tries them loves the flavors, the ability to select a specific flavor, the simplicity of eating them, and the satisfying crunch that accompanies them.
Potato chips are certainly not a nutritious option but according to statistics they compile about 40% of all snack foods consumed.
They are more popular than other types of chips as well as popcorn or pretzels.
Recommended Product: Miss Vickie’s Sea Salt Potato Chips
2. Kettle Chips
Kettle chips are very similar to potato chips. The primary difference is the process by which they are fried. This process produces different results and even a different flavor in the end. Kettle chips have a stronger potato texture and flavor.
Potato chips are fried through a process known as continuous fry. In potato chip factories, they move on a conveyor belt through the frying process.
With kettle chips, they are fried in a deep kettle of hot oil. The kettle chips are fried in batches in the kettle for a specific amount of time. Then they are pulled from the kettle and a new batch is put in.
This fry method produces a different effect, leaving the kettle chips more similar to a fried potato.
Kettle chips can also be seasoned and flavored to different tastes. This method also leads to thicker chips and varying shapes.
Recommended Product: Kettle Brand Potato Chips with Sea Salt
3. Tortilla Chips
The tortilla chip is styled as a chip but is made from corn tortillas rather than potatoes. The corn tortillas are cut and then fried or baked. The primary ingredients of corn tortillas are corn, salt, oil, and water.
Tortilla chips are inspired by Mexican chips, which are deep-fried flour or corn tortillas. They are a bit lighter and airier than the tortilla chips purchased from the grocery store (when they are made fresh by a restaurant or in a home).
Tortilla chips are perfect for dipping into things like salsa, nacho cheese dip, guacamole, or various other toppings. They also make a great addition to things like taco salad or even taco soup.
The tortilla chip is extremely versatile because it is lightly salted rather than seasoned to a specific flavor. Although it is possible for them to be lightly flavored as well.
Tortilla chips can also sometimes be blue or red, depending on the corn in the tortillas.
Recommended Product: Late July Multi-Grain Sea Salt Tortilla Chips
4. Vegetable Chips
Vegetable chips are made directly from vegetables other than potatoes. There are many ways that vegetable chips can be made, depending on your preferences and the effect you are trying to accomplish.
Vegetable chips can be made by frying, dehydrating, drying, or baking. Most commonly, vegetable chips are fried or baked because this produces an effect that is most similar to potato chips.
If it’s the crunch you’re after, this a much healthier option to satisfy those chip cravings. Although frying the vegetables can potentially make them just as bad as potato chips when it comes to seeking a healthy option.
The vegetable of your choice or an assortment of vegetables is thinly sliced, seasoned, and then cooked by whatever means you or the manufacturer choose. You can flavor vegetable chips almost any way you like, just as you could potato chips.
Vegetable chips are the healthiest chip option as they utilize a vegetable and can be made in different ways. Bonus points for vegetable chips if you make them fresh at home.
Recommended Product: The Daily Crave Vegetable Chips
5. Homemade Chips
Homemade chips are great because you can literally make them any way you want to. They are a bit different from potato chips because, well, they aren’t made in a factory process.
Homemade potato chips are made from fresh potatoes. You slice them to your desired thickness, you season them and then you can either fry them or bake them.
Because of the difference in making these at home and fresh compared to the processing of store-bought chips, you can expect them to taste even better than potato chips.
Homemade potato chips will be crunchy and fresh and have a full flavor. Their texture and size will probably be most comparable to the kettle chip because of the overall process.
Homemade chips are also a better option than store-bought chips of any kind because they are made without additives and you can control the sodium and cooking methods.
Homemade chips allow you to control the additives, seasonings, and cooking process from start to finish.
How to Store Any Type of Chip
Don’t you just hate it when you bite into a chip and it has become stale? That lack of freshness can completely ruin your chip!
Typically, chips will stay good for at least a couple of weeks before they get stale, but there are some tips and tricks you should know about for the best storage methods.
If you follow all of the best practices, you might be able to enjoy the same bag of chips for up to 2 months!
How can you truly ensure your chips will last a decent amount of time and still taste fresh with every use? Additionally, you can even freeze chips if you really want to step up your chip storage game.
Here is the good news: You don’t have to change the overall storage process based on the kind of chip. Whether your chips are homemade, tortilla, kettle, or vegetable you can use these tips for storage straight across the board.
If you heed the directions and use all of the information and tips provided for you, then you will be glad you did! With these tips, your chips will taste great every time you reach for them.
Related Questions
We sincerely hope that you have found this guide to be useful for you and that it provides easy-to-follow instructions for chip storage options in order to keep them as fresh as possible.
We invite you to review the question and answer section for some additional information that could be useful to you.
Can You Freeze Chips?
Here is the great news! You can freeze your potato chips. If you follow the tips provided, it is really not necessary to freeze chips, but it is absolutely a viable option.
How to freeze chips:
- If the chips have been opened, seal them tightly and place them into a freezer bag.
- Pop the chips in the freezer.
- Store your chips in the freezer for up to 1 full year.
- The chips never fully freeze so there is no extensive thawing or defrosting process when you pull them out.
- You can eat your chips cold or let them sit out from the freezer.
A freezer is a great option if your home or location is subject to high humidity levels. If you notice from previous instruction, we recommended storing chips in a cool dry location. However, in some places, it’s nearly impossible to have a relatively dry climate.
The freezer gives you both cool and dry and will certainly not harm your chips in any way which makes it the best solution if you have an issue with having a dry climate to store the chips in.
Can Chips Go Bad? Can You Eat Expired Chips?
The primary purpose of the “best by” date on chips that you purchase is to guarantee freshness. It is not intended to mean that the chips have expired. This means that you can eat your chips past that date, but their freshness is no longer a guarantee.
If you take the steps to store your chips appropriately or even freeze them then you will maintain the freshness for an extended period of time, even beyond the printed date on the package.
When chips have gone stale, it does not mean that they are bad or rotten. It simply means that they no longer hold that fresh, crisp flavor that most people love of chips.
Whether you eat chips when they have gone stale or not is solely up to you, but there is no harm in eating them if you choose to do so. The chip and your health will not be compromised by using the chips.
Additionally, if you cook with chips, this could be a great way to use up those stale chips rather than toss them out.
How Are Chips Made?
To understand how chips are kept fresh, you should understand the basic concept of how they are made and what types of ingredients are commonly in chips. It’s best to be familiar with what specific elements can cause a chip to lose its freshness.
A potato chip is the basic foundation of the chip. We will walk you through the general process of how potato chips are made. Understand that most types of chips are made in a similar fashion.
This process is simply to give you a general idea and may not fully encompass every type of chip on the market.
Potato chips are primarily what their name would suggest. They are made from potatoes (and other additives) that follow a specific process to form a chip. This process cooks potatoes, mashes them, and then dehydrates them.
Once the potato pieces have been dehydrated they are then reformed into a doughy substance. This is when they are seasoned or flavored. The next step is for the dough to be cut into pieces to form the chip.
These chips then go through a cooking process. If you were making them at home, you would be frying them in oil.
Once the chips are complete and ready, they are sealed into the packaging. The packaging for most potato chips is plastic or foil-bagged compressed with air and sealed. The finished product is then shipped to stores for your purchases.
What Kind of Chips Are There?
There are so many different types of chips and everyone has their own favorite kinds. Some chips stay fresh longer than others while others may seem like they go stale super quick. This can vary by flavor, brand, or even just the environment the chips are stored in.
Here are some of the most common flavors of chips that most brands universally offer:
- Tortilla
- Sour Cream and Onion
- Original
- Barbecue
- Wavy Original
- Cheddar (of some sort)
- Salt & Vinegar
There are hundreds of different chips flavors and absolutely no way we could cover them all here. This is why we shared just the most common flavors to give you an idea of how they can vary.
Every brand makes its chips differently and the flavors could vary greatly amongst brands. There is a lot of various information about chips that you might not know (and no, in this case, we are not referring to the TV show or movie).
Aside from different flavors of chips, there is also a vast assortment of different types of chips. Check out this list for a few examples:
- Tortilla chips
- Kettle chips
- Puff chips
- Corn chips
- Pita chips
- Potato chips
- Baked chips
- Vegetable chips
- Homemade chips
Summary: Keeping Chips Fresh
As you can see there are various circumstances that could cause you to need varying options for keeping your chips fresh.
Here is a list of the quick highlights of the best tips to keep in mind.
- Store in a cool, dry place. This may mean that the freezer is the best location if you are in a humid environment.
- There are many various types of chips but you can use the same storage tips for whichever kind you’re working with.
- Keep out the air. No matter how you choose to store your chips, seal them well.
- Teach children, guests, and household members how to properly store and seal chips.
- Homemade chips can be stored in the same ways that store-bought chips can be.
Storing your chips and keeping them fresh is simple. It’s up to you to take the time and the steps to make it work and keep your chips fresh for a long time!
