My microwave is an indispensible sous chef. It melts and tempers chocolate, parcooks root veggies on their way to the roasting pan, sweats onions in a pinch, and dries and toasts old bread for nearly instant bread crumbs.
Wait a minute—toasting? While we think of the microwave for reheating, melting, and steaming, it can also dehydrate and bake like the Sahara. You have to watch it, though. It doesn’t take long to turn light brown perfection into black, smoking carbon.
The potato chip is such a perfect microwave snack there should be a button for it next to “popcorn.” Better than the greasy chips from a bag, they are crispy yet ethereal hits of pure potato. You can bake them light in color or a little dark for deeper flavor. Sweet potatoes work equally well.
Microwave Potato Chips call for a couple of gadgets: a microwave bacon cooking rack (I got mine at Stop and Shop for about $7), and a mandoline (thanks to my sister-in-law, Chris). The mandoline slices the potatoes paper-thin—or, well, as thin as 100# cover stock. The thinner they are, the faster they bake. And the sooner you can be crunching on this tasty, low-fat treat.
Microwave Potato Chips
- 2 russet potatoes, unpeeled
- 1 teaspoon salted butter, melted
- Sour salt (citric acid) to taste, stirred into melted butter (optional)
- Kosher salt for sprinkling
Wash potatoes and dry thoroughly. Slice paper-thin and lay out on paper towels. Cover with paper towels and press out moisture.- Place slices on microwave rack. Do not overlap. Brush on a dab of butter or butter/sour salt mixture onto each slice. Sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.
- Microwave for 2-4 minutes, depending on your machine. Check frequently at first to determine the proper baking time. If you can bend them, they need more time.
2 Comments
Leah Greenwald
Am I correcting in thinking that this procedure makes 9 potato chips at a time? How many chips do 2 (let’s say medium size 6 oz.)? russet potatoes make? Do you have to do anything to prevent oxidizing of the slices before microwaving or do the paper towels and/or sour salt prevent that?
Diane Brody
Hey Leah– Yes, it only makes a few chips at a time, maybe 9-12 or so depending on the size of the slices. Sometimes I prop a couple up along the sides of the rack to fit more in. It does take time to crank them all through, but I am always doing something else while they bake. Two potatoes makes a lot, I’d say around 70 or more chips if they are thin. The first slices are wetter, and I often stop halfway to pour out water from the tray. But as the slices sit on the paper towels they dry out more and even cook a bit faster. The last ones do oxidize a bit, but once they have baked and crisped you can’t tell. I hope that helps!