Carrot chips are a variation on potato chips. The concept is the same: the root vegetable is washed, sliced, and fried or baked until the slices are crisp. They can be salted or seasoned much like a potato chip can, and in fact, they look much like deep orange potato chips.
Unlike potato chips, however, carrot chips are rich in vitamin A, an essential part of a healthy diet. Like potato chips, they can contain a large amount of fat if they are fried. There are many health-food companies that offer baked chips that contain all of the great vitamins, but a nominal amount of fat.
With health consciousness on the rise, people are always looking for better ways to eat. Snacking, it has been found, is a big reason why people gain weight; weight gain, of course, can lead to all kinds of circulatory and skeletal problems and can result in obesity and diabetes. Furthermore, many snack foods such as potato chips are full of fat and calories, but offer little nutrition. Therefore, choosing healthier snack foods like those made with carrots can be very important to one’s health.
People who are interested in making their own baked carrot chips can follow this recipe:
- Spray a baking sheet with a light coat of oil.
- Slice the desired number of carrots into rounds that are 1/4 inch (0.64 cm) thick.
- Place the slices on the baking sheet without overlapping them.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Place the baking sheet in an oven, preheated in 350°F (177°C).
- Bake the chips for approximately five minutes, or until the edges turn brown.
- Turn the chips and back for another 5-10 minutes.
Carrot chips may, in fact, become a very important food in some developing countries. University of Nebraska Scientists Ahmad Sulaeman and Judy Driskell have been working with carrot chip recipes because they believe that the chips might help to combat vitamin deficiencies in children who are growing up in impoverished circumstances. These scientists are working with deep fried carrot chips. People in developing countries often have a hard time getting enough calories as well as vitamins, so the fat content in deep fried chips is not a concern. In fact, the extra calories can be quite important to their diet.
