My chip story: Made in Lancashire
Homemade chips are special and in this blog I want to talk all things chips. I live in the North of England and I was literally brought up on chips. Obviously, to some this may be a culture shock, an unknown, a food never experienced but to me it was a delight that my family and I enjoyed every single week. We lived in a very small village and such was the importance of chips, we had our very own fish and chip shop, frequented by every family in the village.
Family tradition: Chippy tea
The tradition of when to go to the chip shop was a deeply seated and personal choice. It was a serious family decision, a bit like, where to go on the family holiday. It mattered what day you went and once decided, rarely did it change. Our night was Friday night; chippy tea night.
My mum would go and get the chips with us in the back of her soft tip mini. We’d all lumber into the chippy and queue in a very British like manner around the edge of the wall , whilst waiting our turn patiently in the queue. Then on arrival at the sacred counter, the lovely John and Joan would serve us the best chips in the world. Because at the time we weren’t tall enough to reach over the counter, Joan would take pity on our starved faces and hand us a chip on a fork; hot, salty and hanging onto the fork for dear life, whilst we blew on it carefully trying to avoid it tumbling to the ground; it was an art form we mastered in the years of visiting the chippy.
Watching our favourite TV programme
Once home, we would pull the green, velour settee up towards to coal fire and put on our favourite Friday night TV shows: Cheers, Cagney & Lacey or some other American sitcom. It was wonderful. The chips laid out on our knee nestled amongst the newspaper (not a plate in site!) The comfort of the fire warming our legs and the taste of hot chips. These are memories I treasure.
It’s all about the potatoes
Thankfully, one thing we are really good at in the United Kingdom is growing potatoes to make homemade chips, of course! From far north in Scotland to the flats of the East coast of England, there is an abundance of potato farmers all growing some really great spuds! (potatoes). This is obviously great news to any chip lovers out there, like me, and because they are grown in the UK it means they are extremely inexpensive. A 2.5kg bag of British white potatoes at £1.25 or if you want to upgrade then Maris Piper will cost you as little as £1.60. When making my homemade chips, you will only need a quarter to a third of a bag making is very economical.
Check out this price comparison to see where to put your money –
https://www.trolley.co.uk/explore/white-potatoes
The cost of heating your oven
Naturally, you need to factor in the cost of heating your oven, but overall the cost saving is far, far, greater than opting for a bag of oven chips or going to the chip shop.
Here is a guide as to the cost of putting your electric oven on for one hour – I was pleasantly surprised! You are looking at around 30p for a one hour usage. Plus, if you can cook something else at the same time, it makes it far more economical, after all the money is in the heating up of the oven, not the actually roasting of the homemade chips.
How to make homemade chips.
Firstly, you need to prepare the potatoes and this part is really simple.
The Method
Based on one medium sized potato per person, peel the quantity required.
Slice and then cut into chip shapes. If you’re feeling fancy, you can always use an crinkle cut chip cutter. They don’t have to be perfect. Any small bits will just turn nice and crispy.
If you have one, pop your chips into a steamer that sits over a pan of water, before you steam though, give your chips a really good rinse under the cold tap to remove all the starch.
If you don’t have a steamer, no problem, just gently simmer your chips in some boiling water for 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them because if you let them over cook they will fall apart in the water and won’t look like chips anymore.
Now steam for 10 minutes depending how thick they are. Check them periodically. When you can insert a knife easily, they are ready. Above all, the chip should retain their shape and be slightly soft. It doesn’t matter if they are slightly under cooked as they will continue to cook in the oven.
Now, remove from the steamer, take the lid off and let some of the steam escape and allow the chips to dry slightly. Moisture will simply make your oven work harder and they will take longer to cook.
If you aren’t ready to cook your chips, lay them out on a tray and leave to cool. They will happily sit in the fridge over night until you are ready.
Pre-heat your oven.
Whenever you are cooking them, pre-heat your oven to 210 degrees (non-fan) & 190 (fan) This will be dependent on your oven and only you know how it cooks so adjust accordingly. Chips do like a hot oven.
Remember the chips are partly cooked so all you are really doing is completing the cooking process and browning them.
Now take a non-stick roasting tin. I use the same tray every time. It’s beautifully seasoned meaning that over time the oil and heat have created a non-stick coating to the tray. I hardly every wash it, just a wipe with kitchen roll, and leave it for the next use.
Just before you are going to put your chips in the oven, put a couple of tablespoons of oil in your tray and pop it in the oven to heat up.
Once your oven is at temperature: remove the tray, tip your chips in and turn carefully with a non-stick spatula. Coating the chips in oil will prevent them from sticking.
Chips in the oven and leave alone (it will be worth it)
Now, simply place the tray in the oven, close the door and set the timer for 30 minutes. Do not open the door until the timer goes off. Why? You will break the crispy coating of the chip. You’ll end up with tiny slivers of potato all over your tray and chips that quite honestly will just look a mess.
After 30 minutes, take them from the oven and turn them over to help them brown evenly. They should be ready by now. If you prefer them slightly more well done, just put them back in the oven for 5-10 minutes.
Fish Goujons & chips – a partnership made in heaven.
If you need something to pair with your homemade chips, fish goujons are just perfect. Don’t know how to make them, check out my recipe –
Enjoy the taste
In conclusion, I hope that my step by step guide to homemade chips will help you achieve delicious chips for all your family to enjoy. Remember these 3 things:
- Let your chips cool slightly after you’ve steamed them
- Once in the oven leave them alone!
- Make plenty as I promise there won’t be enough. They are so good!
Thanks for reading and remember to check out my other blog posts and recipes. You might like to try my Butternut squash curry –
I’m updating all the time. Follow me on Instagram to keep track of my updates – @inastew
Laura x
