Why I’ll Never Buy Another Brand of Potato Chips Again
As an Indian-vegetarian, I have fond memories of Indo-Chinese gobi manchurian at community potlucks, rare plates of aloo gobi (when my South Indian Mother would serve North Indian food), and snacking on raw florets dipped in Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing with my dad. Since then, I’ve given up cauliflower. Not because I wanted to. You see, I have a chronic GI illness and the unsuspecting cruciferous vegetable has a rather rude ability to land me in the hospital.
Then, I came across Real Food From The Ground Up’s cauliflower potato chips. These chips, it seems, are the exception to every rule, including the one that devilishly plagues my temperamental tummy. See, I wasn’t planning on trying them, but after the shocking and overwhelmingly positive reviews from my parents, I just HAD to try them.
What’s So Great About Real Food From The Ground Up Sea Salt Cauliflower Potato Chips?
Similar to the baked potato chips of yesteryear (aka the mid-1990s), Real Food From The Ground Up Cauliflower Potato Chips are crispity crunchy, wafer thin, and have that same no-oil satisfaction. They tickle my nostalgia bone, reminding me of the potato wafers lightly dusted in masala I’d munch on while living in India, keeping me company during all-nighters.
The chips, which come in three flavors (Sea Salt, Salt & Vinegar, and Sour Cream & Onion), are perfectly balanced with a good amount of seasoning (or just salt) on each chip. They’re ever-so-slightly vegetal, which makes sense: The chips are all made with a “plant-based flour blend” that goes beyond the basic pairing of cauliflower and potato to include carrots, beets, spinach, broccoli, tomato, and shiitakes, if you can believe it. The true secret, IMO, is in the cassava starch that adds a nuttiness and heft to the chips.
My dad broke open a bag around lunchtime one day, my mom fixing her own lunch nearby. Neither of them are really mindless snackers, especially my mother and, yet, 15 minutes later, the bag was nearly empty. I swooped in just to grab a chip, and I haven’t been able to stop since, cauliflower inclusion be damned.
I opened a new bag the other day. Practically on cue, my dad came in from some strenuous lawn mowing and promptly grabbed the bag out of my hands. His only feedback? “You know Lavi … these are really really good.”
What’s the Best Way to Serve Real Food From The Ground Up Sea Salt Cauliflower Potato Chips?
Of all the flavors to try (and you must try them all), start with the sea salt. The others are great if you’re all about the extra seasoning, but sea salt is where the chip truly shines. Like the best potato chips, these make for a great anytime snack or lunchtime sidekick. I eat them with all my sandwiches, including the humble tomato sandwich and many layered creations from any one of my favorite chains (looking at you Jimmy John’s, Potbelly’s, and Jersey Mike’s).
They’re not very sturdy, so I’d hesitate using them to “top” things like chopped salads, a recent trend I saw on my Instagram feed and have some thoughts about. But if you want to pair them with dip — guacamole, hummus, salsa, whatever you feel like — go right ahead! There’s no wrong way to dive into these chips, and that’s the best part.
Buy: Real Food From The Ground Up Sea Salt Cauliflower Potato Chips, $4.00 for 3.5 ounces at Amazon
Have you tried these cauliflower potato chips? Tell us about it in the comments below.