Give Salads A Salty Crunch With A Snack Already In Your Pantry

The key to making a good salad (aka, one that you'll actually want to eat) is a robust balance of flavors and textures. For example, a Caprese salad pulls this off beautifully with its sweet, acidic, juicy tomatoes, thick, creamy mozzarella, and herby, flimsy basil leaves. If crunch is what you're after, there are a few routes you can go when it comes to adding in new ingredients. But if you've never tossed potato chips in your salad, you'll want to give them a try.

We know that potato chips provide plenty of texture, as they're nice and crunchy straight out of the bag. But you can also crumble them up for a lighter crunch that is more successfully distributed throughout your salad. And in addition to their textural benefits, chips bring their signature salty flavor, which can differ depending on the bag that you get. If this new ingredient sounds a bit odd to you, it's really not that different than throwing croutons or cheese crisps in your salad. But while you may have to go out and buy (or make) those two components, you likely can grab a bag of chips straight out of your pantry.

Before you choose your chips (and how to add them to your salad), you'll want to find a dish that they'll mesh well with. Caesar salads are a fantastic choice, as the salty taste of your chips will fit in perfectly, and you can simply swap out your croutons with your new ingredient. You can also incorporate them into Caesar pasta salads in the same way. However, chips also work well in Italian salads or pasta salads, which embrace salty flavors and contrast them with plenty of vinegary dressing and olives. And, while it may sound a little unorthodox, chips can lend a nice crunch to dishes with Mexican ingredients (like taco salad or Mexican kale salad). Think of them as a replacement for tortilla strips. And of course, these bags are a great way to add some crunch to a creamy potato salad (particularly one with dill).

Then comes the fun part: Selecting your chips. Classic flavors like sour cream and onion and salt and vinegar will taste great in simpler salads, while jalapeño, barbecue, and lime or lemon are ideal for Mexican-style dishes. And of course, go for a dill pickle bag for a potato salad recipe. Add in your chips as the final step in your salad-making process (or sprinkle them on as a garnish) so they don't get too soggy.