The Homemade Chip Recipe That Makes Eggplant The Star

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that people tend to love or hate. Some people don't enjoy the texture, while others will gladly eat it roasted, fried, or grilled, as well as in recipes like eggplant dip, eggplant Parmigiana, ratatouille, or moussaka. If you're not a fan, it might be because you've never had eggplant prepared correctly. Luckily, eggplant is one of the most versatile vegetables, and can even be made into popular offerings like French fries or potato chips. Eggplant is just one choice among the many vegetables for making delicious fries or chips that aren't potatoes. It joins others like carrots, turnips, butternut squash, beets, jicama, asparagus, and even avocado that can prepared this way. Eggplant chips have a leg up on nutrition and are equally irresistible.

Recipe developer Michelle Bottalico created a recipe for eggplant chips that turn out crispy and creamy at the same time, and a simple mixture of garlic powder, salt, and black pepper provides each chip with a burst of flavor. We use Japanese eggplants because their long, thin shape is perfect for bite-sized chips, and they aren't as wet as globe eggplants. Thinly sliced, they brown and crisp to perfection in the oven. Eggplant chips are hard to resist on their own, but they can be paired with dip for extra flavor. We think these chips taste best fresh, but if you have leftovers you can store them in an airtight container or paper bag on the counter for 3-4 days.

For this recipe, you will need Japanese eggplant. If you can't find them, you can substitute globe eggplant, but cut the slices in half into half-moon shapes, or they will be too large. You may need to bake globe eggplant slices a little longer. You will also need olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Grease 2 large baking sheets with oil.

Using a mandoline slicer or a sharp knife, slice the eggplant into thin ⅛-inch rounds. Make them all the same width so they cook at the same rate.

Transfer the eggplant to a large mixing bowl and toss with the oil and spices until evenly coated.

Arrange the seasoned eggplant in a single layer on the baking sheets.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, flipping halfway through, until crispy and browned. Watch the eggplant carefully as it cooks and take out any pieces early that are cooking faster than the others so they don't burn.

Let the eggplant chips cool completely before serving.

Many people wonder — should eggplant be salted or not before cooking? Information in favor of both sides of the great eggplant debate can be found, so the topic may feel confusing. Sliced or chopped eggplant is often sprinkled or rubbed with salt and left to sit so the salt can draw out the juices before it's rinsed and patted dry and used in a recipe. Those in favor say it makes the eggplant less bitter and helps it become more crispy when cooked. Others say it doesn't make any difference. We find that while there's truth to both sides, salting usually isn't necessary, which is why we've skipped that step in this eggplant chip recipe.

Unless you choose a notoriously bitter species, modern eggplants aren't very bitter unless they're past their prime, so taking an hour to salt eggplant to remove bitterness is time better spent doing something else. Testing shows that salting doesn't have any effect on how crispy eggplant can become. The biggest difference is found when frying. Fried eggplant that was salted first cooks up with a softer and creamier texture, so taking the time to salt eggplant before frying it can improve the mouthfeel. If you're roasting, grilling, or sauteing eggplant, you can skip the salting. In fact, when eggplant will be cooked in a stew or juicy dish, not salting will help it retain a firmer texture in the liquid, which is desirable.

Eggplant chips are so delicious that it's hard not to taste a few as is, and because they have a richness from olive oil and are flavored with spices, they can certainly be served on their own. However, they go well with a variety of dips. Dipping the chips in sour cream or honey (or hot honey if you're a fan of heat) is a simple way to add a complementary flavor while keeping the eggplant chip in the spotlight. You can stir onions or chives into the sour cream if desired. Greek yogurt is another good choice. The yogurt could be kept plain or flavored with garlic, spices, or citrus, like lemon juice and lemon zest. We love eggplant with mint, so a yogurt mint dip would also be delicious.

You can make a tahini sauce with tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and water to dip the eggplant chips into. Salsa, guacamole, hummus, and tzatziki sauce are more good choices. A homemade ranch dressing made with mayonnaise, sour cream, and dried spices would be a creamy and tasty accompaniment to eggplant chips. Finally, if you have the time, make caramelized onions and create a decadent dip by stirring them into a creamy base with spices like garlic powder. This caramelized onion dip recipe uses crème fraîche and mascarpone for the base.