The Absolute Best Tortilla Chips Brand, According To A Chef

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Tortilla chips are the addictive prelude to most Mexican meals and now encompass countless store-bought brands. Jorge Guzmán, a James Beard Award finalist, chef and partner at Chilango MN and Sueno in Dayton, Ohio shared his old and new favorite brands. "Donkey chips until they changed their recipe," he says, "but the Xochitl brand is really stellar."

Donkey chips are a brand out of the Chicago area that use a generations-old recipe to produce a salted and unsalted selection of white corn tortilla chips. They aren't as widely available as the much larger Xochitl brand. Similar to the type of tortilla chip you'll find in Mexico, Donkey chips are a lot thicker and sturdier than Xochitl. The two brands have similarly short ingredients lists, both consisting of white corn, oil, salt, and lime. That said, Xochitl chips are thinner, lighter, and more delicate than Donkey chips. Xochitl has a wider selection, with varieties like blue corn which has a unique earthiness. If you're looking for a chip that can hold up under the weight of heavy dips like this black bean dip or guacamole, Xochitl debuted a Dipper chip that's much thicker than the original recipe.

Xochitl ranked fifth in our taste test of 15 popular tortilla chip brands. While we loved the taste, texture, and whole ingredients, Xochitl's high price tag was the reason it didn't rank higher. But, after an endorsement from a James Beard finalist, Xochitl is worth the splurge.

While they're most commonly and traditionally a vessel for dips and salsas or the foundation for nachos, tortilla chips are one of the most versatile chips. Of course, tortilla chips by themselves are worthy of devouring, but if you can resist the urge to eat them out of the bag, they can be an integral ingredient in various dishes. Both of Guzman's top choices for chip brands are plain, unadulterated white corn with a rich savory earthiness that you can transform into crusts, garnishes, coating, and even thickeners.

A thicker Donkey chip or Xochitl's Dipper would hold their crunch well in a plate of homemade chilaquiles or crushed and scrambled into migas. You can grind the more delicate Xochitl chips into a binder for homemade meatballs. The corn will pair well with the umami richness of beef and pork; you could add diced cilantro, cumin, and chili powder to the mix for a Mexican twist to smother in a chipotle salsa or mole. Crush tortilla chips up to sprinkle over this vegetarian tortilla soup, black bean soup, or a bowl of meaty chili. They'd also be a tasty coating for fried chicken or fish. Make a lasagna-adjacent pastel azteca by layering chips with creamy green salsa, shredded chicken or mushrooms, queso Oaxaca, and requeson in a casserole dish and baking.