Baked plantain chips (gluten free, vegan, paleo)

Baked plantain chips recipe – learn how to make this crispy healthy, vegan, paleo, no gluten alternative snack to potato chips using ripe plantains.

When it comes to light bites/appetisers and snacks I’m quite partial to all of those. I know so many people who love nibbling on chips (crisps as the say in the UK), cakes, biscuits and so fourth. That’s why these oven baked plantain chips are my go to snack. They are delicious, airy, light and nutritionally dense all in one serving and made in less than 30 minutes.

Snacking and dieting

With obesity on the rise and disease which relates to the cardiovascular system we should be mindful of what to consume. I know weight loss it is much harder than actually gaining, I hear so many people complain that they struggled to take the weight off.

One of the main factors in diet/lifestyle changes is in cutting out the sweet treats and snacks. It’s a well known fact that snacking attributes to weight gain.

Just manage eating 3 meals a day and snacking for roughly 6-7 times a day. I’m not even referring to healthy snacks either. That’s guaranteed to increase your weight especially with a sedentary lifestyle.

Snacking within it’s self isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s the type of food eaten. Its okay to consume copious amounts of lettuce, carrot and miniature cauliflower florets all day however, not everyone likes those things.

Why baked plantain chips are a great source of snacking 

Most people like to indulge on potato chips (crisps) as a fill in between, breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s quick, easy and supposedly filling. More often than not potato chips contain excess amounts of vegetable oil from frying and sodium.

Needless to say this attributes to weight gain, high cholesterol, puts pressure of the circulatory system, making the body work harder.

That’s a truthful albeit frightening thought, so what’s the alternative? Baked plantain chips (aka plantain crisps).

These plantain chips are made from ripe yellow plantain so they are naturally sweet and loaded with nutritional value

• Less fattening than potato chips
• Contain vitamin A an C
• Yields energy to fuel muscles, brain and cells
• Rejuvenates the skin and encourages cell renewal

How to make baked plantain chips 

It’s so easy using 3 ingredients

• Ripe plantains
• Oil (olive or coconut oil works fine)
• Himalayan pink salt

Ripe plantains – In order to make these plantain chips, you are going to need yellow plantain. You need them to be more on the yellow side with only a few black spots. This is to make sure the chips are firm but sweet and still hold up as they bake,

Removing the peel – The skin should be easy to remove, use a knife to cut off the ends. Once snipped, score as deep as the skin, length ways along the skin and use your hands to pull off the entire exterior.

Cutting the plantain – there are two ways to cut the chips – using a mandolin slicer which automatically cuts them in unison or using a knife.

If you’re like me and don’t own a slicer but are skilled at chopping, then you’ll want to grab a paring knife and slice the plantain as thin as possible. The thinner the chips the crisper the results!!

Tossing the plantain – Add the plantains to the bowl and then drizzle with the oil of your choice. I used olive oil.

Make sure to use your hands to coat each disc with oil, they need to be saturated evenly so they bake nice and crispy.

Traying up – I found I had to work in batches to do this. If you have 2-3 trays you should be set to go. If not just bake, cool, remove and repeat how many times needed. The tray should be lined with parchment paper to stop it from sticking.

Baking the plantain – after testing this recipe several times over. I’ve managed to find a baking sweet spot. 180c for 25 minutes (maybe sooner). The chips baked individually, meaning they don’t all brown at the same time.

I found myself having to remove the dark chips as the others baked. This was half way through when the other plantain chips needed turning. This is normal, don’t allow them to burn, just remove the ones that have  over baked and bake the remaining chips.

Salted plantain chips – once the plantain have cooled down that’s when you can add your pink salt. I find over a few hours, the plantain chips become firm and crispy. If they don’t seem hard and crunchy initially they will in a few hours.

How long do baked plantain chips last?

They don’t last very long in my house but as a general rule of thumb, roughly 3 days. Once cooled store in an airtight bag and a dry place.

Making baked plantain chips (with pictures)

Cut the ends of the plantain and score, lengthways with a knife to remove the skin

Cut each plantain as thin as possible or use a mandolin slicer to achieve this.

Then drizzle and coat with olive oil

Place the plantain discs on a lined baking tray and bake for roughly 25 minutes, until golden.

 

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