Tapioca Chips, a popular snack and street food in South India, is slightly thicker and crispier than potato chips. The chips are made with the root of the cassava plant. Although tapioca chips are widely available in markets, they can also be made at home. To make the chips, the tapioca is first peeled and then cut into four medium sized pieces. The tapioca should then be soaked in a bowl of water for a few seconds, to make it easier to slice it into chips. However, it is advised to use a chip slicer to ensure the cutting process is less cumbersome. The chips are then deep fried usually in coconut oil or in an oil of your preference.
Variety in spicing
The chips can either be prepared plain or to add to the taste, it can be spiced with a sprinkling of red chilli powder and a little bit of salt or coated in sugar. Alternatively, tapioca can be cut into thin slices, instead of as chips, and deep fried.
Indonesian style
Tapioca Chips are also popular, as a snack and street food, in Sri Lanka and Indonesia. While it is also known as kappa chips in India, Tapioca Chips are known as kripik singkong crackers in Indonesia. Another kind of Tapioca Chips preparation in Indonesia, called kripik balado, is made in a spicy and sugar coating.
Health benefits
Tapioca is cultivated in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and in some parts of Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland, and Assam. In comparison to other kinds of chips, Tapioca Chips can be preserved for a longer period of time.
The chips are also touted to be healthy. It is said to be high in carbohydrates, contains calcium, and iron, etc, and so has quite a bit of nutrients.
Here is a recipe for Tapioca Chips that is quick and easy:
Ingredients:
1 tapioca
Enough volume of coconut oil for deep frying the chips
Salt
Red chilli powder
Method:
Cut the edges of the tapioca and peel off the skin with a peeler
Cut the tapioca into two to three pieces and put it in a bowl of water for about two seconds
Take a chips cutter and slice the tapioca into chips
In a pan, fill a pan with enough refined oil to deep fry the chips. Let the oil heat on high flame for a few seconds
Lower the tapioca chips, one at a time, in the oil
Let the chips fry till it is crispy
Then take the chips out of the oil
Place the chips on a paper napkin to drain excess oil
Sprinkle red chilli powder and a little bit of salt over the chips, and mix it in the chips so that the coating covers the chips (this is an optional step)
Serve the chips in a bowl
Overall, Tapioca Chips make for a good evening snack with a hot cup of tea or coffee.