Hand Cooked Chips - Hatherwood

Hatherwood's Hand Cooked chips are, according to the packaging, extra thick. Really? We have already blogged thicker chips, see for example "3 Dutch farmers" or "Nature Spar Premium Chips".

Anyway, thicker does not necessarily mean better. Despite the chips being thinner than expected, they taste much better than expected.

Hatherwood's chips are traditionally processed in Great Britain. The chips are sliced flat and cooked in small quantities in sunflower oil (26%). Later they are slightly and conciously salted. All this results in a very good taste and a lively crunch, like the brittle sound of a thin cracker. Plus a delicate sweet potato aroma, comparable to beet or carrot chips.

All in all, a very balanced choice. We wonder who is the producer behind this Lidl's registered brand... We want to try more of these!

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	7.3 cm long
and has a thickness of	1.22 mm
Crunchiness:	93 dB
Other features:	Flat cut, golden yellow
Origin:
Country, region	UK
We got them from	a Lidl supermarket in Munich
Price / gram	1.99 € / 150 g
On-line:	www.lidl.com

Inside a bag of Hatherwood's hand cooked chips.

Patatine Fiammifero - Bennet

Crisps&Critics likes trying new stuff and this review is no exception: the first on stick crisps.

The Bennet Patatine "Fiammifero" (matchstick style) look very sophisticated. The long thin sticks are elegant and subtle. Well toasted, the stick shape excels in aspects such as appearence and feel. Plus a curious dry feeling when chewing them in our mouth.

The crunch is soft, like dampened, probably because the crack length of a stick is shorter than that of a flat cut crisp. Despite the packaging being relatively small, it contains 150 g of pure joy. Either more sticks can be packed in smaller containers or the potatoes have a higher density than usual. Or both.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	7.6 cm long
and has a thickness of	2.36 mm
Crunchiness:	67 dB
Other features:	Thick sticks, soft crunch.
Origin:
Country, region	Italy, Lombardy
We got them from	a Bennet supermarket in Lecco
Price / gram	1.19 € / 150 g
On-line:	http://www.bennet.com

Inside a bag of bennet patatine"fiammifero"

国産原料にこだわったポテトチップス - Fukagawa Yushi Kabushikigaisha

From the far east, another way of labeling products reaches Crisps&Critics. At the bag front we don't find any brand name, any striking logo nor a motto easily fittable in a typical jingle add. Just a rising sun behind a rice field and a bear presenting this text:  "Potato chips with selected products of national origin". 

The potatoes come from Hokkaido (north of Japan) and are of the Danshaku type. Prepared with care during hours, the chips are cut in wavy slices and go through a very well thought production process so that the taste and texture are optimized. Rice bran oil baking provides the chips with a mild and pleasant flavor. Rice bran oil is extracted from the hard outer brown layer of rice after chaff (rice husk). The baked flavor is well accompanied by a precisely measured quantity of sea salt from the Saroma lake, a sea water lagoon fed from the Ohotsuku sea, between Hokkaido and Sakhalin.

Altogether, it does not surprise Crisps&Critics that these chips are very tasty. At first sight simple food, one feels that it has been carefully prepared with natural products cultivated over the years and specifically chosen and combined to match and please every subtle palate.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	5.9 cm long
and has a thickness of	N/A *
Crunchiness:	83 dB
Other features:	Wavy cut, rice oil.
Origin:
Country, region	Japan, Hokkaido
We got them from	a YoursLIVI supermarket in Hiroshima, Japan.
Price / gram	151 ¥ / 60 g
On-line:	http://kumachan.co.jp/shop

* Due to the wavy cut, with very small and close ondulations, the thickness has not been measured.

Inside a bag of Kumachan potato chips

La Sabrosita - Aperitivos La Sabrosita C. B.

After a couple of deceptive reviews, the Crisps&Critics tasters team needed something to boost their motivation and keep on bringing more and better reviews. "La Sabrosita" chips, Spanish diminutive for "The Savoury", made our day.

From a small municipality near Badajoz we discover a huge know-how on the art of cooking snacks: "La Sabrosita" chips are well fried in sunflower oil, with some chips experiencing impossible bent-overs. The potato flavour is good as well as the salt level. The taste of these big and thick potatoes is nearly as good as hand-cooked chips. 

 "La Sabrosita" chips are sold in a slightly outmoded but funny design packaging: Four yellow potato chips wave their hands on the bag while holding a banner: "you'll succumb to the temptation"... and we did succumb.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	9.4 cm long
and has a thickness of	1.75 mm
Crunchiness:	92 dB
Other features:	Very big chips, intense yellow colour.
Origin:
Country, region	Spain, Extremadura
We got them from	a couple from Madrid, visiting Cabeza del Buey wanted to share with Crisps&Critics their love for these chips.
Price / gram	1.30 € / 250 g
On-line:	http://www.casapinito.com

Inside a bag of "La Sabrosita"

Eldorada La Tradizionale - Amica chips

"Eldorada La Tradizionale" from Italy's Amica chips, is presented in a long narrow packaging. On a matt brown background, an olive drips oil over a cone bursting with mouth-watering chips. Really appealing.

First the Italian potatoes are peeled and cut flat. Then cooked in a mixture of olive oil with another (unspecified) vegetable oil. This strengthens the potato taste with a very soft oil scent. The chips are all uniformly baked, are slightly salted and have an even yellow colour. 

We struggle to introduce our whole forearm in the elongated bag in order to grasp the last chips at the bottom... but what a reward eating them all!

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	6.8 cm long
and has a thickness of	1,11 mm
Crunchiness:	92 dB
Other features:	Uniform yellow colour, soft oil scent
Origin:
Country, region	Lombardy, Italy
We got them from	a Crisps&Critics fan sent them from Sardignia, (Italy)
Price / gram	1,49 € / 130 g
On-line:	http://www.amicachips.it

Inside a bag of "Eldorada"

Natural Crinkle Cut Crisps - Euroshopper

Crisps&Critics is back from a culinary trip in Iceland. Regarding salted potato chips we could only find imported brands, like today's review: Natural Crinkle Cut Crisps produced in Belgium for the generic brand Euroshopper.

Each of these Euroshopper crisps feel big, thick and, in our opinion, a bit too salty to guess its authentic potato flavour. Partly unpeeled, these crisps have been well baked in vegetable oil. Longer cooking time gives a certain toasted flavour to the crisps.  

The chips have a crinkle cut, with small waves close one to the other, what probably gives the impression of eating thicker chips than they really are.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	8.5 cm long
and has a thickness* of	2.20* mm
Crunchiness:	87 dB
Other features:	Narrow wavy cut, quite salty
Origin:
Country, region	Belgium, Hainaut
We got them from	a Bonus supermarket in Reykjavik
Price / gram	219 Íkr (Icelandic króna) / 200 g
On-line:

* Due to the wavy cut, with very small and close ondulations, the thickness has been measured between the top wave peak and the lowest part of the wave valley.

Inside a Natural Crinkle Cut Crisps bag.

Le Contadine Sapore Fatte a Mano - Ica Crik Crok

"Le Contadine" packaging looks very authentic. Crisps&Critics wanted to test these chips because they are allegedly hand-cooked with extravirgine olive oil. 

Soon after tasting the first crisps we realize the labeling indicates something else: these chips are not hand cooked, are just "hand cooked flavour". Are we facing another deceptive marketing technique?

The potato chips in our bag are unfortunately so salty that it is hardly impossible to distinguish any potato flavour, let alone the olive oil aroma. The impression left after eating a bunch of these chips is like when an ocean wave sends you rolling and you swallow sea water. Way too salty.

Other than that, "Le Contadine" chips offers thick flat cut potatoes with partly unpeeled borders and a normal crunch. These chips are probably a good match to bland meals.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	6.8 cm long
and has a thickness of	0.97 mm
Crunchiness:	92 dB
Other features:	Flat cut, partially unpeeled potatoes, very salty.
Origin:
Country, region	Italy, Lazio
We got them from	Bennet supermarket in Lecco.
Price / gram	1.85 € / 130 g
On-line:	http://www.icafoods.it/prodotti/le-contadine-sapore-fatte-a-mano/

Inside a bag of "Le Contadine Sapore Fatte a Mano"

Chips gesalzen - Spar

Austrian potato chips in quite big quantites and price friendlier than other chips of similar quality to be found also on this blog (see for example here). 

The potato chips in this bag are of a medium size, peeled, with a thin and flat cut. We find very few bent-over potatoes. Sunflower oil is used for cooking these lightweight, almost transparent, bright yellow colour crisps.

If we could change something to these chips, we would spice them with a bit less salt to better enjoy the crunch and taste of this Austrian potato snack.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	6.5 cm long
and has a thickness of	0.84 mm
Crunchiness:	93 dB
Other features:	Light yellow colour, peeled
Origin:
Country, region	Austria
We got them from	a Spar supermarket in Salzburg
Price / gram	0.69 € / 200 g
On-line:	http://www.spar.at

С Солью - Lay's

These chips were purchased during a trip to Belarus. The "С Солью - Lay's" (Lay's with salt) have a soft and pleasant aroma. Once in the mouth, you can enjoy a subtle and light flavour. They are smooth and fragile at the same time: one bite suffizes to break each chip into many pieces. Eat 2 or 3 chips in a row to get your palate used to its delicate potato scent. 

The "С Солью - Lay's" chips do not have any potato skin trace. Either the skin of these potatoes is very thin, it is of a transparent colour or the potatoes are very well peeled.

And they are very correctly salted: Not surprising from a culture welcoming important, respected or admired guests with a loaf of bread and salt. It is very likely that Leo Messi would also feel very welcome in Belarus. So we felt.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	6.3 cm long
and has a thickness of	0.99 mm
Crunchiness:	84 dB
Other features:	Pale yellow colour, thin chips, unspecified vegetable oil.
Origin:
Country, region	Russia
We got them from	shop near ZUM stores, Minsk (Belarus)
Price / gram	20500 BYR / 80 g
On-line:	http://lays.ru/product/salt/ or http://lays.by

Inside a Lay's С Солью bag 

Chips à l'ancienne - Bouton d'Or

Crisps&Critics reviews French chips today. 

The "Chips à l'ancienne" from Bouton d'Or are potato chips of an average size. Peeled and cut in very thin slices, they undergo frying in sunflower oil (37%). Many chips have bubbles and a pale golden tone.

The flat and thin cut makes these chips feel fragile and light. To better appreciate its aroma and to compensate for the thinness, eat a handful of chips in one go: It's then when the chips provide a captivating crunch that feels louder than measured.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	5.5 cm long
and has a thickness of	0.97 mm
Crunchiness:	94 dB
Other features:	Light gold yellow colour, curled and folded over crisps
Origin:
Country, region	France, Auvergne
We got them from	a Crisps&Critics reader from Strasbourg (France) bought them at Les Mousquetaires
Price / gram	0.58 € / 150 g
On-line:	http://www.brets.fr/nos_valeurs/altho/ or http://drive.intermarche.com

Inside a bag of Chips à l'ancienne, Bouton d'Or

Da Vinci Chips - Pata Patatine

Named after the universal genius Leonardo Da Vinci these potato chips come in a package with his self-portrait. Leonardo Da Vinci was capable of creatively interconnect completely unrelated elements. Allegedly a vegetarian, we wonder if he would have liked to interconnect and taste sliced potatoes of South American origin, baked in Mediterranian olive oil and spiced with salt from Himalaya...

First, Pata Patatine cuts Italian potatoes to later fry them on a mix of olive oil (6%) and sunflower oil (17%). Finally the chips are salted with pink himalayan salt (1%). Himalayan salt is a type of rock salt, halite, from Pakistan. It has a a reddish or pink tone with some crystals having an off-white to transparent colour.

Many chips have bubbles and all of them have a hard crust. In our mouth, the crunch feeling multiplies beyond the measurement. Every small bit crunches again and again: No matter how small the bit is, it keeps its hardness and keeps crunching. The flavour is good, with a very soft olive oil scent.

Features:
The biggest potato crisps is	5.4 cm long
and has a thickness of	1.08 mm
Crunchiness:	94 dB
Other features:	Hard crust, pink salt, partially unpeeled potatoes.
Origin:
Country, region	Italy, Lombardy
We got them from	Bennet supermarket in Como.
Price / gram	2.45 € / 140 g
On-line:	http://www.pata.it

Inside a bag of "Da Vinci"