Perfectly crisp, crunchy Homemade Tortilla Chips that can be fried, baked, or air-fried. Enjoy fresh, warm crispy chips with guacamole or your favorite salsa using only 3 ingredients in just 15 minutes. Super quick and easy guilt-free snacks!
Let’s all admit it, snacking is as comforting as wearing sweatpants all day during these times. I don’t even know if I’d still fit into my jeans. Heck, I don’t even know what jeans look like! 😂 Coz this gal here is loving her sweatpants and yoga pants all day, y’all!
Although fried tortilla chips taste superior, I’m here to share with you that you can have a guilt-free snack anytime you want by baking or air-frying them! And they taste as good as those you get from Mexican restaurants. How cool is that? Now go get ready with your favorite dip.
Are Nachos and Tortilla Chips the same?
Both Nacos and Tortilla Chips are part of Mexican cuisine. They never fail to lighten up the room as they make the most sought-after party appetizer or snacks.
But what’s the difference between the two?
Let’s put it this way. Tortilla chips are stand-alone snacks while Nachos comprises tortilla chips as their base. Nachos always come with a bed of tortilla chips, cheese sauce, meat, beans, or other vegetables and sauces. So in short, tortilla chips are *THE* chips alone, while Nachos are CHIPS+ other add-ons.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be tortilla chips, by the way. Any chips would work fine, but tortilla chips are the most popular ones for nachos.
How Long Does Homemade Tortilla Chips Last?
You might be worried about the shelf life of our homemade tortilla chips. Unlike the store-bought ones, these homemade chips would only last for about 8-10 days in the pantry in an airtight container. Although it starts to taste stale after the 4th day, they are still edible though.
What do I do to bring back their crispness?
- Reheat them briefly: My favorite way of reheating them is in the oven and the air fryer coz, it doesn’t need additional oil. I must admit though, that fried tortilla chips come first on my list among these 3 versions. 🙂
- Bake or Air Fry: If you’re cutting back on calories (and think your pants are already too tight while on quarantine), please feel free to go with baked tortilla chips or air-fried tortilla chips. Your waist would thank you later.🙂
What Dips Go with Tortilla Chips?
To complete your party spread, pair these fresh, warm, crispy tortilla chips with any of the following;
More Mexican Food For You to Explore
How To Make Homemade Tortilla Chips (In Three Ways)
Method 1: Fried
- Pile and Cut: Pile tortillas, using a sharp knife cut in six even triangles, if using traditional corn tortillas. If not cut tortillas in triangles. (Photos 1-2)
- Prep and Fry until Crisp: In a large pot or fryer, heat oil to 350°F. Use tongs to carefully drop tortillas into the hot oil. Be sure to not overcrowd the fryer. Fry for about 1- 2 minutes on one each side or until crisp. Using a slotted spoon remove chips from oil and drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Season with salt. Keep in an airtight container. (Photos 3-4)
Method 2: Baked
- Prep and brush the tortilla with cooking oil: If baking the tortilla chips, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside. While the oven is heating up, brush the tortilla chips with cooking oil.
- Bake until crisp: Pile the tortillas then using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut them into six even triangles. Place on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Bake until golden brown and crisp, rotating the baking sheets once, about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve with guacamole and/or salsa.
Method 3: Air Fryer
- Air fry until brown: Preheat air fryer to 350 Degrees F. Cut tortillas into triangles, one at a time or stack tortillas together, about 3-4 at a time, and using a sharp knife or pizza cutter cut into six even triangles. Place tortilla triangles in your air fryer basket in a single layer. Air fry for about 5-6minutes or until they start to brown around the edges.
- Shake and Transfer: Shake chips halfway through baking. Tortillas chip cooking times may vary, depending on the brand and size of the tortilla. Transfer chips to a wire rack to cool completely. They will crisp up as they cool. Serve with guacamole, salsa or pineapple salsa.
Homemade Tortilla Chips
Ingredients
- 24 7-8 inch corn tortilla or flour tortillas , ( stale or day old tortilla is best)
- Oil for frying
Seasonings
- Salt and pepper
- Taco seasoning
Instructions
Fried Tortilla Chips
- Pile tortillas, using a sharp knife cut in six even triangles, if using traditional corn tortillas. If not cut tortillas in triangles.
- In a large pot or fryer, heat oil to 350°F.
- Use tongs to carefully drop tortillas into the hot oil. Fry for about 1- 2 minutes on one each side or until crisp. Be sure to not overcrowd the fryer.
- Using a slotted spoon remove chips from oil and drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
- Season with salt. Keep in an airtight container.
Baked Tortillas Chips
- If baking the tortilla chips, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- While the oven is heating up, brush the tortilla chips with cooking oil.
- Pile the tortillas then using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut them in six even triangles.
- Place on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.
- Bake until golden brown and crisp, rotating the baking sheets once, about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve with guacamole and/or pineapple salsa.
Air Fryer Tortilla Chips
- Preheat air fryer to 350 Degrees F.
- Cut tortillas into triangles, one at a time or stack tortillas together, about 3-4 at a time, using a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut in six even triangles.
- Place tortilla triangles in your air fryer basket in a single layer. Air fry for about 5-6minutes or until they start to brown around the edges. Shake chips halfway through baking.
- Tortillas chip cooking times may vary, depending on the brand and size of the tortilla.
- Transfer chips to a wire rack to cool completely. They will crisp up as they cool.
- Transfer chips to a wire rack to cool completely. They will crisp up as they cool. Serve with guacamole and/or pineapple salsa.
Tips & Notes:
- Flour tortilla works great as corn tortillas. You can check my Homemade Flour Tortillas HERE.
- Want to go beyond salt for your flavoring? Then try this Homemade Taco Seasoning HERE.
- Stale or day-old tortilla is a key to achieving that nice crisp texture. But if you want to dry them out so you can make your chips “pronto”, leave the whole tortillas out overnight on the kitchen counter or heat them up in an oven at 350 F for 5 minutes.
- Don’t walk away when cooking the chips or else they’ll get burned.
- Make sure your cooking oil is at 350 F. You can check it using a deep-fry thermometer or candy thermometer. Don’t worry if you don’t have one though. You can easily check if the oil is ready by putting a small piece of tortilla in the oil and if starts to sizzle, then it is ready.
- As for the cooking oil, you can use canola, oil, vegetable oil, peanut oil, or the likes.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only. Please keep in mind that it is a rough estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary greatly based on the products used.
This was 1st posted in Apr 5, 2020.
Celyn Coker says
Ha! Yesterday 5-1-20, I attempted to make some tortilla chips, but because I couldn’t find a recipe I just dried up flour tortilla and made what tasted like pita chips. Way to come through universe!!!
ImmaculateBites says
Yes! The universe opened up to your desires . Happy eating !!!