sweet potato chips on dehydrator tray

Some of my favorite foods are yams and sweet potatoes. My day isn’t complete (and my body complains) if I don’t eat some – every day. Being that we don’t get grain carbs on the paleo and AIP diets, these awesome tubers are a real life-saver in the carbohydrate department. Yams are high in vitamin C, potassium, manganese and fiber. Sweet potatoes are very high in vitamin A, with hearty vitamin C and B6, as well as fiber, manganese and potassium. Both are a super foods. It just happens that they make fabulous chips, which are easy to take on the trail and add a nice crunch to the day’s snacks. Below is a simple recipe for making yam and sweet potato chips for the trail.

Mandoline slicer

mandoline slicer

I suggest using a mandoline slicer for these chips – you get perfectly even slices, which makes drying easier because it prevents having to spend time sorting out thin, already-done chips from thicker, not-done-yet chips. And the thinner the better, since thicker slices end up very chewy or really hard to bite through. I have this mandoline slicer, and I love it. If you’re wondering which dehydrator I use, here it is.

For instructions on how to do the optional blanching, see my page called Food Drying 101.

 

Yam and Sweet Potato Chips
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Ingredients
  • 2 large sweet potatoes or yams
  • Optional:
  • ¼ cup melted coconut oil or olive oil
  • ½ to 1 tsp sea salt, to taste
Instructions
  1. Wash and dry the spuds.
  2. Slice as thin as possible with a sharp knife or mandoline slicer, or, slice into julienne-sized strips.
  3. (Optional: Water or steam blanch before drying.)
  4. (Optional: In a large bowl, mix with the oil and salt, making sure all sides get coated.)
  5. Place slices on dehydrator trays with a bit of space between; not much space is needed, as the slices will shrink as they dry.
  6. Dehydrate at 125°F for 8-12 hours, checking halfway through for even drying. The chips should not need turning in a high-quality food dehydrator.
  7. Chips are dry when crisp (if not coated in oil) or just a barely chewy (if coated in oil). If in doubt, dry longer.