How To Make Home-Cooked Potato Peeling Crisps

This recipe for home-cooked potato peeling crisps from BBC Food popped up on my Facebook feed the other day and I knew immediately I had to give them a go. Okay, so they're probably not the healthiest snack in the world, but you need something to crunch on in between slurps of cool, crisp chardonnay, right?

The recipe appealed to me for a number of reasons: they're very simple to make, they require very few ingredients, and they are a great way to use up the peelings leftover from a mashed potato masterpiece.

I'm also hoping that the next time we have friends over for nibbles, it'll make me look like some sort of fantastic snack wizard. Fingers crossed.

Here's what you'll need:

Potato peelings

Sunflower oil for frying

Salt

A heavy-bottomed saucepan

Tongs or a slotted spoon

A plate

Kitchen paper

Oven gloves (recommended)

How to make them:

1. [PREP] Dry your fresh potato peelings in some kitchen paper to remove as much moisture as possible. I left mine out in a shallow pile on the side while we ate dinner, and by the time the kids had been packed off to bed, most of the moisture had gone. 

2. When you're ready to start cooking, add some sunflower oil to your saucepan to a depth of about an inch. The recipe I referenced from BBC Food suggested heating to a temperature of about 160c/325f. However I don't own a thermometer, so I just tested it by throwing a small piece of peeling in to check that it sizzled upon entry.

3. Drop a small handful of peelings into the oil. Do this carefully as the hot oil can spit up. I moved them around a little with the spoon to make sure they separated. Leave them to fry in the oil until they have browned and crisped up nicely, then remove with the slotted spoon to a plate laden with a piece of kitchen paper. 

4. Immediately shake some salt over the crisps whilst they are still hot as it means the salt is more likely to stick. Be careful not to over-salt as I did on my first attempt otherwise you'll be needing a BIG glass of water on the side.

5. Repeat the process with another small handful of peelings until they are all fried, then shake them out into a bowl for serving.

The key learnings I will take away from my first attempt are not to over-salt as I mentioned earlier, but also to make sure I peel thinly to begin with to ensure maximum crispy yumminess.

And why limit yourself to potatoes? Why not try carrot, parsnip or beetroot and let me know how you get on? I'd love to know!