Carrot, ginger, sweet potato, tomato, spinach and banana microwave chips - no oil

I got so excited about making potato chips that I decided to see what else I could make into chips using my silpat and the microwave.

Here are my hits and misses:

Carrots:
Using a potato peeler, create thin carrot curls. Place on silpat and lightly salt. Cook for approximately 3-4 minutes in the microwave.

I thought these were pretty good. Some of them cooked quicker than others, and some were just a teensy bit humid still when I took them out. I will make them again. 

Ginger shreds: For the record, ginger doesn't slice very easily with a peeler due to the tensile and hairlike inner strands. I'm a big ginger fan, so these are awesome as they are easily crumbled and can be sprinkled in salads etc. 

This took approximately 3 minutes

Spinach: These leaves cooked quickly - in about two minutes. While I wasn't sure they were completely done (some were a little bit limp), many of them were plastered to the silpat and difficult to get off. In addition, some of the spinach stems turned black, and I saw some sparks and small flames. 

While I liked these, I'm not sure if I will make these again. They were too hard to peel off of the silpat and came off in crumbles. If I ever need spinach crumbles - these are my go to. 

Sun dried Tomatoes: 

I loved how these turned out. Interestingly though, they still came out a little humid and damp, even though in some areas, black lacing appeared. Perhaps my tomato slices needed to be more uniform. 

I'll definitely make these again, however I will possibly use the microwave at a mid power level rather than on high. 

Sweet potato chips: 

These are probably my favorite turnout of the lot. Thinly sliced, lightly salted, they cooked at around 3-4 minutes. Lightly salted, a sweeter version of a potato chip. 

This is a definite make again.

Finally, last but not least, banana chips: 

I sliced these as thinly as possible. I also cut them on an angle. When I cut them straight it got messed up with the inner makings of the banana. Trust me - the angle is easier. 

At first I didn't think these would work. I cooked them on high for about 4 minutes. They were so moist and almost boiling. Then I lowered the microwave power to half and cooked them for approximately 2-3 minutes longer. I just kept checking them. I didn't want them to burn, but I didn't want them soft and floppy either. 

As it turns out, while these look burnt, they were actually pretty perfect. They hardened as they cooled, and were a perfect blend of banana sugary like candy. And they were inhaled. Sticky and chewy in the teeth like toffee mmmm.  Definitely one we will do again. 

Share this post