For years I have battled with the fact that most chip’s are deep fried in the same frier’s as gluten products or even if they are oven chip’s in a supermarket they are covered in wheat flour to make them crispy. So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered oven chip’s that were gluten free, crispy, delicious and guilt free, winning!
There is quite a misconception around chip’s and potatoes generally as to whether they are gluten free or not. I can tell you now they are gluten free, but it is where they are being cooked, how they are being cooked and what is being put on them which is potentially making them not gluten free.
When eating out chips are generally put in the same deep frier’s as products that are filled with gluten, therefore they are generally not gluten free unless they specify they are being cooked in alternative frier’s. Chip’s are generally very much a treat for me and not something I eat regularly, but we all deserve a treat once in a while therefore I need to know that they are gluten free when I do indulge.
I have trolled the supermarket’s over the year’s to try and find gluten free oven chip’s, as they are generally lower fat and better for you than fried chip’s, but they are hard to find. If I ever bought oven chips they would be ‘McCains Gluten Free Chips’ and the gluten free part is in huge letters so you cannot miss them, but they were sold in very limited supermarket’s. But why are oven chip’s not gluten free? When you start looking at the back of the packets you will see they will say they contain wheat flour. The chip’s are coated in wheat flour so that when you cook them they have that crispy coating on the outside that turns golden brown.
Over the year’s I have generally preferred having sweet potato chips due to the health benefits of sweet potato vs a normal potato, but you can imagine my dilemma with all the above to consider. The same applies for oven sweet potato chip’s as normal chip's, that generally every sweet potato chip has a wheat flour coating to make them crispy. I have tried many times to make my own sweet potato chip’s and always wondered why I could not get them crispy and they do not taste the same. Therefore how was I going to find gluten free sweet potato oven chip’s if I can barely find normal oven chips that are gluten free. Until the brand ‘Strong Roots’ came into my life!
As you can imagine I thought it was too good to be true as I am stood in Tesco’s freezer aisle and I see this ‘New’ product which is ‘Strong Roots Oven Baked Sweet Potato’ that is GLUTEN FREE! They were purchased and cooked that night and I can honestly say hands down they are some of the best sweet potato chip’s I have ever eaten. Firstly thank you to ‘Strong Roots’ for bringing this absolutely delicious product out onto the market and secondly if you have not tried them, get to the supermarket and buy them now. I have found them in Tesco and Waitrose, but if you use their website tool ‘Where To Buy’ it can help you locate your nearest store.
As time has gone on ‘Strong Roots’ have launched various products some of which are not gluten free but are vegan. As I always say, check that back of the packet to be sure it does not contain anything that will upset your gut.
If you have not tried the Strong Roots brand please sign up for an account to Gut Chat and let me know what your thoughts are on these products. I would love to hear your feedback!
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