Instead of offering store-bought fried or baked tortilla chips, try homemade chips at your next party. It's one of those simple ideas that immediately cranks your party up a notch and cements your reputation as a clever, resourceful host. The deep-fried fresh tortillas are plump, stylish, crispy, substantial, yet at the same time much lighter. The store-bought versions, even if they're of the so-called restaurant style variety, run a distant second.

Ingredients

• Fresh flour or corn tortillas, cut into wedges
• Vegetable oil

Instructions

1. In a large cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven, heat 3 to 4 inches of vegetable oil until it reaches a temperature of 350 F. (Use a candy thermometer.) Throughout the frying, be sure that the oil is at least 350 F, but don't exceed 375 F.

2. Drop the tortilla wedges individually into the pot. Fry until golden brown, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from the oil, and drain on paper towels. Toss with salt and serve.

Note: When deep-frying, always drop items into the pot one by one. If you drop by the handful, they can stick together in unattractive, difficult-to-handle clumps that are almost impossible to separate. Furthermore, a bunch will drop the oil temperature significantly, and the cooler oil will be more readily absorbed by whatever you're cooking. You want the oil to cook but not penetrate the food, yielding a crisp result -- not a heavy, soggy, oil-logged one.

Other Appetizer Recipes

Fresh Tomato Salsa
Plantain Chips
Samoosas
Spicy Shrimp Salsa

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Cuba Libre

Tips

Deep Frying Oil Temperature