Taro Root Chips

The “Bikini” on Taro Root

Taro is a root vegetable found in areas of West Africa, Central and South America among many other areas of the world. Although similar to a potato, taro root contains a host of essential vitamins and minerals that promote good circulation, help regulate blood pressure and boost the immune system. Taro is high in fiber which keeps digestion flowing smoothly and helps keep blood sugar regulated thereby staving off food cravings. Taro root is lower glycemic that potato chips making them more metabolism friendly.

Cooking Methods

The taro root, like the potato, makes great chips and most of us love a good, crispy chip. There’s quite a bit of controversy over what is considered to be a “healthy” chip these days. Many producers of “all natural”, “all vegetable” chips can legally say their products are such, but the approach and ingredients in preparing them are often misleading. Many common snack chips are made with ingredients like various types and blends of vegetable oils which are high in Omega-6 fatty acids which can interfere with healthy fat cells. And, these “all natural” vegetable chips are commonly fried – one of the worst cooking methods for good health. In my research, I have found that most common vegetable snack chips are made with starches that lead to blood sugar imbalance and cause more cravings for unhealthy, diet-busting foods.

Taro root
Taro root

Over-snacking

While sometimes grabbing a bag of chips at the store is the easiest option, I encourage taking a “fresh is best” approach. Time is of concern? By the time the car is parked, you’ve made your way to the chip aisle and waited in line at the grocery store, you could have easily made these delicious taro root chips at home.

With a little pre-planning, it’s easy to make healthy snack chips at home. And, keep other fresh snacks handy at all times to feel energized, positive, empowered, and on track with your health goals.

Pre-planning tips:

  • Allow 10 to 15 minutes on Saturday and Tuesday to think about the snacks and meals for the week
  • Make a grocery list based on the selected recipes and needed ingredients, foods
  • Shop on Saturday for Sunday prep (or shop early Sunday for Sunday prep)
  • Shop on Tuesday for Wednesday prep (or shop early Wednesday for Wednesday prep)
  • Sundays, portion out your snacks through Wednesday; post a simple list of the menus through Wednesday
  • Sunday, make the smoothie energy drink for Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. Freeze portions, if desired, for the remaining days
  • Wednesday, prep the remaining week’s snacks; make the remaining week’s smoothie energy drinks, if they were not frozen
  • Remember to take snacks with you during the day
  • Remember to take the frozen smoothie energy drinks out of the freezer and place in the refrigerator the night before

Quick, Easy, Energizing Snack ideas:

  • Celery sticks (they are really not boring)
  • Fennel sticks
  • Raw asparagus tips
  • 1/2 slice of sprouted bread with tahini or almond butter and black sesame seeds
  • Raw walnuts or almonds
  • Lightly roasted chickpeas
  • Raw bell pepper strips
  • Lightly steamed broccoli florets
  • Lightly roasted cauliflower
  • 16 to 20 ounces of homemade smoothie energy drink, such as Beet, Kale or Citrus (recipes in The Bikini Chef® Diet)
  • Homemade Taro Root Chips (recipe below)

Recipe

Taro Root Chips
Appetizers
Taro root chips - thinly sliced taro root is baked like a potato chip. A low glycemic, high fiber option to potato chips

Ingredients

1 medium taro root, peeled and thinly sliced (see tips, below)
sea salt
grapeseed or coconut oil
black pepper

Instructions

Rinse taro root slices to remove starch.
Pat dry with paper towels.
Preheat oven to 400*.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Using a pastry brush, lightly coat parchment paper with grape seed oil or coconut oil (just enough to coat).
Place taro root slices on baking sheet without overlapping.
Lightly brush top of taro root with olive or coconut oil.
Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until edges are crisp and golden.
Remove from oven; place baking sheet on wire rack and allow to cool.
Eat chips alone or with dips.
TIPS:
Use a vegetable peeler to trim the outside of the taro as you would a potato.
Slice taro to about 1/16" thick using a mandolin slicer or knife.
Make sure taro root slices are dry before baking.
Use olive and coconut oil sparingly; do not overcoat.

Serves

2

Preparation Time (hrs/min)

0, 20

Cooking Time (hrs/min)

0, 15

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