How do you make homemade tortilla chips?

I do a low cal version. Cut corn tortillas into wedges and microwave until crisp. Can also spray with oil spray and season then microwave until crisp. Fast, easy and lower calorie but yes just fry them up for more traditional chips

I buy bulk corn tortillas and cut them into thirds and bake them on a cookie sheet without any spray.  Cake them at 250 until they are golden and crisp.  I check on them often and turn them at least once.  If you insist on adding salt a small spray bottle works great to help make the salt stick.  I lay out as many as I can get on a cooking sheet overlapping each chip by about half.  You want to flip the entire row at one time.  If you time it just right they are easy to turn and separate.  They need to be cooked on both sides.  If you let them go to long they will become on unit.  That works too, all you have to do is cut them down to size.  I'm making this sound complicated but it isn't.  I have been making my own tortilla chips for many years.  Store bought just won't cut it!

The ordinary, high-cal, Mexican, style is to cut fresh, corn tortillas into wedges (I usually cut regular size ones into sixths, and small taco size into thirds or fourths, and either shallow or deep fry them in either a hot, neutral-flavored oil (such as corn oil) or lard for a minute or at most two.  

 

Lard costs a lot more and tastes better.  You may, if you like, season any vegetable oil with lard. 

 

"Casera" (translates as homemade) style are left whole and fried.  Those are not only good for tostadas, but you'll find that many people are perfectly capable of breaking their own tortilla into pieces (hence, casera).  

 

Remember to fry in small batches and not overcrowd the pan or fryer basket.  It not only makes for a faster, crisper fry; but allows you some practice to get time and temp just right.

 

Drain on paper and season with salt and whatever else as soon as they come out of the fat.  If you season them when they're still hot, the seasoning will stay with them better. 

 

 

BDL