See, I told you that I would use up the beets from our CSA share. I wanted to do something fun and different with the beets, since I usually just juice or grill them. My husband, Mark, absolutely HATES beets, he despises them and won’t try them no matter how good I tell them they are. He thinks they are gross and taste like ‘ground’ or ‘dirt’!
Well, I can officially say – I have WON the beet war in our house! I got Mark to eat beets and he actually liked them. I didn’t even have to sneak them into something else. I just said “here, just try this beet chip, don’t be a jerk”. He tried it and he liked it, then he had another and then a few more. Then he proclaimed “I have never,ever liked beets before, ever, but these I actually like!” S U C C E S S !
These beet chips are super easy to make and you can keep them simple with just a little sea salt, or you can add some fun things like onion powder, or rosemary or any other spices or herbs you desire. I used a mix of both golden beets and red beets that we got in our CSA share from Porter Farms. Once you peel the feels and slice them, you will not believe the vibrant bright colors. They are almost too pretty to eat. Almost. These chips are so crispy and satisfying that you won’t be able to eat just one or even a couple. I made this batch and had planned to eat a few for a mid-afternoon snack and then save the rest for an evening snack. That didn’t work. At all. We ate them all.
As far as storing goes, these chips will likely lose a bit of their crisp when you store them, so as with most crispy baked foods, best to eat these up right away when they are their crispiest. Darn.
Besides being super delicious and so vibrantly beautiful, if you need even more reasons to eat beets here are a few of their wonderful benefits, beets are a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains. The betalains found in beets have been shown to provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and detoxification support. If that isn’t enough, the combination of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory molecules in beets makes this food a highly-likely candidate for risk reduction of many cancer types. Oh and don’t forget the fiber! Beet fiber (along with carrot fiber) are two specific types of food fiber that may provide special health benefits, particularly with respect to health of our digestive tract (including prevention of colon cancer) and our cardiovascular system. More info about the wonderful benefits of beets can be found here.
[print_this]Crispy Baked Beet Chips – Gluten-free + Vegan
- 3-4 medium beets (or 6-8 small beets), peeled and sliced thinly about 1/16 – 1/8 inch – using a mandoline slicer is the best and easiest way to do this
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Sea salt to taste
- Feel free to add any additional seasonings that you wish *
Preheat oven to 350º F. Toss beets slices with oil in a medium sized bowl until they are all well coated and lay them flat in a single-layer on a rimmed baking sheet (bake in multiple batches, if necessary). Bake for 20-30 minutes, until chips are crispy. Check after about 15 minutes since the time will vary based on thickness of chips and how dark your baking pan is, mine took about 30 minutes since my baking pan was really light in color. The second batch I made was on a much darker baking pan and they cooked up much quicker. Sprinkle a little sea salt over top when you take them out. Transfer to a wire rack and they will crisp up a bit more as they cool.
* Play around with adding in different spices and herbs. I made one batch with some fresh rosemary, another with some onion powder and then just a plain batch, all were very good.
[/print_this]
34 Responses
What a crazy cool way to get the nutritional benefits of probably one of the least-favored vegetables (at least that’s how it works in my life) inside where it does the most good! I’ll break in my brand new mandolin making these babies. As usual, you’ve done it again! Thanks so much. Lin
I was saving a recipe for beet chips myself! Now I don’t have too!
Yum, I love beet chips, but have never made them homemade. I will definitely be trying this sometime!
[…] here to read the rest: Crispy Baked Beet Chips – Gluten-free + Vegan Tags: […]
Should I boil the beets in order to slice them? Or is it easy to slice them raw?
No need to boil them to slice them. Super easy to slice them raw, it is the easiest if you have a mandoline slicer.
I love this!!! I always make sweet potato chips, but beets are perfect! Now I just have to go buy a bunch of beets 😀
Alex – me too, I love sweet potato chips, but these definitely rival them. Plus the colors are just so beautiful. Thanks 🙂
[…] –August 12,2012 News:Nothing of note this week.Recipes:Appetizer,Snack &Side DishCrispy Baked Beet Chips (V) | Tasty Yummies.Curried Zucchini Coins | The Crispy Cook.Fried Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms | The […]
If I bake them on a rack, will they come out crispier? I’ve never had much luck baking veggies to a crisp.
That sounds like a great idea. I haven’t yet tried it myself, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. If you do try it, let me know how it comes out. Thanks so much.
I will have to try your cooking method. I made some beet cheeps last week and I used a mock dehydrator method (baked them in my oven on the “warm” setting for about 6-8 hours) but they totally shriveled up and got very dark. Not so pretty like yours! I tossed them in coconut oil and curry powder, though, which was a nice combo!
Cara – there were definitely some that were quite small and shriveled up for me too, but most were nice and pretty. It is amazing how much they actually shrink up. I love the idea of the curry powder and coconut oil blend. I have to try that next time! Thanks.
[…] – what if we add some puree to mashed potatoes? Use it in a juice mixture? 3 Turn it into chips? Experiment, and you may find a new favorite flavor […]
I made these for dinner tonight and they turned out fantastic! I just bought a mandolin which is a necessity for these. Thanks!
So glad you enjoyed them Bethany. I cannot wait to make them again, myself.
These look great, gonna try this recipe. I’ve got two enormous beets hanging out in my fridge this weekend and I’m trying to find a new way to make them haha:)
Awesome. I hope you enjoy! Thanks.
Right up my straight, a definite recipe to add to my baked sweet potatoes and parsnips:) Tks
Hi,
I tried this recipe but my beets came out roasted not crispy. Any suggestions? I used a mandolin, a little olive oil and some salt but every time I try they are just roasted beets not crispy beets. Help!
Sara I am sorry to hear that. I would say maybe your own runs a little less warm and maybe try increasing the temperature. Also maybe make the chips a tad thinner? I have made these a few times and they always get crispy. Make sure you let them cool a bit so they crisp up. Hope that helps a little.
[…] Chips – Much along the same lines as kale chips, sweet potato chips, whatever else chips, you have baked beet chips. These look delicious! I have yet to try them, but can’t wait to play around with […]
Beth! I tried making these, followed directions to a “T”, they took a while to crisp up and by the time they did, they had a very burnt taste! *cries! Beets are hard to source in my country so You can imagine my sadness…
Hmm, I would say next time maybe go with a lower temperature and cook them longer. Low and slow maybe? Also, always try to get them as thin as possible. I find every time I make beet chips the results are slightly different. Maybe a difference in the beets or ovens?
I bought a bunch of beets at our local farmer’s market. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
[…] with the results. I was able to put in 2 whole beets and 2 bunches of organic kale. I even made beet chips for my kids, which they loved!!!!!!! So far, so good on the Fall healing […]
I’ve made these a few times this summer as my CSA has had a good crop. Even though my husband loves them, I find them to be a little bitter. Is there something to do to help take out that bitter edge?
Hmm I have never had that issue, of them being bitter. Must be the particular beets you are using? Oftentimes, overcooking vegetables like beets, can cause them to be bitter too. The only thing that can take off some of the bitter edge would be additional salt, probably.
Tip: Why bother to peel the beets and lose the nutrition (and take extra time)? :^)
I eventually made a shallow vertical cut on one side of the beet to keep the peel from shrinking the chip into a little cup. But even little cups worked fine.
I used Chachere’s original seasoning on them and they were absolutely delicious!
Julie great tip! I agree on the peeling however for me, sometimes the flavor of the beets when you leave the skin on, is too much, too intense. Too earthy (read: it tastes like actual dirt no matter how much you wash them). haha
[…] recipe round up: Kale with Roasted Beets and Bacon Baked Beet Chips Roasted Beets with Feta Beet, Orange and Walnut Salad Beetroot […]
What did I do wrong??
I’m just getting on the whole plant based diet thing and I found your blog which has given me a lot of inspiration! BUT I tried these delicious looking beet chips and it was a complete mess! Half of them I burned the other half just didn’t crisp. What did I do wrong? (Keep in mind I don’t have a mandolin slicer so I did my best at slicing them myself…)
[…] Tasty Yummies – Crispy Baked Beet Chips […]
Looks good- I’m eager to try!