Here I am with another delicious recipe of homemade chips or crisps with Tapioca or Maravalli Kizhangu (as called in Tamil). During the peak season, you can spot them all over the market in small push carts and these roots look very fresh. I love steaming them with the skin and then the joy of peeling off the skin, from the hot tapioca – it is pure bliss! Another favorite is making maravalli kizhangu chips, colloquially known as kuchi chips made with tapioca roots.
Kuchi chips literally means chips that resemble sticks. While the easiest way to slice them thin and making them as crisps, the most popular way of frying tapioca chips is to cut them into matchsticks and then making chips out of them. These turn out really crispy and are extremely addictive too – take my word for it. I have loved eating these growing up and the first thing I could think of as soon as I spotted fresh tapioca or maravalli kizhangu is to make chips!
While my heart was set on making kuchi chips, the husband wanted crisp style chips. Yes, both are maravalli kizhangu chips but taste wise, texture wise there is a lot of difference. We each took a tapioca root and got on with our preparations. While he sliced his tapioca thin, I diced mine into matchsticks. I love these little challenges we have in our kitchen and in the end, it is food that wins 🙂 Both the versions were really delicious! Again, this is not exactly healthy I know. But how many times do we get a pack of crisps or chips from the store? Do we know what kind of oil or preservatives are used? Compared to that, I am better of making my own stuff at home where I am in control of everything. For once in a while guilty pleasure, this is just perfect. Check out other chips recipes too!
How to make Maravalli Kizhangu Chips | Tapioca Chips
📖 Recipe
Detailed step by step picture recipe of making Maravalli Kizhangu Chips | Tapioca Chips
First peel off the skin of tapioca and wash it well. Cut it into roundels of ~2mm in thickness. Stack a few roundels and cut them into equal sized thin matchsticks.
Meanwhile heat oil for deep frying. Once hot, set the flame on medium. Fry these prepared tapioca chips in batches until they are golden brown and crisp. It is important to fry them slowly so that they are crisp and not soggy.
Strain them off and place them on a kitchen tissue.
Finally sprinkle salt and red chilli powder, mix well.
Store in an air tight container for up to a week.
Recipe Notes
Instead of sticks, these can be made into thin slices and fried as crisps too. Make sure the sticks are equal in size to ensure even cooking and browning. Don’t fry on high flame as they will turn soggy after cooling down.
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