Easy Homemade Corn Chips from Fresh Milled Popcorn
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Click HERE to read my policies & disclaimers if you're interested. I will only link products I use and personally recommend. Thank you for your support, friends!
I really like chips, ok?! If given the chance, I can demolish some store bought junk food chips, although I normally regret it afterward. Thankfully, homemade have been superior in flavor and enjoyment all around. It’s a labor of love, but it’s worth it when the entire family loves them.
I finally figured out how to kind of make a copycat of my beloved store-bought version of corn chips (fritos, anyone?) and they’re so delicious. Even better, they use fresh milled popcorn, which is extremely easy to grow and have an abundance of! I really like that I can grow or purchase one variety of corn in bulk and have many different uses.
This recipe comes together quickly using simple ingredients and I’ll give you two different options on how to season them below; chili cheese and plain salted. The only thing I can’t perfect is the signature curled chip that Fritos have; these stay pretty flat. That’s really not a deal breaker for me, though.
I also tried diligently to develop a recipe that exclusively used home milled popcorn but was unsuccessful on many attempts. The dough would just not come together and I’d end up needing to add flour or something to bind it together and then that muted the flavor of the popcorn and changed the texture. They just weren’t good. So, I did have to break down and buy some masa harina from the store, but that’s ok! The dough came together perfectly once I found the right combination and fried them in my home rendered beef tallow. I ate almost the entire first batch I made testing these out as I fried them. No shame in my snackin’ game!
What is Popcorn?
In my time of sharing things to the internet, I learned that most folks didn’t know popcorn refers to the variety of corn you can grow and not just the puffy, salted snack. Most think corn is corn and there’s nothing more. Field corn is sweet corn is popcorn. Wild, isn’t it? And if you don’t believe me, check out my Facebook last winter where I shared I enjoyed just milling popcorn with my WonderMill for cornmeal instead of purchasing the commonly used dent corn and that it worked really well. I had what felt like the entire population of the world telling me it wasn’t popcorn… insert facepalm emoji here.
Popcorn varieties are a special kind of the flint corn. They are small and flint-type, meaning they have a hard exterior, also called the hull, that protects the soft endosperm inside. That hard exterior holds moisture in, then once heat is applied that moisture turns into steam and builds pressure until the hull ruptures and allows expansion, making that puffy snack we also call…. popcorn. Technically, it’s popped popcorn, OR even ruptured popcorn, but alas, that’s a mouthful. I vote we start calling it ruptured popcorn.
What is Nixtamalization?
Truth be told, I’ve never done this. I’ve looked into how to nixtamalize corn and it seems rather easy, but since corn doesn’t make up a very large part of my diet, I haven’t found it to be relevant to do. Nixtamalization does improve the nutrient content and I have also been told it makes the masa bind better. If you would prefer, go for it! I kinda wonder if the fresh milled popcorn dough would have come together better if it was nixtamal? The store bought masa harina is normally already nixtamalized from my understanding.
I’ve also been told that homemade is much more fresh and flavorful than the old stuff you buy in the store, which I believe, since I’ve been milling my own flour. Fresh and homemade is always better! The nixtamal process is simply boiling 500 grams of corn with 5 grams pickling lime (also known as calcium hydroxide or slaked lime) and water to cover until you can easily break apart the corn kernels and then letting it soak for 8-12 hours. You then strain the liquid and rinse it really, really good because pickling lime isn’t the best flavor to leave behind. You can then grind the nixtamalized corn using a food processor or I think I would dry it out and grind it.
Let’s get started!
Equipment You Might Need:
- Mixing bowl
- Parchment Paper
- Baking Sheet
- Cast Iron Pan
- Grain Mill
- Pizza cutter
- Rolling Pin
Ingredients
- popcorn
- masa harina
- hot water
- beef tallow, for frying
- salt
- chili powder
- cumin
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- nutritional yeast
Step 1: Mill the Popcorn
We’re going to mill on two separate settings, as I’ve found this makes the best dough. The mixture of a fine corn flour with a coarse cornmeal is perfection! You probably don’t have to do this, I just like the dough better this way. We need a total of 1 1/2 cups of corn meal. I start with my WonderMill in between the pastry and bread setting and mill 2/3 cup of popcorn kernels. Once they are done milling, I change the setting to coarse and mill 1/3 cup of popcorn at that setting. I dump what I milled in the collection bucket directly into the mixing bowl. If you would prefer, measure out 1 cup of the finely milled corn meal and 1/2 cup of the coarsely milled corn meal to be more precise.
Step 2: Make the Dough
To a mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients: freshly milled popcorn (1 cup finely milled and 1/2 cup coarse milled), 1 cup masa harina, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk to combine. Pour in the hot water. Using a dough whisk, mix until a dough comes together and then knead with your hand until all the corn flour is mixed in. It should feel a bit like pie crust when it comes together. Form into a disc, wrap with plastic wrap or beeswax wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. I did try skipping this step and just resting the dough on the counter and it rolls out fine, but does seem more fragile when you’re rolling it out.
Step 3: Roll & Cut into Chips
Remove the dough from the fridge. Cut a piece of parchment paper, about 2 feet in length. Place about 1/3 the disc of dough on top of the prepared parchment paper and generously sprinkle to top of the dough with more cornmeal. Press the dough into a flattened rectangle. Then, rip another identical sized piece of parchment paper and place on top of the dough.
Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a thin sheet between the sheets of parchment paper, aiming for about 1/8″ thick. If you leave it too thick, the chips will be very hard and dense.
Using a pizza cutter, cut dough into desired chips pieced sizes. I like larger pieces, like chubby rectangles, because they can handle some aggressive dippage.
Alternatively, you can use parchment with a tortilla press and break the dough disc up into little balls, press into rounds, and cut into tortilla triangles.
Step 5: Make the Seasoning
To a small mixing bowl, add:
- 1 Tablespoon salt
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
Mix all ingredients together with a spoon to combine thoroughly. Set aside.
If you just want plain, have salt ready to sprinkle over the chips as you pull them out of the oil.
Step 6: Frying
Into a cast iron frying pan, melt about 1 cup of tallow over medium-low heat; you want the tallow to be about 350 degrees F. Working in small batches, carefully drop the dough pieces into the hot oil and fry the chips til golden, being sure to move them around in the oil with a slotted spoon or metal tongs. These cook pretty quickly if you cut them thin, so you just have to watch them. You’re looking for lightly golden and crisp looking. Remove when done with a slotted spoon or tongs to a small bowl, sprinkle over the chili cheese seasoning and toss to coat. Then, dump onto a pan lined with paper towels or brown paper to drain and cool. Sprinkle a little more of the seasoning mixture over the top while they are hot.
If you do not want to use the chili cheese seasoning, simply remove the chips straight to the pan to drain and sprinkle salt over top while they are still hot.
Step 7: Storing
Allow chips to completely cool, and if you’re not an animal like me, store left overs in an airtight container, OR for best and longest shelf life, vacuum seal in mason jars and they’ll last longer than a couple days on the shelf.
With a little extra effort, you can easily have your own homemade tortilla chips made with your own corn fried in good quality home rendered animal fat (let’s skip the vegetable oil).
Some exciting variations:
- sprinkle cinnamon sugar over top of hot chips during the last minute or two of baking to satisfy your sweet tooth
- cut into fun shapes, like longer rectangles and then twist them and fry or bake for some crunchy tortilla chip twisters
- Press this dough into small corn tortillas then cook in a preheated dry skillet over medium heat til golden brown on each side for your own homemade corn tortillas. You can cut into triangles, then bake at 350F for about 8 minutes, flipping halfway through for your own homemade corn tortilla chips! Dip in your favorite salsa from the canning pantry and you go yourself a snack!
Enjoy! Happiness is always homemade!
Equipment
- parchment paper
- Cast Iron Pan
- Pizza Cutter
- Rolling Pin
Ingredients
Corn Chip Dough
- 1 1/2 cups freshly milled popcorn 1 cup fine, 1/2 cup coarse
- 1 cup masa harina
- 1 cup hot water
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup lard or tallow for frying
Chili Cheese Seasoning
- 1 Tbs salt
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbs nutritional yeast
Instructions
- We're going to mill on two separate settings, as I've found this makes the best dough. The mixture of a fine corn flour with a coarse cornmeal is perfection! You probably don't have to do this, I just like the dough better this way. We need a total of 1 1/2 cups of corn meal. I start with my WonderMill in between the pastry and bread setting and mill 2/3 cup of popcorn kernels. Once they are done milling, I change the setting to coarse and mill 1/3 cup of popcorn at that setting. I dump what I milled in the collection bucket directly into the mixing bowl. If you would prefer, measure out 1 cup of the finely milled corn meal and 1/2 cup of the coarsely milled corn meal to be more precise.
- To a mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients: freshly milled popcorn (1 cup finely milled and 1/2 cup coarse milled), 1 cup masa harina, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk to combine.
- Pour in the hot water. Using a dough whisk, mix until a dough comes together and then knead with your hand until all the corn flour is mixed in. It should feel a bit like pie crust when it comes together. Form into a disc, wrap with plastic wrap or beeswax wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the fridge. Cut a piece of parchment paper, about 2 feet in length. Place about 1/3 the disc of dough on top of the prepared parchment paper and generously sprinkle to top of the dough with more cornmeal. Press the dough into a flattened rectangle. Then, rip another identical sized piece of parchment paper and place on top of the dough.
- Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a thin sheet between the sheets of parchment paper, aiming for about 1/8" thick. If you leave it too thick, the chips will be very hard and dense.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut dough into desired chips pieced sizes.
- To a small mixing bowl, add the seasoning ingredients and stir to mix together. Set aside.
- Into a cast iron frying pan, melt about 1 cup of tallow over medium-low heat; you want the tallow to be about 350 degrees F.
- Working in small batches, carefully drop the dough pieces into the hot oil and fry the chips til golden, being sure to move them around in the oil with a slotted spoon or metal tongs.
- Remove when done with a slotted spoon or tongs to a small bowl, sprinkle over the chili cheese seasoning and toss to coat. Then, dump onto a pan lined with paper towels or brown paper to drain and cool. Sprinkle a little more of the seasoning mixture over the top while they are hot.
- Allow chips to completely cool, and if you're not an animal like me, store left overs in an airtight container, OR for best and longest shelf life, vacuum seal in mason jars and they'll last longer than a couple days on the shelf.
Notes
- sprinkle cinnamon sugar over top of hot chips during the last minute or two of baking to satisfy your sweet tooth
- cut into fun shapes, like long rectangles and then twist them and fry or bake for some crunchy tortilla chip twisters
- Press this dough into small corn tortillas then cook in a preheated dry skillet over medium heat til golden brown on each side for your own homemade corn tortillas. You can cut into triangles, then bake at 350F for about 8 minutes, flipping halfway through for your own homemade corn tortilla chips! Dip in your favorite salsa from the canning pantry and you go yourself a snack!
