Buckle in fellow questers. We have a doozy for you today. We went back to Minnesota’s Largest Candy Shop and we picked up as many foreign flavored Lay’s chips as we could get our hands on. Every chip is from Thailand. And it is going to get real fishy up in here.
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Which foreign flavored Lay’s Chips are we trying today?
Salmon Chili Lime
Scallop Butter Garlic
Popcorn Mix
Extra Barbecue
Salted Egg
Hot Chili Squid
Truffle
Who is on this stomach churning quest?
Kris, for the name of science!
Nate, Mr. Production Value.
Matt, needs to ease into this.
Amy, met with silence.
And of course, our subscribers! Thanks to our small, yet coveted group. We appreciate the support. You too can join us on this food journey. All you need to do is… SUBSCRIBE!
The History of Chips
The origin of the potato chip is not exactly set in stone. But the most popular chip legend is as follows.
Let’s go to Moon’s Lake House, a popular restaurant in the resort town of Saratoga Springs, New York. Here we will find Cornelius Vanderbilt, a shipping and railroad baron, dining at Moon’s Lake House, where he was sorely disappointed in the fried potatoes he had been served. He sent them back to the kitchen, asking for a thinner slice of potato. The chef, George Crum, was a little offended by the request and decided to show him who was chef. He sliced some potatoes as thin as he could, fried them to a crisp, and served them to Vanderbilt. But to Crum’s surprise, they were loved by the patron and the potato chip was born.
But there are holes in this story. For one, if this was true, Cornelius Vanderbilt was likely not the patron of the restaurant.
Another issue, Crum’s invention was unrecognized during his lifetime. He was a celebrated chef, being named “the best cook in the country” by a writer for the New York Herald in 1889. Being as accomplished as he was, surely it would have been set in stone if he was the inventor.
Additionally, an obituary for Catherine Adkins Wicks maintained she was the originator of the potato chip. Catherine was Crum’s sister and worked alongside him in the kitchen. One story tells the story with her and the disgruntled customer, not Crum. Another says she was peeling potatoes and dropped a thin slice into a boiling pot of fat and stumbled upon the discovery.
There are multiple other people who have claimed to be the inventor posthumously. But one things is probably certain, Saratoga Springs did a lot to popularize the potato chip, and were even known as Saratoga Chips for many years.
The Results
**SPOILER ALERT!**
Listen to the episode first if you do not want the results revealed to you yet!
7th Place: Scallop Butter Garlic
Amy - 1
Kris - 1
Matt - 2
Nate - 4
6th/5th/4th Place (tie): Truffle
Amy - 1
Kris - 2
Matt - 3
Nate - 3
6th/5th/4th Place (tie): Salted Egg
Amy - 1
Kris - 2
Matt - 2
Nate - 4
6th/5th/4th Place (tie): Hot Chili Squid
Amy - 2
Kris - 1
Matt - 3
Nate - 3
3rd Place: Salmon Chili Lime
Amy - 2
Kris - 3
Matt - 3
Nate - 4
2nd/1st Place (tie): Popcorn
Amy - 3
Kris - 4
Matt - 4
Nate - 3
2nd/1st Place (tie): Extra BBQ
Amy - 4
Kris - 5
Matt - 3
Nate - 2
There you have it. Extra BBQ and the Popcorn flavors got the highest score, but nothing we ate today receives the Quest for the Best seal of approval.
Thank you all for joining us on this episode of Quest for the Best. Let us know what you thought. Have you tried any of these? We would love to hear your rating as well.
Also, do you have any foods you would love to get the coveted seal of approval? Let us know in the comments what you want to hear next.
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SHOW NOTES:
Chips from Thailand