Episode 16: Are there any store-bought snacks worth making at home?

In the Test Kitchen

The hosts of In the Test Kitchen debate whether popular store-bought snacks are worth the effort of making them at home. They conduct side-b

Key takeaways

• Annie Petito's kettle chip recipe uses a longer fry time to achieve a thick, crunchy texture rather than a thin crispness.
• Commercial potato chips are often made from russet varieties specifically selected for low free-reducing sugars to control browning.

Main topics

• Homemade vs Store-bought Snacks
• Kettle Chip Preparation

Notable quotes

Homemade is preferred over store-bought, which I don't know about you guys, but I found it kind of surprising.

Conclusion

The episode demonstrates that certain 'project' snacks are surprisingl

Transcript preview

Speaker 3 (0:00) If you spend any time in the kitchen, you know a good cutting board is one of those tools you'll reach for every single day. And when it comes to this necessity, our reviews team has named Teak House cutting boards their favorite. They're made from FSC-certified sustainable teak wood, which is knife-friendly, naturally moisture-resistant, and built to last for years. Whether you need an everyday board for weeknight cooking or one of their extra-large boards for entertaining, Teakhouse has a size that fits the job. Whether you need an everyday board for weeknight cooking or one of their extra large boards for entertaining, Teakhouse has a size that fits the job. They also have a new sheet-to-pan system that's pretty slick. It's a board that's been modified to let a USA Pan baking sheet slip out from underneath. It lets you slide ingredients from the board to a pan and then into the oven. The system makes cooking a little cleaner, easier, and more convenient. And for anyone who loves hosting, there's the Rover Cart. Think of it as a rolling kitchen island built around a Teak House large or extra large cutting board. It's great for charcuterie spreads, grilling, outdoor gatherings, or just, you know, rolling the food to your guests. Teak House is innovating based on how we cook and gather around food, and we're big fans of that approach. Visit teakhouse.com to learn more. Speaker 2 (1:23) Hey, everyone. Speaker 3 (1:24) When you work at ATK, one of the things you hear all the time is about how full everybody is because we eat all the time. That said, when TV rolls around, they designate one portion of the kitchen as craft services, and one of those tables is loaded up with snacks. And no matter how full anybody is, people are always sneaking into Crafty for, you know, some chips, maybe some candy, maybe, you know, what else? Gummies. Granola bars. M &M's. Peanut M &M's. Peanut M Speaker 4 (1:52) &M's. Yeah. Speaker 3 (1:53) Yeah. Yeah. All right. So today we're asking, are there any store-bought snacks that are worth making at home? Welcome to In the Test Kitchen, a culinary playground and proving ground where recipes are developed, tested, and tasted until they're as close to perfect as possible. And now you're invited inside as we discuss and debate the most popular foods at ATK and beyond. I'm Lan Lam, recipe developer and host of Technically. I'm Speaker 1 (2:19) Brian Roof. food editor and host of On the Road. I'm Nick Sharma, editor-in-residence and the host of Flavor Forward. Speaker 2 (2:25) I'm Lydie Hoyt, cookbook author and editor-in-chief of Food 52. Grab your apron. Speaker 3 (2:30) You're in the Test Kitchen. Speaker 3 (2:35) Okay, Bri, you and I know that making ice cream and other frozen desserts from scratch can be so fun, but we also know that it can be a little bit intimidating. Speaker 4 (2:44) Yeah, and most of us aren't like our colleague Nick, who owns like, what, eight ice cream makers? Speaker 3 (2:49) Exactly. We can't all have an ice cream maker for every day of the week plus a backup. You Speaker 1 (2:54) know, Speaker 3 (2:54) just in case. Luckily, Black & Decker's Perfect Pint Ice Cream Maker lets you make all sorts of ice creams and frozen treats like sorbet, milkshakes, frozen yogurts. The best part is cleanup is easy because the cups, lids, and paddle, they're all Speaker 4 (3:10) top rack dishwasher safe. Speaker 3 (3:11) Very Speaker 4 (3:12) sweet. So what ice cream or frozen treat would you make with the Perfect Fine Ice Cream Maker? Speaker 3 (3:17) Well, I love a vanilla base because it goes so well with all sorts of inclusions. Right now, I'm feeling peanut butter cups and a caramel swirl. What Speaker 4 (3:26) would you make? I'm more of a sorbet guy myself, so I'd go with a mango and throw in some frozen fruit chunks to mix it up. But I also love our strawberry sorbet recipe. Speaker 3 (3:35) Well, the good news is you don't have to decide because the Perfect Pint Ice Cream Maker comes with two pint containers, so you can make two different things at once. Make your perfect frozen treat with Black & Decker's Perfect Pint Ice Cream Maker. It's available now on Amazon.com. Speaker 4 (3:52) All right, so yeah, Crafty is one of the highlights of shooting TV. I think my favorite is peanut M &M's like Lighty. And they started, the director, Herb, he likes peanut butter M &M's. Is it best with Speaker 3 (4:04) you that there's peanut butter M &M's there? Speaker 4 (4:06) Yeah, Speaker 3 (4:06) I don't like it. Speaker 4 (4:06) And they buy more peanut butter M &M's than they do peanut M &M's, so the peanut M &M's run out over the first three or four days. Because you've got imported them all. I've eaten a lot, but... You know, I think one time... Speaker 1 (4:17) I mean, Speaker 4 (4:17) you have a whole jar at your desk. Yeah, I mean... But Speaker 1 (4:19) you've written his jar, right? Brian has, like, an old Speaker 2 (4:21) lady jar with, like, a little lid and candies. Remember, I put candies in there at Easter. Speaker 1 (4:25) I have to say the M &M's, but I like the classic. when they have the classic M &M's. Just plain? Just plain. Just plain chocolate? Yeah. That's so horrifying. Speaker 2 (4:34) It's very classy. It's Speaker 4 (4:35) just Speaker 2 (4:35) kind of like nice. Is it classy? Yeah. It Speaker 1 (4:37) is classy. M &M's and a glass of champagne, which they don't have at the craft table. A glass of Speaker 2 (4:41) champagne between filming? Where is that? It's definitely not your. It's Speaker 1 (4:44) definitely not your. You got to stay loose on sex. Yeah. Speaker 2 (4:47) What's Speaker 4 (4:47) your favorite? I Speaker 2 (4:48) like a gummy because it doesn't get in your teeth at all. And there's just like a straight sugar delivery system for energy. So I like like. And protein from the gummies? Yeah, gelatin. High protein. Speaker 3 (5:00) All about the... I love like the Welch's or... Oh, the Welch's fruit snacks. Yeah, the Welch's fruit Speaker 2 (5:04) snacks. Or a sour one. What I don't like are those healthy ones. Those are bad. Those bunnies. They're just really bad. Hi-Chews? I've never... I don't think I've had a Hi-Chew. I love a Speaker 1 (5:14) Hi-Chew. I can go to the theater. My friend says this. She says, Nick, when you go with me to the movies... You go through a bag of Hi-Chews like it's popcorn. Is a Hi-Chew like a Speaker 2 (5:23) Starburst? Speaker 1 (5:24) Yeah, but like excessively fruity, and I love fruity snacks. Speaker 2 (5:29) What do you go for, Lana? I feel like you'd be a savory girl. Yeah, something Speaker 3 (5:32) salty. Chips, probably. I feel like during TV is the one time where I will have a lot of Doritos. Speaker 4 (5:41) Yeah, that is that one time a year. Maybe not one time, maybe it's like... A highlight of the year when you eat the snacks you wouldn't normally eat. Do you know what? When I first got here, Speaker 3 (5:49) I remember thinking that TV was like, have you ever watched those wildlife documentaries where the rains come and the savannas bloom and all the animals are everywhere? That's kind of the craft services of it all. Everyone's at Speaker 2 (6:02) the watering hole. Yes, Speaker 3 (6:03) exactly. Since everyone here loves M &Ms, can you imagine homemade M &Ms that are as good as the real thing? Speaker 4 (6:10) No. Speaker 3 (6:10) No. No. Speaker 4 (6:11) I think that would probably be more trouble than it's actually worth to pull off. And it wouldn't have Speaker 2 (6:15) that crunch. Isn't Speaker 1 (6:16) the Speaker 2 (6:16) whole thing with M &Ms that they don't melt and they're like shelf stable? They melt in your Speaker 1 (6:20) mouth and not in your hand. Even the unrobing of the chocolate and all, it's too much work for a home cook. But wouldn't Speaker 2 (6:25) it Speaker 1 (6:25) be fun Speaker 3 (6:25) to set up some sort of panning system so that you could coat your little chocolate candies with that candy shell? It would be really cool. I Speaker 4 (6:32) don't know