Crispy Tortilla Strips

Here’s how to make tortilla strips! It takes just a few minutes to make this crunchy baked garnish for topping soups, chili and salads.

Here’s a trick for adding a crunch to soups, chili and salads: tortilla strips! These crunchy strips are so tasty and add just the texture element. And they have a lovely corn flavor that adds just the right nuance. Alex and I have been making them for years to put on our black bean tortilla soup and Mexican style-salad. So we realized we should share a recipe here! Here’s exactly how to make them.

How to make tortilla strips

Tortilla strips are made using the same method as our homemade tortilla chips. If you haven’t made your own chips before, now’s the time! They’re easy to make, and making them baked uses less oil than frying. You can also control the amount of salt and make sure there are no additives. While they don’t turn out exactly like your favorite chip brand, they’re pretty darn close! And it’s a fun skill to be able to whip up chips on demand.

Here are the basic steps for how to make crispy tortilla chips (or go right to the recipe):

1. Brush corn tortillas lightly with oil. You won’t need much: just enough to lightly coat them.
2. Use a pizza cutter to cut into strips. We like to cut the tortillas into half-circles, then into strips (so they don’t turn out too long).
3. Sprinkle with salt. Using a fine-grain salt is nice because it sticks better, but you can also use kosher salt.

Ways to serve tortilla strips

There are so many ways to serve these crispy tortilla strips! From a chili topping to a baked potato bar to Mexican-style soups, here are all the ways we like to use them:

1. Tortilla Soup. The obvious choice! Try our Vegetarian Tortilla Soup.
2. Chili. Add a crunch to chili! Our favorites are Ultimate Vegan Chili, 3-Bean Healthy Chili Recipe, Instant Pot Chili, or Best Vegetarian Chili.
3. Salad. Our Mexican Salad or Tossed Salad are perfect with a few crunchy tortilla strips.
4. Tomatillo Soup. Try our Black Bean & Roasted Tomatillo Soup
5. Tomato Soup. It would be great on our Tomato Soup Recipe: you could even add ½ teaspoon cumin.
6. Corn Chowder. Add a Mexican-style flair to corn chowder; try our Corn Chowder or Vegan Corn Chowder.
7. Chili baked potatoes. Even Chili Baked Potatoes would be perfect with a crunch.
8. Loaded sweet potatoes. Or, try our Mexican-style sweet potatoes!

Spice it up! Some variations

You can also make seasoned tortilla strips by adding some spices! If you do this, you should mix it all together in a bowl before placing the tortilla strips on the baking sheet. Here are a few ideas:

• Cumin. Add ¼ teaspoon
• Garlic powder. Add ¼ teaspoon
• Chili powder. Add ½ teaspoon
• Smoked paprika. Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon

A note on tortilla brands

One thing to keep in mind about tortilla strips is that quality is based on the tortilla brand. Some tortilla are drier than others, and they result in tougher tortilla strips. Other brands that have a better texture result in a lighter, crunchier strip. Because all of them are so different, you can experiment and see what you like best. Usually we find that Mission brand results in a good tortilla strip or chip.

This tortilla strips recipe is…

Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.

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