I Tried 9 Kettle-Cooked Potato Chips & the Best Were Curly, Crunchy Wonders

There's no snack more all-American than a bag of potato chips. Salty fried potatoes are everywhere, from summer barbecues to school lunch bags to airplane snacks. And one trip to the snack aisle of a well-stocked grocery store will reveal chips in as many flavors as there are occasions to enjoy them.

You'll also notice two main varieties of potato chips: classic and kettle chips. The difference lies in how the potatoes are cooked. In the more typical method, thinly sliced potatoes are run through hot oil on a conveyor belt until they're golden and crisp.

Kettle-cooked chips are loaded into a giant oil-filled pot. The oil temperature is slowly raised until the chips take on their signature golden hue and delightfully curly shapes. This method takes longer to cook the potatoes, leading to more variety in chip shapes and colors. You'll notice kettle chips tend to have darker patches, folded shapes, and more air bubbles than regular potato chips.

If you're a crunch-seeker when snacking, you're more likely to reach for a bag of kettle-cooked potatoes over regular. But there's still the dilemma of which kettle chips are best. There are dozens of brands and seasoning options, including potatoes cooked in different oils. I sampled nine different brands to help narrow down the best kettle-cooked potato chips at the grocery store.

Here's how the chips ranked, in descending order:

Good Health Kettle Style Avocado Oil Sea Salted Potato Chips

Utz makes these kettle-style chips under a different brand name, and they contain three ingredients: potatoes, avocado oil, and sea salt.

The look: These chips have a slightly greenish-yellow cast. The chips are larger than others in this test and mostly whole and flat, with fewer curled potatoes in the bunch.

The taste: I found these chips to be bland. I would have loved more sea salt flavor. (Notably, these chips have the lowest sodium content of any in this test, at 75 grams per serving.) I can't say I noticed a flavor difference from the avocado oil used to fry the chips, but it adds healthy fats (still, each serving contains 1.5 grams of saturated fat).

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Herr's Original Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

These classic kettle-cooked potato chips are made with vegetable oil, potatoes, and salt. They have almost twice the sodium of Good Health chips.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

The look: Herr's potato chips are thicker-cut. They're also the same size and shape with little variety in color or texture. These chips are pale yellow without visible grease or oil on the surface.

The taste: These chips are happily salty and crunchy. Despite the visible oil, they don't feel or taste greasy and have an almost light texture, but they're still not quite as flavorful as some of the others I tested.

Lay's Kettle Cooked Original Potato Chips

The classic yellow bag of kettle-cooked chips from Lay's is a must-try for this test. These chips are cooked in corn, canola, and/or sunflower oil and seasoned with sea salt.

The look: These kettle chips are instantly recognizable with their classic sunny yellow color and crispy, curly shapes. They're more dimpled and airy than some of the other chips in this test, and many have noticeable air bubbles on the surface.

The taste: These chips are not quite as salty as Herr's, but more so than Good Health. They also have a slightly more oily texture, giving them a richer, heartier flavor. Unfortunately, the oiliness overpowers the savory potato flavor.

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Takis Kettlez Fuego Chips

I had to throw one spicy chip into the mix, and it came from the beloved snack brand Takis. With the eye-catching bold purple packaging covered in flames, I expected some serious flavor from this sample.

The look: The chips are a shocking bright red color that borders on purple, thanks to the red 40 food dye. Otherwise, the size and shape of these chips are similar to the other kettle-cooked potatoes I sampled, with a few dimpled air bubbles on the surface.

The taste: These chips are spicy, yes, but the first flavor that punches your tongue is an almost numbing sour flavor from citric acid. Then you get some back-of-the-throat heat, but it's not overwhelming or painful. The chips made my mouth water, maybe from the acidity. The seasoning on these chips (which includes 400 grams of sodium and a blend of MSG, sugar, onion powder, and chili pepper extract) is so bold and dominating that it's hard to decipher any subtle potato flavors.

Utz Kettle Classics Original 

This is the more mainstream kettle-cooked product from the snack brand Utz. These chips are cooked in peanut oil, which differentiates them from the other products I tested—and is worth noting for anyone with an allergy.

The look: This bag contained more flat chips than most, so if you like the super curly bites, Utz may not be for you. The chips are quite thin and delicate, but most were whole and had their natural oblong potato shape.

The taste: I couldn't taste any difference from the peanut oil, and overall, I thought these chips were well seasoned, with a subtle oiliness. They seem lighter and more airy than some chips cooked in vegetable oil.

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Deep River Salt & Cracked Pepper Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

Deep River Snacks produces a range of seasoned potato chips cooked in a kettle. This was the only ridged chip I tested, seasoned with black pepper and salt.

The look: These potatoes were sliced with a ridged mandolin that produces deep crinkles. The chips have a generous coating of large black pepper flakes. There's also sea salt, but you can't see the granules. These chips are darker than others and have the potato skin still intact.

The taste: I was surprised not to taste much of the black pepper seasoning on these chips. They're less salty than some of the others, and the thick-cut and ridged shape adds a nice textural element to each bite.

Kettle Brand Sea Salt Chips

It's no surprise that Kettle Brand chips ranked high in this taste test. These snacks come in various flavors and varieties, including a "kettle-cooked air-fried" line with a slightly lower fat content.

The look: These chips are substantial. They're larger than most of the others I tested and cut thicker, which maximizes crunch. There is also quite a bit of oil stuck to the sides of this chip bag compared to others.

The taste: These indulgent chips are all about saltiness and oil. They are super crunchy, quite salty, and coated in oil that coats your mouth and keeps you reaching for more. These were the heaviest chips I tasted.

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Siete Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

This family-owned snack brand may be known for its grain-free tortilla chips, but its kettle-cooked potato chips are just as flavor-packed and made with simple ingredients: potatoes, avocado oil, and salt.

The look: Siete chips are light golden with darker edges, presumably because the peels were left on the potatoes (which reduces food waste). They're mostly large, whole, flat potato slices, with a few curly ones in the mix. These were also the most thinly sliced chips I tested.

The taste: These kettle chips have a light flavor that's not greasy or overly salty. This snack won't weigh you down but has plenty of satisfying crunch and saltiness.

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Cape Cod Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

It doesn't get more satisfying or crunchy in the world of chips than Cape Cod Kettle Cooked Potato Chips. The iconic brand's original flavor is just missing a lobster roll.

The look: My favorite part about the Cape Cod chips is that the bag is loaded with the curliest, most folded potato slices. There are few flat chips in the mix, but the curlier they are, the more crunchy and grabbable they are.

The taste: These chips find the perfect balance between salty and satisfying. They're well seasoned without drying out your mouth, and the curly little snacks are so crunchy. Good luck having a conversation over a shared bag of Cape Cod chips—unless, of course, you say, "Pass the bag."