Pommes frites

[Joel S. Berson]

At 1/22/2012 11:13 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:
>OK, carrot, beet and jicama are not technically tubers, so I should have
>broadened that particular category. The "green bean chips", I suspect,
>are precisely the freeze-dried green beans that I described.

I have seen -- and actually eaten -- wasabi-flavored green pea
chips.  (But at Trader Joe's they don't call themselves "chips", just
"wasabi peas".  And they're not flat.)

Also, add "buffalo chips" to "cow chips".

Joel

>I can
>understand someone wanting to try it with water chestnuts and bamboo
>shoots, but I'm not sure *I* would want to eat them--which explains why
>I have not noticed them. Burdock makes sense, but so do other wood chips
>;-) I refuse to comment on meatsicles... I mean, if we do beef chips,
>why not egg chips? How about potato & fish chips? (besides, we already
>have "cow chips", although that, of course, is a different category ;-) )
>
>     VS-)
>
>
>
>On 1/22/2012 10:46 PM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:
>>Wow!!
>>
>>Lotus root chips particularly stand out. They sound scrumptious. =
>>http://grocerytrekker.blogspot.com/2007/03/water-chestnut-chips_26.html =
>>has water chestnut chips and suggests jicama and bamboo shoot chips.  =
>>(Okay, I'm just salivating here. There are no substantial additions to =
>>the list below.)
>>
>>Burdock root chips also get a number of hits. See, for example, =
>>http://www.eatweeds.co.uk/burdock-root-chips, which falls into the stix =
>>category in that they are not poker chip-shaped. There are also "green =
>>bean chips" =
>>(http://www.lesleykat.com/Latest-Obsessions-Green-Bean-Chips-13080827).=20=
>>
>>
>>There are also beef chips. Looking casually, I see pork and chicken =
>>chips for dogs, but the potential is there for them as human snacks.
>>
>>Are the unifying characteristics: being a food, being cooked and being =
>>crispy/having a crunch?
>>
>>Benjamin Barrett
>>Seattle, WA
>>
>>On Jan 22, 2012, at 7:17 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:
>>
>>>If we talk about "chips", in general, there are some interesting =
>>things
>>>to deal with. First, there was the attempt by Pringles to be =
>>classified
>>>as something other than "crisps" in the UK--for tax purposes. That
>>>resulted in some name changes. For one, chips of the Pringles
>>>kind--i.e., reconstituted from potato or rice flour--are now regularly
>>>referred to as "crisps" in the US market. There are other items that =
>>are
>>>clearly not "chip" shaped--in the sense that they don't look like =
>>poker
>>>chips. One such item is "veggie sticks" (or "stix"). But there are =
>>also
>>>other "chips" that really do look like poker chips (although not
>>>necessarily round)--these include pita chips, bagel chips, pretzel
>>>chips, corn chips (of course! but not necessarily tortila or tortilla
>>>chips; also includes "popcorn chips"), bean chips, vegetable chips,
>>>[other unnamed] chips (e.g., Terra--they really just go by "Terra
>>>chips"), multigrain chips. I have not done any formal research on the
>>>subject--these are just the ones I can recall from memory. But there =
>>are
>>>a couple of characteristics that most of these share. Potato chips
>>>(other than Pringles-like versions) and Terra chips are made from =
>>slices
>>>of actual vegetable (usually tubers, but could also be zucchini, =
>>banana,
>>>plantain, apple--theoretically, pear and quince also could be cut into
>>>"chips", as well as items that are referred to as "chips" in recipes =
>>but
>>>are not sold commercially--sunchokes and lotus, both of which I've =
>>made
>>>in my own kitchen). Pita chips and bagel chips are made from irregular
>>>"slices" of actual pita and bagels, respectively. Pretzel chips are
>>>essentially flat pretzels. The rest are reconstituted "chips" shaped
>>>with dehydrated vegetable or grain flour. The only two things they =
>>have
>>>in common is being more flat than long and usually serving as a =
>>vehicle
>>>for some kind of "dip". "Chips and dip" is a fairly standard item. It =
>>is
>>>not always clear what distinguishes the latter variety (i.e., the
>>>reconstituted chips) from crackers. Most of the time, people know it
>>>when they see it, but I've had a few kinds lately that appear to
>>>straddle the line. Another questionable category is freeze-dried
>>>"chips"--while such things as whole green beans and whole green peas
>>>would not constitute "chips", slices of other fruits and vegetables
>>>(e.g., eggplant or apple) that have been freeze-dried may well fall =
>>into
>>>that category.
>>>=20
>>>Other than that, I believe my description is fairly exhaustive. Only
>>>some of these would be considered "crisps" in the UK and none would be
>>>considered "chips".
>>>=20
>>>      VS-)
>>>=20
>>>On 1/22/2012 9:27 PM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:
>>>>On Jan 22, 2012, at 3:23 PM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:
>>>>=20
>>>>>If you travel from "potato chip" to "potato crisp," there is no link =
>>to "crisp," but looking "crisp" up yields:
>>>>>7. In full potato crisp. A thin sliver of potato fried until crisp =
>>and eaten cold. Usu. in pl. of such food produced commercially.
>>>>BTW, potato chips are no longer necessarily fried. The trend away =
>>from fats for dietary reasons in the US resulted in even national brands =
>>bringing out baked potato chips. Neither the AHD nor Wiktionary have =
>>captured this change.
>>>>=20
>>>>Also, I wonder how appropriate "spec" (specifically) is. Mixed =
>>vegetable chips are commonly found in the bulk section of the grocery =
>>store, and sweet potato chips and other sorts are found in national =
>>grocery store chains as well.
>>>>=20
>>>>Benjamin Barrett
>>>>Seattle, WA
>>>=20
>>>------------------------------------------------------------
>>>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>------------------------------------------------------------
>>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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