Tomato Chips

Turn garden fresh tomatoes into deliciously seasoned and crisp tomato chips in a few easy steps.

There is nothing like fresh garden tomatoes. I love roasting them under the broiler, topping them with fresh mozzarella cheese and a bit of basil, and having nothing but that for lunch (see my recipe here). But I have found an even better way to snack on tomatoes and it’s awfully convenient, too…TOMATO CHIPS!

If you’ve never had a tomato chip, but love the taste of tomatoes, you have yet to fully live your life! They are THAT GOOD! And YES, if you don’t have a dehydrator, you really should buy one. I’m trying to encourage everyone to grow something, preserve something, and put back something when it comes to food sources this year. Dehydrating is one of the easiest ways to preserve food because it doesn’t require the time commitment of canning or the freezer space of freezing. You just pop it in, dry it, and store it.

I even heard of some folks who serve these with dips but I gotta tell ya, the sweetness of the chip combined with the slight saltiness of the sea salt and the hint of extra seasoning from dried basil is all I need. This is one of those snacks that has so much flavor it is intensely satisfying – more than potato chips ever hope to be! And think of how much healthier it is, too! (I keep a mason jar of tomato chips by my chair where they stay nice and crispy just waiting on me to eat them throughout the day).

I’ve currently planted 2 Roma tomato plants at my house and 4 at my mother’s, just to make more chips this summer. But any tomato will do, I just find the size of Roma tomatoes to be the most convenient.

Recipe Ingredients

• Dehydrator
• Roma tomatoes (others would work also, but smaller ones are better)
• Sea salt or kosher salt (something coarse)
• Dried basil

How to Make Tomato Chips

Slice your tomatoes, with the skin on, about 1/4 inch thick.

So, that looks closer to 1/2 inch… so aim for 1/4 but if you end up hitting 1/2 keep on walking and don’t look back.

Arrange tomato slices on a dehydrator tray.

 Sprinkle them with sea salt or kosher salt (you want a coarser salt) and a bit of dried basil.

Go easy on the salt because whatever you add will taste like double once the chips are dried.

Set dehydrator to vegetable temperature (around 135 degrees) and dry until crispy. This will be anywhere from 8 to 12 hours.

Store in an airtight container and enjoy!

Get ready to make some more though, because these won’t last long.

Storage

Store leftovers in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 12 months. 

Recipe Notes

• Make parmesan tomato chips by sprinkling them with parmesan cheese and baking for an additional few minutes, until the cheese melts.
• Try these other seasonings: garlic powder, za’atar seasoning, and Italian seasoning.

Recipe FAQs

How do you make tomato chips in the oven?

Instead of dehydrating the tomato chips, brush them with olive oil and then place them on parchment paper on a cooling rack on a cookie sheet. Then bake them in a 275-degree oven for 2.5 to 3 hours. Just give them a quick check every now and again to ensure they don’t burn. You’ll want to let them cool for at least an hour before serving.

How do you serve tomato chips?

We all know I could eat them all as is, but here are some other serving suggestions:

• Add a slice of goat cheese or mozzarella between two tomato chips.
• Dip them into your favorite dip, like baked onion dip.
• Add as a garnish to pizza, quiche, tomato soup, pasta, or a salad.
• Elevate an ordinary sandwich, burger, or grilled cheese sandwich with a few tomato chips.

Check out these other posts from my dehydrating series:

Dehydrate Frozen Vegetables To Save Freezer Space and Money

Use a Dehydrator To Make Your Own Instant Rice

Dehydrating Ground Beef (makes instant beef)

Dried Watermelon Jerky

Dehydrating Peaches (and recipes)

A dehydrator is an excellent investment to allow families to preserve food with little fuss and also make wonderful snacks – even “real” fruit snacks for your kids!