These are no ordinary tortilla chips

What is it?

Blanco Niño Creamy Jalapeño tortilla chips (€4.25/170g)

What’s good about it?

These are no ordinary tortilla chips. They are made in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, in a process that takes three days from start to finish. You can read an interview by Irish Times columnist Russ Parsons with Dubliner Philip Martin, who created the brand, at irishtimes.com/food. There are five flavours in the range and Creamy Jalapeño is the newest. The others are Lightly Salted, Chilli & Lime, Smoky Chipotle and Blue Corn.

Tell me more about it?

The corn is cooked and steeped overnight, then ground into a dough, shaped and baked into tortillas. The tortillas are rested overnight then cut and fried, to become tortilla chips. There is no wheat flour used in the process – a little rice flour is added to the majority ingredient, 89 per cent white corn – so the chips are gluten-free and vegan.

How do I use it?

Plain tortilla chips are good but these are better; the spicy kick from the jalapeño along with the creamy, savoury flavour from the onion powder and garlic powder in the seasoning mix, means you don’t even need a salsa or dip to enjoy these.

Stir fry spiced lamb with cous cous, olives and mint

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Striploin steak with bois boudrin sauce and dressed Baby Gem

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Home-made pici with Italian sausage and courgette

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Tom yum soup

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Where can I get them?

The brand is sold in good food stores and supermarkets. You can also buy them online at blanco-nino.com, with an eight-bag mixed flavour pack costing €34 (€4.25 per bag), with free delivery anywhere in Ireland.

Anything else?

The 170g sharing bag is fully recyclable and the company says it is the first tortilla manufacturer in the UK and Ireland to make this switch.

Send your Shelf Help product suggestions to marieclaire.digby@irishtimes.com