Habanero Lime Air Fryer Tortilla Chips (Gluten-Free)

Habanero Lime Air Fryer Tortilla Chips bring the heat, with a hint of sea salt and lime, and a lot of crunch! Serve these gluten-free chips with your favourite dip for a fun Cinco de Mayo party snack or appetizer!

Hello there! It’s almost May, and the Crumb Top Baking kitchen has been busy recipe testing some fun recipes for Cinco de Mayo, Mother’s Day and grilling season. And today, I’m starting the fun with these Habanero Lime Tortilla Chips. They’re super simple to make, with an air fryer and oven option included in the recipe. And they’ve been thoroughly tested and approved by my number one savoury snack critic – the hubby!

How do you air fry tortilla chips?

Start with six corn tortillas. You can use flour tortillas, but I find corn results in a crunchier tortilla chip.

Coat both sides of the tortillas with an oil mixture. You can use just oil, or you can also season it. In this recipe, the oil mixture is seasoned with habanero pepper, lime juice and sea salt, which have all been blended together.

Once the tortillas are coated, cut them into triangles and arrange in a single layer on your air fryer tray. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to air fry the chips in two or more batches.

Air fry the tortillas on 350F for 7-9 minutes, or until they start to brown around the edges. I use a Cuisinart air fryer/convection/toaster oven. Depending on the make and model of your air fryer, you may need to adjust the cook time or temperature slightly.

Keep an eye on the tortillas as they tend to burn quickly. If they still feel soft in the middle when you remove them after 9 minutes, return them to the air fryer for another minute. The chips will get crunchier as they cool, so resist the urge to over-fry them.

I don’t have an air fryer, can I bake these tortilla chips in the oven?

Absolutely! I’ve baked tortilla chips in the oven many times. These sea salt lime tortilla chips have been a go-to snack for us over the past few years.

The biggest difference between baking and air frying these habanero chips is the texture. They will be a bit heavier baked in the oven as they bake on the pan in the oil mixture. They are lighter in the air fryer as they ‘fry’ on a rack, so air circulates around them and some excess oil mixture is able to drip off.

To bake, just pre-heat your oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Prepare the tortilla chips as you would for the air fryer. Arrange the chips in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 8-9 minutes. Remove from the oven and flip the tortilla chips over. Return to the oven and bake for another 6-7 minutes, or until they start to brown around the edges.

As with the air fryer, keep an eye on the chips to make sure they don’t burn. Once removed from the oven, they will continue to get crispy on the baking sheet. If they still have a soft or rubbery texture, return them to the oven to bake for another minute.

Are these tortilla chips gluten-free?

Since these tortilla chips are made with corn tortillas, they are naturally gluten-free. Just make sure the corn tortillas you use are labelled gluten-free, as cross-contamination with gluten can occur during processing and packaging.

How hot and spicy are these habanero lime tortilla chips? Can I make them milder? Can I make them hotter?

On the Scoville scale, which measures the strength of peppers (their heat and spice), habanero peppers are definitely on the hot side. I use jalapeño peppers all the time, and they are milder and spicier, whereas habaneros have a lot of heat.

For this recipe, I used half a habanero pepper (seeded), and the pepper was about 1.5 inches in length. If you have larger peppers, you might want to use just a quarter.

If you like your chips milder, you can use a smaller amount of pepper, or you use a milder pepper. While a jalapeño pepper will give these chips a different flavour, it will result in a milder flavour – it will be spicy with less heat.

If you like your chips with more heat, use more of the habanero pepper, or blend up the seeds in the oil mixture. The seeds contain a lot of the heat.

What can you serve with these air fryer tortilla chips?

The possibilities are endless with these chips! Obviously they have enough flavour to enjoy on their own, but they’re also perfect for nachos, dips, guacamole, queso and salsa. Keep an eye out for my next post as I’ll be sharing a dairy-free queso dip that goes perfectly with these chips.

In the meantime, here are a few recipes you can enjoy with these habanero chips:

• Loaded Vegetarian Nachos

• Roasted Red Pepper Cashew Dip

• Chicken Fajita Soup with White Beans

That’s it! These habanero lime tortilla chips are easy peasy to make in your air fryer or oven. If you give them a try, be sure to let me know what you think in the comments below!

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Habanero Lime Air Fryer Tortilla Chips (Gluten-Free)

★★★★★

5 from 12 reviews

Habanero Lime Air Fryer Tortilla Chips bring the heat, with a hint of sea salt and lime, and a lot of crunch! Serve these gluten-free chips with your favourite dip for a fun party snack or appetizer!

• Author: Leanne
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 7-9 minutes
• Total Time: 15 minutes
• Yield: 3 cups 1x
• Category: Snacks; Appetizers
• Method: Air Fryer
• Cuisine: Mexican

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or more to taste)
• 1/2 habanero pepper (seeded)
• 6 corn tortillas (gluten-free)

Instructions

1. Add the oil, lime juice, salt and habanero pepper to a blender, and blend until peppers are almost puréed. The mixture should be orange with little bits of pepper.
2. Arrange the tortillas in a single layer on your work surface, and brush the oil mixture on both sides. Cut each tortilla into 6 triangles.
3. Arrange the triangles in a single layer in your air fryer basket. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to air fry these chips in batches.
4. Air fry on 350F for 7-9 minutes, or until the edges start to brown. Keep an eye on them to ensure they don’t burn.
5. Remove from air fryer and let cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Serve with your favourite dip or salsa, or store them in an airtight container on the counter until ready to use.

Notes

1. Oven Method: Pre-heat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Prepare the tortilla chips as you would for the air fryer. Arrange the chips in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 8-9 minutes. Remove from the oven and flip the tortilla chips over. Return to the oven and bake for another 6-7 minutes.
2. I use a Cuisinart air fryer/convection/toaster oven. Depending on your make and model, you may need to adjust the cook time or temperature slightly.
3. To keep these chips gluten-free, make sure the tortillas you use are labelled gluten-free.
4. Adjust the amount of habanero pepper in order to make these chips hotter or milder.

Keywords: air fryer chips, tortilla chips