Tortilla chips and salsa – is there any better party snack? We don’t think so! Fortunately, many types of salsa are totally vegan since salsa is made from vegetables and vegan friendly seasonings more often than not. But what about salsa’s natural partner, tortilla chips?
Tortilla chips are vegan. Classic, salted, or plain tortilla chips are almost always vegan friendly. However, if you purchase tortilla chips with a special flavoring, you’ll need to double-check the ingredients to avoid accidentally ingesting non-vegan additives such as food colorings. The best vegan and healthier tortilla chips are Siete Grain-Free Tortilla Chips and Sana Coconut Flour Tortilla Chips.
In this article, we’ll break down the exact ingredients you should avoid when buying tortilla chips. We will also explore why tortilla chips are generally considered vegan safe, and their nutritional value. Let’s dig in!
Contents
How to Tell if Tortilla Chips are Vegan?
The core tortilla chip formula is very basic and very much vegan. That’s because tortilla chips are essentially made from flour, oil, water, and any seasonings you might like such as salt. These are all plant-based or mineral ingredients, so you don’t have to worry about animal products sneaking into your tortilla chips all that often.
That said, some tortilla chips with special flavorings may not be vegan if those flavorings are derived from animal products or dairy sources. The basic tortilla chips you can find from all kinds of brands should be safe.
In addition, most tortilla chips are made from corn flour for other types of flour, including rice flour and wheat flour. Different tortilla chips will use different types of flour to impart different textures or flavors. Note, of course, that any tortilla chips that are made with wheat flour are not gluten-free (if that matters for your diet).
What Ingredients Should You Avoid?
That said, any diet-conscious vegan needs to know what ingredients they should avoid when searching for a new pack of tortilla chips. In general, you’ll want to avoid:
- Food colorings that may not be cruelty-free. Turmeric and other natural-based colorings are usually fine. But some food dyes, such as Red #4, are made from animal by-products and are not vegan.
- Many flavorings such as cool Ranch or nacho cheese. Lots of these flavorings include cheese, buttermilk, and other animal products. In fact, try to avoid any tortilla chips that include cheese powders unless the package’s label explicitly says that the tortilla chips are vegan friendly.
- Lard, which is not the norm for restaurant-prepared tortilla chips but which is still something to avoid at certain restaurants or eateries. Some restaurants use animal fat to prepare their tortilla chips and give them some extra flavor.
As always, you could check the back of a package of chips for the exact ingredient breakdown and decide for yourself whether given tortilla chips are vegan friendly or not.
Tortilla Chips Ingredients and Nutrition Info
Let’s break down some vegan-safe tortilla chips. As noted above, most tortilla chips are vegan safe provided they haven’t had any extra flavorings added to them.
Tostitos Original Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips
Tostitos tortilla chips are some of the most popular in America, and you can find them at supermarkets everywhere. Odds are you have considered purchasing them as a party snack before to pair with your favorite salsa. Fortunately, these tortilla chips and most others like them are vegan friendly.
Its ingredients are:
- Corn
- Salt
- Vegetable oil – either corn oil, canola oil, or sunflower oil
Nutrition Facts:
- 140 cal per serving
- 7 g fat or 8% DV
- 115 mg sodium or 5% DV
- 19 g carbohydrate or 7% DV
- 1 g fiber or 5% DV
- 2 g protein
- 30 mg calcium
- 40 mg potassium
On the Border Café Style Tortilla Chips
On the Border is a popular Mexican restaurant chain, particularly throughout the southwestern US. Their tortilla chips are some of the most popular and, like most others, they are also vegan friendly thanks to their simple ingredient list.
Its ingredients are:
- Corn
- Vegetable oil
- Sea salt
That’s it. As you can see, it’s no wonder these tortilla chips are vegan friendly; there’s no chance for anything non-vegan to sneak in.
Nutrition Facts:
- 150 cal per serving
- 8 g fat or 10% DV
- 115 mg sodium or 5% DV
- 17 g carbohydrate or 6% DV
- 2 g fiber or 7% DV
Mission Tortilla Rounds
Mission Tortilla is one last brand of popular tortilla chips we want to showcase. Like the others, these are vegan friendly and they are great choices to combine with vegan salsa or other vegan meals.
Its ingredients are:
- Corn masa flour
- Water
- Vegetable oil
- Sea salt
Nutrition Facts:
- 140 cal per serving
- 7 g fat or 9% DV
- 90 mg sodium or 4% DV
- 18 g carbohydrate or 7% DV
- 2 g fiber or 7% DV
- 2 g protein
Healthy Vegan Alternatives to Tortilla Chips
While regular tortilla chips are a dime a dozen and they are all practically vegan friendly, there are also lots of vegan alternatives to regular tortilla chips. Let’s take a look at some of these healthy alternatives in case you want something a little better for your body the next time you snack with salsa.
The only thing you’ll want to keep in mind is that certain types of tortilla chip alternatives taste better with different salsas. If you have one salsa you really like, purchase a small bag of these alternatives before buying big just in case the two foods don’t match up very well.
Siete Grain-Free Tortilla Chips
Siete’s grain free tortilla chips are exactly what they sound like; chips that taste almost exactly the same as regular tortilla chips, but made without grain-based ingredients. Naturally, these are great for folks with gluten intolerance to one degree or another.
Its ingredients are:
- Cassava flour
- Avocado oil
- Coconut flour
- Chia seeds
- Sea salt
Nutrition Facts:
- 130 cal per serving
- 7 g fat or 9% DV
- 150 mg sodium or 7% DV
- 19 g carbohydrate or 7% DV
- 3 g fiber or 11% DV
- 1 g sugar
- 1 g protein
- 150 mg potassium
- 20 mg calcium
- 7 mg iron
Sana Coconut Flour Tortilla Chips
Try something new with these coconut flour tortilla chips. While the flavor does take a little getting used to, and you need to be careful with what salsa you pair them with, they are really a great alternative to traditional tortilla chips made with corn flour or similar bases. Plus, these are also totally gluten-free, so pick them up if you are a vegan and have celiac disease. The special blend with Himalayan pink salt gives them a very distinct flavor that makes them fun for snacking on by themselves, too.
Its ingredients are:
- Coconut flour
- Cassava starch
- Coconut oil
- Himalayan pink salt
- Xanthan gum
Nutrition Facts:
- 130 cal per serving
- 8 g fat or 10% DV
- 320 mg sodium or 14% DV
- 6 g carbohydrate or 6% DV
- 5 g fiber or 10% DV
- 2 g protein
- 2 g sugar
From the Ground Up Cauliflower Tortilla Chips
Or you could try these cauliflower tortilla chips. Like the others, these are gluten-free since they don’t include wheat or other gluten-based ingredients. These low sugar, non-GMO tortilla chips are excellent for pairing with your favorite salsas as cauliflower doesn’t taste to different from traditional corn flour (though you’ll definitely taste at least a slight difference after the first few bites).
Its ingredients are:
- Cassava
- Organic sunflower oil
- Cauliflower
- Chia seed
- Sea salt
- Vegetable blend
- Garlic
- Parsley
- Celery seed
Nutrition Facts:
- 130 cal per serving
- 6 g fat or 9% DV
- 135 mg sodium or 6% DV
- 19 g carbohydrate or 6% DV
- 1 g fiber or 4% DV
- 2% DV vitamin C
- 4% DV calcium
- 3% DV iron
Final Thoughts
As you can see, tortilla chips are generally vegan friendly, so you don’t need to worry about not being able to enjoy your salsa the way it’s meant to be munched on. Just be sure to pick plain tortilla chips or one of the healthy vegan alternatives above to keep unhealthy cheese dust or ranch powder out of your diet.
Related Questions
Can vegans eat chips and salsa?
Generally, yes. Most types of salsa are vegan by default unless the salsa maker deliberately uses animal products, such as cheese or dairy. In addition, guacamole makes a great chip dip that is also generally vegan friendly. As with all things, be sure to check the ingredients of a dip carefully before purchasing.
Are Fritos vegan?
Yes, generally. But like tortilla chips, some varieties of Fritos with additional flavorings are not vegan friendly, nor are they gluten-free as basic or plain Fritos are.
Is there a type of flour that makes the best tortilla chips?
Not really. Which type of flour makes the best tortilla chips is largely down to personal preference. If you don’t yet have a favorite, you might consider experimenting with a few different types of tortilla chips over time.