In Ireland, there’s a brand that’s an essential part of everyday Irish life. The Tayto brand. It is Ireland’s leading producer of potato chips. And don’t forget: it’s an institution! In fact, many Irish people can be seen holding a packet of Tayto potato chips: they’re used to eating them at all hours of the day: as an aperitif, with a meal, as a snack… Highly addictive, they are one of the “basics” of the Irish diet!
Tayto chips
In Ireland, potatoes are no joke.
As a reminder, this is an essential historical food for the population: the country has always cultivated this tuber, and has often used it as a staple food for subsistence. (The Great Famine is a sad episode in Irish history: mildew contaminated all Irish land, making potato consumption impossible and starving millions of Irish people for several years).
It’s easy to understand why the Irish are so fond of this food. Mashed, fried, steamed… but above all: in chips!
This was well understood by the giant Tayto, whose CEO, Joe Murphy, began producing potato chips from local potato production as early as 1954. He soon decided to innovate and experiment with new processes to produce even tastier chips…
And then came the idea of genius: Tayto became the inventor of the flavored potato chip manufacturing process! It’s to him that we owe today, all over the world, the dizzyingly large shelves of packets of potato chips with tastes as tasty as they are improbable! (we don’t recommend the oyster flavor).
It’s a winning formula, with the whole of Ireland snapping up the chips! The phenomenon is comparable to that of Guinness Draught beer: in Ireland, people have made the famous beer part of their daily routine… followed closely by Tayto potato chips!
So much so that for the Irish, the name “Tayto” has almost become a synonym for the word Chips… and of course everyone knows the big potato who serves as the brand’s mascot, and is known as “Mr. Tayto”.
In terms of taste, the Tayto brand offers a wide variety of flavors. But the most popular are undoubtedly :
They all have one thing in common: a clean, pronounced taste enhanced by an ultra-crisp, gourmet texture. These little marvels are available everywhere, right down to the Pub, where they are enjoyed alongside a pint during an Irish music session.
A Tayto sandwich
Their flavors have given rise to some surprising culinary creations. The Tayto Sandwich is a case in point: nothing more or less than Tayto chips sandwiched between two slices of sandwich bread, topped with a small layer of cheese. You can eat it as it is…
Stroke of genius or culinary abomination? We’ll let you be the judge… but you should know that the Irish regularly eat this strange dish…
In any case, potato chips are also sometimes used as a crunchy breading. Crushed, they add a lovely crunch to chicken tenders, for example…
In short, in Ireland, potato chips are a sacred institution. Don’t hesitate to pack a picnic lunch for a typically Irish experience!
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