FARMINGTON, Illinois-- Kitchen Cooked potato chips have been a staple in the Quad Cities region since the 1930's. And now more than 80 years later, they're doing things a bit different in the kitchen.
It's more than a chip. It's the history and the connection people feel when they eat them.
"It actually started in the 30's during the depression here in Farmington," says Kitchen Cooked Vice President Paul Blackhurst. "It's like going to the store, you buy milk and bread, You buy milk, bread and chips. You're part of it, part of growing up like family."
But now for the first time in chip existence, something about this Kitchen Cooked process is different.
"It's not a new recipe. It's just one of our ingredients, the shortening," says Blackhurst.
Because of a new government regulation, companies have to get rid of all trans fat in food starting in June.
"The key was to find something that had great not only flavor, but the same profile in your mouth," says Blackhurst.
Blackhurst has poured his heart and soul into keeping the recipe tasting original. But what about the ship experts outside the kitchen?
"They're salty. That's what I like about them, that's always what I liked about them. But there is a different taste to them with this oil," says one Kitchen Cooked lover.
And another, "I really don't know. They taste pretty similar."
It's more than a chip. It's about the future.
"I just wanted to reach out and tell people this is what happened, this is why it happened, and this is where we're going from here," says Blackhurst.
The new oil is made partly from locally grown soy beans.
