This peanut butter and jelly sandwich with potato chips is less of a recipe and more like a guideline on how to make something already indulgent and childishly satisfying even more special.
–Renee Schettler Rossi
Peanut Butter, Jelly, and Potato Chip Sandwich
Ingredients
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☞ TESTER TIP: It’s best to adjust your toaster setting low for a perfect warm-to-soft-to-crisp bread ratio. It’s important to have your bread not too toasted because it will detract from the potato chips but you’ll still want your bread warm and firm.
What You Need To Know About Making This PB&J With Potato Chips
- PB&J fiends of all ages, you gotta whole lotta leeway with this little godsend of a sandwich. Consider it instead a basic blueprint, because thankfully, it accommodates whatever you crave or happen to have on hand, be it whole grain or white bread, crunchy or creamy, jelly or jam, fancy hand-made kettle-cooked chips or cheap store brand crumbs languishing at the bottom of the bag. Whatever you fancy will not only suffice in this recipe, but will be quite swell.
Recipe Testers Reviews
Here’s a little treat for grade schoolers and adults alike, though only as adults will we realize the decadence of adding a bountiful number of fat calories to an otherwise healthful sandwich!
I made my sandwich with a nice multi-grain bread, approximately 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter, grape jelly, plus the entire contents of a 1.5-ounce bag of Zapp’s kettle-cooked potato chips. I didn’t start in with the intent of using the entire bag. In fact, I started by just popping in a few chips underneath the corner of the sandwich, and then a few more, and so on till the whole bag of chips was gone. The chips were not only nice and greasy-crunchy-salty, but they also added balance to the creaminess of the peanut butter and the sweetness of the jelly.
All in all, this is a quick 5-minute sandwich-making process that led to about another 5 minutes of happy sandwich chomping!
Creamy and crunchy. Sweet and salty. What a great combination!
I made my sandwich with creamy peanut butter, whole-wheat bread, grape jelly and Kettle brand sea salt potato chips. I used a generous tablespoon peanut butter and a little less jelly. Partway into the sandwich, I actually added more potato chips for added crunch. I love the mixture of taste, texture, and sound.
I can't tell you how much fun I've had with this simple sandwich. Now my family and I have started using different chips (jalapeno and peperoncini are favorites). I tend to do some strange combos with peanut butter. Another favorite is peanut butter, iceberg lettuce, and mayo.
This was a tasty sandwich! Peanut butter and jelly is a classic sandwich and was improved by adding the potato chips. I usually have chips on the side with all sandwiches but this turned out to be a good all-in-one sandwich.
I really liked the bread ever so lightly toasted. I used Sara Lee Butter Bread, 2 tablespoons Jif Creamy peanut butter (1 on each slice of bread), 2 teaspoons grape jelly (only on 1 slice of bread) and a handful of Golden Flake thin and crispy potato chips. It held together well too. It seems a little silly to write a review of this recipe but it came in handy.
For my first foray into this born-out-of-the-munchies dish, I decided to keep it classic: Jif smooth peanut butter, Concord grape jelly, and plain Ruffles potato chips. I toasted some whole-wheat bread (perhaps over-toasted it a little), slathered on about 1 tablespoon of jelly and roughly 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, and sprinkled on the contents of a small bag of chips (a 1-ounce bag, to be specific). Then I smushed everything together in order to crush the chips into a manageable layer and I went for it.
Initially I was met with tons of crunch, a lot of peanut butter, and a little sweetness. I think perhaps my proportions were off. The potato chips and the peanut butter were both very salty and there was not enough jelly to balance it out. I would suggest equal parts peanut butter to jelly.
The beauty of this is the possibility of experimentation, and should you find yourself starving at 2:30 am with peanut butter, jelly, bread, and perhaps BBQ chips, I say go for it. There's no judgements when it comes to potato chip sandwiches, my friends. In 5 minutes start-to-finish, you. too, can enjoy this dorm-room delicacy.
When I was a child, I liked to put potato chips on tuna fish sandwiches, but I gave up that practice long ago. I don’t believe I’d ever tried adding chips to any other kind of sandwich until now. The technique works pretty well with a PB&J, though I don’t know that it’s as enjoyable as with tuna. Perhaps that’s nostalgia talking.
At one serving size of each component, this wasn’t as recklessly indulgent a meal as it might seem, with about 1 tablespoon peanut butter on each of 2 slices of toast, a generous teaspoonful of jelly (times 2) smeared on top of that; and 2 moderate handfuls (about 20) potato chips for the crunch. Why not? Instead of having potato chips on the side, go wild & pc your PB&J once in a while. The bread was pumpernickel. The peanut butter was Whole Foods 365 brand chunky. The jelly was St. Dalfour red raspberry fruit spread. The potato chips were Utz rippled, a fairly thin chip. I made this as a late breakfast or early lunch.
I have to be in the mood for a PB&J. It has to be a good jam or jelly, too, and I am a choosy mother because only Jif will do! I loved the idea of the crunchy chips in the mixture. It was a total of 10 minutes to put together this little gem.
I did this experiment twice. Once with toasted bread and once without. I preferred the untoasted bread. I chose a thick-sliced brioche. I used a smooth peanut butter and an orange marmalade. The chips were kettle fried.
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Ha! You actually think you get to copyright a “recipe” of pb&j with potato chips on it! ????? I’ve been eating this combo since I was old enough to make my own sandwiches, perhaps I should accuse you of stealing it, though I am sure people have been doing it for ages.
Your Special, of course not! We don’t claim a copyright to a dish. We’re following the federal requirements of copyright law regarding the written expression of the recipe, specifically the directions–how they are written, the order of words, and such. (Remember plagiarism from your 9th grade English class? That’s what we’re talking about.) And, yup, this has been around longer than me–and that’s 57 years.
Well. If the sloppy “gotta whole lotta” Americanese doesn’t turn you off, the grape jelly, peanut butter and greasy potato chip sandwich in artificial bread certainly will. I was born in the USA, but I live in Europe. Except for the unfortunate incursions of McDonalds, KFC etc, the food is still genuine here. And largely very wholesome. If you get hooked on junk food, you probably crave it. I’m not and I don’t, and this does NOT qualify as a ‘recipe’ by anyone’s standards – unless you think “cooking” means opening processed meals and microwaving them or making “Smores” after your Brownie troupe goes camping. Please, please. Grow up. Find out what real food is. Yes, sweet, salty, crunchy together works. Ask any Thai; they’ve known for millennia. America – you can do so much better. Please try.
Jude, thanks for your comment. And if you take a deeper dive, you’ll discover we have all kinds of from-scratch, even-France-would-love-them recipes. To pick one of of thousands isn’t representative, in my humble opinion.
This has been one of my very favorite sandwiches since I was a kid. Dare I say you should also try it with Cool Ranch Doritos in place of plain potato chips? Yup. Mind-blowing. My only requirement for eating this childhood favorite is an ice cold glass of chocolate milk on the side—no milk, no sandwich!
Hah, Tara, way to gild the lily! I can already feel the Cool Ranch stuff coating my fingertips…!
It makes me happy to be associated with a website that features this recipe alongside the likes of seared scallops, ancho coffee lamb shanks, and fois gras. Kudos to everyone involved. PB and J stands the test of time…especially when made with homemade plum jelly of Southern origin.
Matt, a bow of gratitude to you for those exceptionally kind words. We just planted a Santa Rosa plum tree in our yard, so next year when we have fruit I’ll be pestering you for a jelly recipe of Southern origin…
About 30 years ago at a cool Burlington VT restaurant they served and I ate and continue to eat today on hearty wheat bread spread with crunchy peanut butter, honey (enough so it drips) banana and potato chips! Yum.
AndD, I’m a peanut-butter-and-banana-on-toast freak. Gotta try your version.
My brother came up with a different variant when we were kids, which we still eat to this day… Rice Chex cereal rather than potato chips. All the crunch, but none of the fat grams or sodium of chips. Admittedly, at the time, it was more a matter of available materials rather than a quest for a more “health conscious” version.
Loooooooooooove!
Validation! I’ve been eating PBJ this way for years and thought my sambo was a little weird. I use homemade blueberry jam on mine, so delicious.
Validation, indeed, Linda! Plus our highest esteem for being a pioneer in the realm of potato chip sambos.
This sounds amazing! I always put chips in tuna sandwiches and they’re also great in ham and cheese sandwiches, and Italian combo subs, and…….!!
Ooooooh, love the way you think (and crunch), Carin! Thanks for sharing, you’ve certainly inspired me and, no doubt, others to try these.
Oh, where have you folks been for the last *mumble* years? I was doing this back in the …um…decade that doesn’t need to be enumerated.
Another one is peanut butter and yellow mustard with either saltine crackers or potato chips. The trick to that one is you spread the mustard one piece of bread and the PB on the other, then put the crackers in the middle. If you put the PB and mustard touching, the texture gets all wrong. Also requires a glass of ice-cold milk (although, as an adult, I discovered it goes pretty well with a cold beer.)
Don’t make that face. Everyone eats something someone else finds weird. I think Cincinnati chili and Frito pie is weird.
Completely with you in terms of everyone eats something that someone else finds weird, Renee. We each have our, what shall I say, quirks that render us even more lovable if a lot more unique. And yeah, we don’t think we invented this recipe, we merely took it upon ourselves to share it.
This is a reply to Robert McCune’s, “I tend to do some strange combos with peanut butter. Another favorite is peanut butter, iceberg lettuce, and mayo.” Another longtime favorite here is peanut butter, ketchup, and horseradish — try it before you sneer or scoff! Like this recipe, start with toast. And credit where credit is due. The inventor father of a college classmate invented this one; it is not an original from me, though I may be its biggest mouthpiece!
Love it, Elsa! Although, uh, I’m going to take your word on it…
One of my favorite sandwiches, but one I haven’t had in years. It MUST be made with Welch’s grape jelly & potato chips – neither of which I buy anymore. :(
I understand, Martha in KS. My favorite quote from the late Leonard Nimoy is, “A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory.”
Live long and prosper! RIP Spock.
It’s all about the (marcelled as in Ballreich Potato Chip) crunch in this recipe.
Yes! Exactly, Penny.
Nice! I like how the flavors and textures work together. I enjoy a grilled PBJ on occasion, now I have another arrow in my PBJ quiver. Thanks for the recipe, and your extraordinary website…oh, and thank you for all the hard work.
What a lovely note to find waiting for us! You are so very welcome, Rich. Thank YOU! Look forward to hearing your thoughts on this PBJ with some crunch when the mood strikes you. (Also, I occasionally indulge in a grilled PBJ, too. Have you ever tried it using freezer waffles in place of bread. Sounds insane, I know. But the Kashi 7 Whole Grain kind have a lovely nuttiness to them, and when you use them straight from the freezer, the outside crisps so nicely while the inside thaws and becomes nice and airy while the PBJ part becomes all gooey and warm. I came up with this when I was working at Real Simple, it’s in their first cookbook, Meals Made Easy. Ridiculously satisfying.)
Now, I’ve been known to stuff a few nice chips (and pickle slices) in a tuna “sangwich” on occasion, but chips in in a PBJ?! That’s taking it to a whole ‘nother salty-sweet-crunch level! Nicely done, LC! (And love that recipe was aptly culled “My Drunk Kitchen!”)
Hah! Bow of gratitude for the kind words, Alex H. Sounds like this recipe has your name written all over it…
Along this same line try peanut butter, Fritos & Swiss cheese!
Doh!!