Good Stuff: Brad’s Raw Chips

Brad Gruno had always been an entrepreneur in the construction business. In 2006, as a result of health issues, he began eating a mostly raw food diet. While his health and energy improved greatly on this new diet, he couldn’t find anything that replicated the good taste and crunch he used to enjoy from potato chips and pretzels. He began making dehydrated vegetable-and-grain chips.

They were popular with friends and family, but Brad had no intention of going into business with them until he happened upon a friend sampling a raw food salsa at a conference. Brad noticed that the salsa was being served with grocery store chips. When he asked why, the friend replied that he had been unable to find tasty “live” chips to serve with his salsa. And that, in a nutshell, was the beginning of Brad’s Raw Chips.

Brad Gruno, at the Linden Hills Farmers Market.

I myself am not a raw foodist. However, if you’re looking for a snack food that provides good flavors and something other than empty calories, you ought to try Brad’s Raw Chips. They’re made from organic flax seeds, organic buckwheat groats, vegetables, olive oil, and seasonings. As these are raw food chips, they’re not baked or fried; they’re dehydrated. By always keeping the chips under 115 degrees F during manufacturing, the live enzymes present in the ingredients are maintained. You can tell by looking at these chips that they’re different. They look (and taste) hearty; I think they’d be great with a hummus, but they’re enjoyable all by themselves. Yes, they do taste like vegetables to a degree, but they also have the wonderful flavors of onion, garlic, salt, and other herbs and spices.

It turns out there is a way to put crunch into raw food without sacrificing nutrition.

Fresh herbs and veggies waiting to be made into raw chips.

The chips are available in flavors such as Red Bell Pepper, Sun Dried Tomato, Beet, Broccoli, Corn, Mixed Greens, Cheddar, and Indian Spices. Brad is always experimenting with new chips, too; I recently picked up bags of Tomato Herb and Corn-Red Bell Pepper. Most varieties come in both regular and spicy versions. The chips are gluten-free, a nice plus for those who can’t tolerate that protein.

Many of the ingredients come from Brad’s own organic garden and greenhouse.

Apart from their taste and the fact that they have some nutritive value, I also like these chips for other reasons. The majority of ingredients Brad uses are grown in his own garden according to organic principles. He also buys his veggies from local farms when in season, thus supporting organic agriculture in his area. This is a very young company, but they make a fine product, and I admire what they’re doing. You can buy Brad’s Raw Chips at an ever-increasing number of stores in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Happily for those who don’t live nearby, the chips are also sold online. For more details, visit the website. Healthy chips, who would’ve thought?