When it comes to snacking, Americans love their potato chips.

We eat more than $6 billion worth of the salty favorite each year, making it by far the chip of choice (sorry, tortilla chip fans). And we enjoy those chips in countless varieties — seasoned, kettle-style, baked — courtesy of brands big and small.

But which chip is truly tops?

With the number-one snacking day of the year — Super Bowl Sunday — just around the corner, we thought we’d find out. So, we enlisted four football and spud-crazed local chefs and we put 15 varieties of chips in front of them — without revealing the brand identities.

To keep things on an even playing field, we limited our picks to varieties that could be readily purchased in local markets (in other words, no regional brands à la Utz). We also decided to keep it simple — we considered only chips that contained three ingredients: potatoes, oil and salt (no barbecue or salt-and-vinegar chips).

Oh, and forget about any chips made from potato flakes (à la Pringles) or prepared in a low-cal way (à la Baked Lay’s). We wanted the real deal.

And so did our four judges: Nunzio Billante of Rocco’s Tacos in West Palm Beach, Chris Corvelle of The Breakers’ Seafood Bar in Palm Beach, Joey Giannuzzi of The Green Gourmet in Delray Beach and Bobby Orfanos of Taverna Opa in West Palm Beach. After an hour’s worth of crunching (and swigging plenty of water), they settled on a top spud and a few other worthy contenders:

Click image to see the chip taste test.

Click jump for our chefs’ tasty dips!

THE DIPS
Sure, you can opt for the traditional onion soup dip.

But what if you want to take it to the next level? We asked our chefs to offer a Super Bowl dip recipe that shouldn’t be too hard to prepare in a home kitchen. If you’re a purist, you could pair these with potato chips. But the chefs suggest other chips or crackers and breads, as indicated in the recipes.

Spicy Crab and Cream Cheese Dip

Courtesy of Chris Corvelle, The Seafood Bar, The Breakers, Palm Beach

The key to this dip, says Corvelle, is that all the spicy ingredients — cayenne, jalapenos (don’t remove the seeds or membranes), horseradish — work in harmony. The chef also notes that it’s a waste to buy the more expensive jumbo lump crab meat, since the seafood is likely to break up in the finished dip. Finally, make sure the dip is allowed to cool the appropriate amount of time — if it’s too hot, it will be runny.

Chris Corvelle

1 pound cream cheese

1⁄2 cup ranch dressing

1⁄2 pound lump crab meat

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 jalapeno pepper, minced with seeds and membranes

1 tablespoon horseradish

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1⁄4 cup panko bread crumbs (for topping)

Set oven to 350°. Blend cream cheese and ranch dressing in food processor until mixture is smooth; gently fold in remaining ingredients (except panko bread crumbs) until well incorporated. Add to a 7-inch pie pan and top with bread crumbs. Bake for 20 minutes or until bread crumbs are brown and dip is bubbly. Let cool for an hour and serve at room temperature.
Serve with chips, crackers, toasted Italian bread or pita chips.

Organic Baba Ganoush

Courtesy of Joey Giannuzzi, The Green Gourmet, Delray Beach

Note: This is the classic Mediterranean dip, but it’s given a better-for-you twist with organic ingredients.

4 organic eggplants

3 tablespoons organic tahini

Joey Giannuzi

1 tablespoon whole organic garlic

1 ounce organic lemon juice

2 tablespoons. chopped organic parsley

sea salt and pepper to taste

Poke holes in the eggplants with a fork. Grill eggplants until they are tender. Let eggplants cool, then peel and discard skin. Cut up the eggplants and place the eggplants, tahini, garlic and lemon juice in a blender or a food processor. Put on high for five seconds (until blended). Put the mixture in a bowl, add salt and pepper to taste, and fold in the parsley with a spoon at the end.

Serve with organic flax crackers.

Skordalia

Courtesy of Bobby Orfanos, Taverna Opa, West Palm Beach

Bobby Orfanos

2 pounds Idaho potatoes

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon white pepper

3 tablespoons fresh chopped garlic

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

Peel the potatoes and cut them in bite-size pieces. Boil the potatoes for about 20 minutes, until they are quite soft. Mash the potatoes, in a bowl, and add all of the other ingredients. Make sure that all of the ingredients are nicely blended. This dip can be served warm or you can put it in the refrigerator, for about a half-hour, until it is chilled.

Serve with toasted pita bread that has been cut into triangles.

Spinach Dip with Artichokes and Bacon

Courtesy of Nunzio Billante, Rocco’s Tacos, West Palm Beach

An all-American dip for an-all American game. Billante thinks its appeal is that it turns something healthy — namely, spinach — into something “indulgent,” He likes to use high-quality marinated artichokes, imported from Italy, for the dish. And he prefers frozen bagged spinach over the boxed kind.

Nunzio Billante

1 cup bacon bits

1 large bag/box frozen spinach

2 cans/bottles artichoke hearts

4 ounces diced white onions

4 ounces flour

1 quart whole milk

4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese

4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

4 ounces Parmesan cheese grated

Melt butter in a large pot or skillet. Saute onions and sweat till translucent. Add in bacon bits and well-drained spinach, along with artichoke hearts. Dust in flour and stir well. Then add in milk — the mixture should turn slightly thick. Then add in shredded cheeses.

When the cheeses are slightly melted, add in your salt and pepper, then mix again. Place mixture in a baking pan, top with Parmesan cheese and bake in an oven at 350° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

OUR CHEFS

NUNZIO BILLANTE

Rocco’s Tacos

224 Clematis St., West Palm Beach;

(561) 650-1001; roccostacos.com

Hometown team: Pittsburgh Steelers

What he likes to serve at a Super Bowl party: “Sloppy finger foods,” he says. And foods that don’t take too long to serve – he wants to watch the game as well! That translates into a menu of wings – Billante does his with a chipotle sauce – and ribs.

What’s happening at his restaurant on game day: Rocco’s Tacos will have its regular menu, including its famous tortilla chips (they’re dusted with a secret blend of spices). The restaurant has two jumbo TVs at the bar.

Super Bowl prediction: New Orleans Saints 24, Indianapolis Colts 18

CHRIS CORVELLE

The Seafood Bar at The Breakers

1 S. County Road, Palm Beach; (561) 655-6611; thebreakers.com

Hometown team: New York Giants

What he likes to serve at a Super Bowl party: He goes both the hot and cold route. For hot, think “fun, rich, greasy things,” especially lasagna or mac ’n’ cheese (Corvelle likes to substitute high-end international cheeses, like Fontina, for a gourmet tweak). For cold, think Italian-style deli sandwiches.

What’s happening at his restaurant on game day: He’s offering a variety of special selections, including a spicy crab dip (see recipe). Also look for a New Orleans-inspired fried oyster po’ boy and Indianapolis-inspired “Crispy Colt Wings.” The bar/restaurant has several TVs.

Super Bowl prediction: Indianapolis Colts 31, New Orleans Saints 27

JOEY GIANNUZZI

The Green Gourmet

The Shoppes at Addison Place, 16950 Jog Road, Delray Beach; (561) 455-2466; thegreengourmetdelray.com

Hometown team: Buffalo Bills

What he likes to serve at a Super Bowl party: True to the spirit of his health-oriented market/restaurant, he likes the good stuff. That means freshly cut organic fruits and veggies and veggie or bean-based dips (see his recipe for organic baba ganoush).

What’s happening at his restaurant on game day: The Green Gourmet will be open from noon to 5 p.m. for those looking to shop for party-day supplies. The market’s catering department has platters featuring everything from crab cakes to crudites, but orders must be placed well in advance. Call for availability.

Super Bowl prediction: Indianapolis Colts 21, New Orleans Saints 14

BOBBY ORFANOS

Taverna Opa

CityPlace, West Palm Beach; (561) 820-0002; opapalmbeach.com

Hometown team: New York Jets

What he likes to serve at a Super Bowl party: Classic fare – spare ribs, fried chicken and pizza. “Definitely pizza,” he adds for emphasis. Oh, and don’t forget the chicken wings – Orfanos prepares his with Greek seasonings (a “Greek wing,” he calls it).

What’s happening at his restaurant on game day: Taverna Opa will be offering specials on Orfanos’ famous Greek wings and bottled beers. The restaurant has TVs at both its indoor and outdoor bars.

Super Bowl prediction: New Orleans Saints 17, Indianapolis Colts 7