Voodoo Chips
Voodoo Chips are Zapp's signature kettle-cooked potato chip, made in Gramercy, Louisiana and known for a seasoning blend that hits sweet, sour, spicy, and salty all in one bite. The chips themselves are thick-cut and kettle-fried in the New Orleans style, giving them a denser crunch than a standard bagged chip, then dusted with a reddish-brown proprietary spice mix built around sugar, citric acid, cayenne, paprika, and onion and garlic powder. The result tastes closer to a tangy barbecue chip crossed with hot sauce than a typical seasoned chip.
Varieties
Zapp's also makes Cajun Dill, Spicy Cajun Crawtators, and Sweet Potato chips under the same brand, but Voodoo is the specific sweet-sour-spicy flavor. It's unrelated to "voodoo fries," a poutine-style loaded fries dish served at some Cajun and Southern restaurants, which is a completely different menu item that just borrows the same name.
Buying tips
Look for the purple bag with the mask-and-flames logo; check the printed date on the bottom gusset for freshness, since kettle chips lose crunch faster than thin-cut chips once past their window. Buy from stores with steady turnover rather than bags that have sat on a hot shelf, since the oil can turn rancid and dull the seasoning's tang.
Substitutes
Homemade Cajun-sweet seasoning on plain kettle chips — about 1 teaspoon blend per 1 cup plain kettle chips
Mix smoked paprika, cane sugar, celery salt, cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, and a pinch of citric acid (or a few drops of vinegar) and toss with warm plain kettle chips so the seasoning sticks.
Herr's Salt & Vinegar chips with a dash of hot sauce — 1:1 by weight, plus 2-3 drops hot sauce per handful
Gets the sour-salty side close but needs the added heat and a pinch of sugar to approximate the sweetness in Voodoo seasoning.
Lay's Wavy Barbecue chips — 1:1
Sweeter and smokier with less vinegar tang and heat, but the closest widely available flavor family if Zapp's isn't stocked locally.
Storage
Reseal the bag tightly with a clip or fold-and-clamp after opening and keep at room temperature in a dry pantry, away from direct sunlight or heat, which turns the frying oil rancid faster than usual. Refrigeration introduces moisture and dulls the crunch, so it's not recommended. Best eaten within about two weeks of opening.
How to use
Eaten straight from the bag as a snack, but also crushed and used as a crunchy breading or topping: pressed onto fried chicken tenders or catfish before frying, sprinkled over loaded nachos or baked mac and cheese, or folded into a meatloaf or burger patty mix for texture. In New Orleans, crushed Voodoo Chips are a common Bloody Mary garnish alongside a pickled okra spear.
What it pairs with
Good alongside a muffuletta or po'boy sandwich, crushed over a remoulade-dressed shrimp salad, or served with a cold lager or a Bloody Mary. The vinegar-forward heat also plays well dipped in a cooling ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Nutrition
A 1-ounce serving (about 15 chips) runs around 150 calories, 9-10 grams of fat, and 170-190 milligrams of sodium, roughly in line with other kettle-style chips. They're fried in cottonseed or sunflower oil and contain no artificial dyes, though the seasoning does include citric acid and flavor enhancers like disodium inosinate and guanylate.
FAQ
What do Voodoo Chips actually taste like?
The dominant notes are vinegar tang and brown sugar sweetness up front, followed by a cayenne-driven heat and a savory, almost umami background from the seasoning's flavor enhancers. It reads as sweet-and-sour with a spicy kick rather than a straightforward barbecue or hot chip.
What's in the Voodoo seasoning blend?
Zapp's keeps the exact recipe proprietary, but the ingredient label lists sugar, salt, citric acid, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, other spices, natural flavors, and disodium inosinate and guanylate for savoriness.
Are Voodoo Chips gluten-free?
Zapp's packaging lists Voodoo Chips as gluten-free, since they're made from potatoes, cottonseed or sunflower oil, and a seasoning blend without wheat-derived ingredients. Always check the current bag's label, since formulations can change.
Can I buy Zapp's Voodoo Chips outside Louisiana?
Yes. They're distributed nationally under Utz Brands and show up in many grocery chains including Kroger, Publix, and Walmart, plus single bags and variety packs sold directly through Zapp's own website.
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