Chips and dip

Chips and dip

Chips and dip – crab dip and potato chips
Type	Snack food
Course	Appetizer, side dish
Serving temperature	Dips can be cold or hot
Main ingredients	Various chips, crackers or crudites and dips
Similar dishes	Nachos

Chips and dip are a food of chips or crisps served with dips. Chips used include potato chips, tortilla chips, corn chips, bean chips, vegetable chips, pita chips,plantain chips and others. Crackers are also sometimes used, as are crudités, which are whole or sliced raw vegetables. Various types of dips are used to accompany various types of chips.

The dish gained significant popularity in the United States in the 1950s, in part due to a Lipton advertising campaign, and it was sometimes referred to as "California dip" during this time. During this time in the U.S., specialized trays designed to hold chips and dip were created. It is a common dish during the Super Bowl American football game in the United States.

Double-dipping involves taking a bite of a chip and then re-dipping it into a dip, which some people disapprove of, while others are indifferent. Double-dipping transfers bacteria from a person's mouth into a dip, which can then be transferred to other consumer's mouths. Aspects of double-dipping have been mentioned on U.S. television shows. National Chip and Dip Day occurs annually in the U.S. on March 23.

The popularity of chips and dip significantly increased in the United States during the 1950s, beginning circa 1954, due to changes in styles of entertaining in the suburbs and also due to a Lipton advertising campaign based upon using Lipton's instant dehydrated onion soup mix to prepare dip. The advertising campaign occurred on television and in supermarket display advertising, and promoted mixing the soup mix with sour cream or cream cheese to create a dip, to be served with potato chips or crudités. This dip began to be called California Dip. The advertising campaign realized significant success, and new, similar dip products were quickly developed thereafter. During this time, unique platters designed for chips and dip service were created that allowed for the containment of several types of chips, and service variations were devised that included serving the dip in a bread bowl or hollowed-out fruit.