Snack #73 - Stacy's Hot & Spicy Pita Chips

When walking through the supermarket words like "hot & spicy" printed on a bag of snacks immediately catch my attention. I was pretty excited about this most recent spicy snack - spicy and healthy? - best of both worlds. And I was only partially let down. As pita chips, they deliver a nice crunch and are good for dipping into whatever you might fancy. On the downside, there was not a whole lot of flavor. They definitely packed some nice heat, walking the fine line between spicy and painful, but beyond that these pita chips pretty much tasted like chili powder. Occasionally I got a hint of lemon, a weird, but welcome addition to this otherwise sort of boring snack.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 5/10

Bottom Line: You're better off dipping plain pita chips in salsa.

Top Secret Chip Info

Got some new top secret info for all you spicy chip fans... A new chip from the ever-tasty Kettle Foods kitchen:

What's New? What's Hot?

We're always cooking up something new in the Kettle Foods kitchen, and the next flavor headed for store shelves will get fans fired up! Debuting in 2 oz. bags next month, this new flavor really packs some heat. Watch for a flash of green in our grab ‘n' go size. What could it be? You'll have to wait and see!



Stay tuned, the hot chicks will be the first to review this new chip!

Snack #72- Herr’s Ragin’ Ranch flavored Potato Chips

Herr’s Ragin’ Ranch flavored Potato Chips

First, I’d just like to mention that this bag is about three times bigger than it needs to be. There are about 20 chips inside a bag that could fit a 2-liter bottle of soda. I also was a little wary of the ranch/heat combination because it always seemed to me that ranch was a cool flavor. And I have to say, I don’t love them. I can’t really taste the ranch or the pepper flavors and they end up just tasting salty, like regular Herr’s potato chips. I think there is a slight ranch flavor but it is hard to distinguish and overall I am not impressed by the flavor of these chips.

note: I apparently neglected to take a picture of the actual chips here but rest assured that they looked eerily similar to a classic unflavored ridged potato chip.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 0/10
Bottom Line: Just regular potato chips.

Snack #71- Herr’s Oven Baked Snack Friez ‘Hot-Hot-Hot’

Herr’s Oven Baked Snack Friez ‘Hot-Hot-Hot’

I managed to escape Central America for a few days, and these are some gems I came across in my native Philadelphia. It was somewhat of a shock to have spicy snacks again after failing to discover any in Costa Rica, but I am still convinced that my taste buds can accurately rate even the spiciest of snacks. These ‘friez’ are certainly spicy. They are fairly light and crispy although a little denser than many other hot fries. The initial flavor is fake cheddar cheese, followed by a chili pepper kick. I’ll be honest, I coughed a little at the heat burning my tongue and the back of my throat simultaneously. The heat lasts for a while too, burning all flavor of cheese out of the mouth.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 5/10

Bottom Line: Crunchy, cheesy, chili.

Snack #70- del Rancho Taco Jalapeño tortilla chips

del Rancho Taco Jalapeño tortilla chips

These were stale when we tasted them which was probably just because I left them sitting around for a while and they were expired. I bought them in Nicaragua and yet again had high hopes that they would be spicy but of course they aren’t. They are a little salty and have a definite taste of jalapeño but there is definitely no spice factor at all. They are thin and light and I’m sure they would be nice and crispy if I didn’t have a stale package. The flavor is peppery enough to make it seem like they should be spicy but instead they are sweet and the sweetness is not all that pleasant.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 0.5/10

Bottom Line: Jalapeño and sweet do not go together.

Snack #69- Buenachos Salsapeño flavored Tortilla Chips

Buenachos Salsapeño flavored Tortilla Chips

Salsapeño is a clever play on words that I'm surprised has never been used in the States before. These Dorito-type snacks have a very strong corn flavor which hits you immediately when you start eating them. The flavor itself is very bland and hard to distinguish from the tortilla chip itself. Surprisingly though, these chips do pack a punch. The jalapeño flavor comes through fairly stong after the corn flavor subsides and leaves a sort of bitter heat in the mouth. It's not actually a very pleasant flavor, although less artificial than many of the sweeter jalapeño flavors in many chips. The heat is mostly in the aftertaste and builds up over time. I'm actually impressed, these are the spiciest chips I've managed to find in all of Costa Rica, apart from imported American brands. Maybe there is hope after all for continuing this blog for an entire year.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 3.5/10
Bottom Line: Spicy chips! (well, in Costa Rican terms)

Snack #68- Quesi Trix (Con Salsa Picante) Corn Crunchies

Quesi Trix (Con Salsa Picante) Corn Crunchies

After a dry spell, where I thought I had tried every possible spicy chip in Costa Rica, I found a hidden bakery with new snacks to test! These snacks look like Cheetos and have the same texture as them. The flavor is vaguely cheesy with a hint of jalapeno flavoring. They are nice and crunchy and a tasty snack but they are not very spicy. I wasn't expecting them to be spicy for any reason, but including hot sauce in the description of the snack would indicate some sort of peppery flavoring. When a few are eaten in succession a little heat is felt in the back of the throat, but they definitely don't deliver flavor like the pot of burning jalapenos on the bag would suggest. But they also weren't the most disappointing bag of 'spicy' snacks I've opened while in Costa Rica. I tasted these with a diehard Cheetos fanatic and she thinks they are totally delicious although she agreed they were not as spicy as they could have been. They do have a nice pepper flavoring, fairly natural and authentic, though they don't deliver on the heat.

Rating on the Spice-O-Meter: 2/10
Bottom Line: Delicious Costa Rican Cheetos