And we’re back!

I have returned to hit ya’ll with another review to start this week off strong. You never know when I’ll strike next. Uh-oh!! You know I had to do it.

Quick story time:

At my school, we are just about to wrap up the semester, so things have been pretty busy lately. After this week we have final exams, so currently it seems like everyone is chugging away at their final assignments and projects of the semester. It makes for a pretty stressful environment, and is the biggest reason behind my somewhat unpredictable posting schedule. Fortunately I have this blog as a way to calm myself down. I hope you guys are enjoying these posts as much as I love writing them!

Moving on from that little update, I have an interesting one for you guys this evening. We are reviewing these pickle flavored chips from Lay’s, and I must say, I am quite intrigued. I have never had pickle-flavored anything before, so I simply had to grab these when I was at Target a few weeks back.

I would not exactly call myself a “pickle fan”, but I do like them on a burger every now and then. Bread & butter pickles are preferred. I mention this to say that I am not someone who can just reach into a pickle jar and eat them as if they are some regular ‘ole snack. Kudos to those of you who can, I am not on your level.

Depending on how accurate these are with their pickle flavoring, I could love them or hate them. We shall see. Let’s get into it.

Overview: 

In terms of the packaging and presentation of these, they are pretty… simple. Probably what most of you would expect when you think of a chip that is pickle flavored. The bag is green all around, but the color is more of a lighter “yellowish” green. This stays pretty true to how pickles look when they are in a pickle jar, with those hints of yellow throughout the liquid.

The green packaging certainly calls at you a bit, but I think it is more the kind of looking where you are curious about what the flavor could possibly be when you see them at the store. Not ostentatious or loud by any means. These spark your curiosity more than anything else. The close-up image of the chips does very little to point out any major differences between these and regular chips. They just look like crispy, ordinary chips.

Going along with that, one thing that I have to mention is that the chips themselves are SUPER unassuming. When I look at them, they look virtually no different than how a regular potato chip looks. The same yellow, salty, crispy appearance. I guess it’s probably silly of me to think that these would be some kind of crazy forest green color, but nonetheless, an interesting fact. Lay’s is keeping it subtle with these chips, you pickle lovers.

Of course, here are some shots of the packaging and chips in a bowl for your use. Enjoy:

Review: Lay’s Pickle-Flavored Chips

On to the review. I am in my chair, and am going in for the first bite. Here goes nothing.

WHOA.

Forgive me for underestimating the appearance of these. I am taken aback by how potent the pickle flavoring is; these don’t mess around. If you are a (dill) pickle lover, you are going to LOVE these chips.

Immediately, you are just body-slammed with the sharp, sour flavor of the pickle seasoning. I almost coughed when I ate the first chip. These do a really good job at encapsulating the combined aspects of how an actual pickle tastes, and how the liquid also tastes. It is hovering right around 50-50, so it’s good that Lay’s has chosen to make these chips inclusive to all the different nuances of pickle flavoring.

My use of the word “body-slammed” is pretty powerful. And it is definitely true at first, but you acclimate pretty quickly to the flavor after your first few handfuls. They still don’t play around, but instead of hitting you with that slam dunk, the flavor switches to a layup. More finesse, but equally impressive-OH BABY!!!

The pickle seasoning dominates every moment of these being in your mouth, and the typical potato chip flavoring comes through with the aftertaste. Depending on where you stand in the pickle debate, this could be good news or bad news. Bottom line–if you want PICKLE, you should go with these.

The texture? Fine. They are just ordinary Lay’s chips, no ridges or kettle-cooking involved. They have a nice enough crunch, but they don’t offer the same oomph as something like a kettle-cooked chip would. I feel like Lay’s should have decided to make these kettle-cooked, because pickles do have a solid crunch to them in most cases. If accuracy is their priority, then the added crunch would have gone a long way to replicate that experience.

I like these. I would say that they fall into the category of something that you buy at the store “every now and then” with enough of a break in between. Even as someone who doesn’t particularly love pickles, these were solid. I would get them again in a couple months. However, these are not something that I could see myself eating an entire bag of in one sitting (at least not without getting sick).

All in all, Lay’s does quite the job of putting pickle-flavored chips on the map with these. Despite the mellow packaging, these don’t disappoint with their pickle punch (yes, I said pickle punch).

The Verdict:

For being a flavor that I would not normally gravitate toward, I am impressed with these chips. I could see them being really good on an actual sandwich, because the flavor is just so pungent and concentrated. If you like pickles, these are an absolute go.

Favor the occasional pickle? Still give these a go. They will satisfy your craving.

Not a fan of pickles? Avoid these. They are the real deal. 

All of that said, I would give these chips a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars for being an admirable attempt at fusing the worlds of pickles and chips together in harmony. Really solid, but not something that you need to go out and get right now.

I hope you enjoyed this review. Quick turnaround, I know! Have a great rest of your week.

-thechiefeats

P.S: Health conscious? Below is the nutritional information for Lay’s Pickle-Flavored Potato Chips: