There’s nothing more exciting than finding new weird chip flavors, and we are on the hunt to find those weird and wonderful chip flavors from around the world.
We know some of you will recognize or even regularly eat some of these flavors, but many people will have never heard of them or would never even try them.
So we gathered our team members to risk their tastebuds and physiques to try these gourmet delights!
Lay’s Truffle
Made in: Thailand.
We were shocked to see this flavor because truffle is not a typical ingredient used in Thai cooking or even something Thai people necessarily eat. Most of us here have never actually tasted truffle chips before. So our taste testers were looking forward to having a try.
The smell of truffle is an intoxicatingly warm, luxurious scent with a Buttery rich truffle flavor that combines well with the potato. They’re buttery, earthy, and umami but, most importantly, flavorful!
Lay's Mieng Kam Krob Ros
Made in: Thailand.
Mieng Kam Krob Ros is a traditional Thai appetizer that packs various flavors in one bite. It consists of dried shrimp, lime, fresh chili, ginger, crunchy toasted coconut flakes, peanuts, and a distinctive herbal betel leaf used as the wrapper and eaten alongside a sweet and salty dipping sauce.
Straight up, they smell fishy, not overbearing, like dried squid. There’s lime burst on the first bite; the flavors are fresh with no weird fishy taste. Most of us have never had Mieng Kam Krob Ros, except for one of our team members who has lived in Thailand and has assured us they tasted similar to the authentic dish.
Mackies Pickled onion
Made in: Scotland.
You know those jars in the bottom of your Grandmas’ cupboard that may or may not be some condiment or unknown life form; they’re probably, or at least used to be, pickled onions.
We knew we should expect some sourness from these, but we needed more preparation for the sourness that slaps you in the face.
Unfortunately, the chip’s texture and taste on their own ruin the overall experience. This pickled onion flavor might be easier on the palate with the right amount of beer.
Smith's Chicken Parmi
Made in: Australia.
Parmi, parma, parmigiana; call it what you want; one thing is for sure, they’re bloody delicious. If you’re unfamiliar, they are a piece of chicken coated in bread crumbs, smothered with a red sauce and cheese.
Learning that there was a chip that tasted like this got the team all hot and bothered. The only problem is you’ll need your imagination with this one; Smith’s has over-delivered on the tomato and salt yet under-delivered on everything else, especially the chicken.
Lay’s x Pop Mart Truffle
Product of: China.
Thai Lay’s impressed us all with its flavourful buttery Truffle taste. So we were all curious if these chips would taste the same. Again, truffle isn’t a typical ingredient for Chinese cuisine, so it’s interesting to us its been used. The cute artwork on the pack is thanks to a collab between Lay’s and Pop Mart, a company that’s all about pop culture and art toys.
Again with that alluring truffle scent! This version has a strong truffle flavor with a slightly grilled note. The Chinese version of Truffle Lay’s tastes different from the Thai version, although we can’t pick a favorite.
Now that we have all tried truffle chips, most of us don’t see them as a weird chip flavor anymore, as they are fast becoming a crowd favorite!
Lay's Numb and spicy hot pot
Product of: China.
A somewhat intimidating image is on this Numb And Spicy Hot Pot flavor pack. It’s hard to know which flavor to anticipate with these besides numbing heat.
But wow, you can smell the chili and spices coming through, like walking into a spice store. Strangely it has some spiciness, but it’s a herb that comes through that is quite strong; we’re unsure what it is, anise or fennel.
They are probably not the worst flavor, but they are one of the more weird chip flavors we have had.
Lay's Salted Egg
Made in: Thailand
Thai people usually have a salted egg with rice porridge as breakfast. The salted egg white is exceptionally salty; you don’t need much for each bite, and it pairs perfectly with the plain rice porridge. The thought here was there would be a strong egg smell and taste.
Instead, some of the team could smell something similar to a fresh cheese toastie. But with a taste like a spicy egg yolk, with a spice that lingers in your mouth. These chips aren’t too bad; nothing unpleasant about them. However, they smell better than they taste.
Lay's Hot Chili Squid
Made in: Thailand.
Squid is very popular in Thailand, especially when grilled or dried. Honestly, the image on the package probably only sells it for a few people.
Surprisingly, there’s no overpowering fish smell, but you can really smell the chili. The chili has a modest amount of zing but is less spicy than we thought. We were all quite surprised to discover these would be as good as they are. People who like a strong squid flavor will be disappointed, as these are relatively mild in that department.
Lay's Grilled Pork
Product of: China.
Grilled pork is always a crowd favorite, but how can those flavors be portrayed in a chip? At least, the packaging tempts you with the offering of succulent grilled pork.
With just a faint smell of pork, our thoughts immediately led to thinking these would be disappointing. Luckily the flavors were just like a sweet sauce on a piece of pork belly, with the crunchiness of the chips mimicking the crackling.
Lay's Popcorn Mix Flavor
Made in: Thailand.
This blend of butter corn, cheddar cheese, and caramel has definitely caused a stir in our team when it comes to weird chip flavors.
Caramel popcorn and corn is the first thing that can be smelt. Initially, the sweetness from the caramel shines through but soon takes on a buttery corn-on-the-cob flavor. The cheddar cheese comes through less and adds a slight saltiness at the end.
If you love corn, you will probably enjoy these; if you’re not big on it, give these a miss.
Kettle Kakadu Plum & Australian Aged Cheddar
Made in: Australia.
Kakadu Plum is a fruit from a plant in the Combretaceae family native to Australia. Indigenous Australians have used them for both bush tucker and medicine for centuries.
With Kakadu Plum not being a typical ingredient, this had the team excited for the tasting ahead.
Overall the smell is that of aged cheddar, which is quite strong. They have a sweet cheesy flavor, like having some plum jam and aged cheddar cheese on a cracker.
Some found the cheese scent overpowering, but those that enjoy cheese and onion chips will enjoy these.
Lay's Roasted Garlic Oyster Flavor
Product of: China.
We can’t think of anyone who could possibly need or want chips that taste like oysters, yet here we are.
When you open the pack, there’s an immediate and pungent smell of roasted garlic. The first time you bite down, you’re hit with the strong garlic flavor, but then, there’s something else that is jarring and somewhat off-putting, almost like eating roasted garlic with a mouth full of blood.
For us, the roasted Garlic Oyster Flavor is something else; it certainly doesn’t remind anyone of the sea or fresh seafood, easily one of the more weird chip flavors.
Lay's Ghost Pepper
Made in: Thailand.
This Ghost Pepper Max flavor from Lay’s pack looks seriously intimidating, preparing everyone for severe heat when they see the package. The Ghost pepper isn’t a typical Thai ingredient; however, most Thais love things spicy, so it’s no surprise this flavor has been released.
You get slapped with the scent on the first whiff, like a curry full of spices. It’s Tangy, with a follow-up of heat that belts the roof of your mouth and the back of your throat. The heat burns in the back of your throat but slowly dissipates.
The taste is good, similar to a spicy and sweet chili jam. If you hate spicy food, move on now!
Red Rock Deli Braised Beef Brisket with Caramelised Onion
Made in: Australia.
The name is a mouthful; once you try these, you will eat them by the handful.
They smell sweet and smokey, like an authentic smokey beef brisket with caramelized onion. The seasoning powder coating is adequate but could always do with a little more.
These chips tasted delicious. They tasted like how they smelled; sweet, smokey beef brisket. The sweetness from the paprika shone throughout.
Calbee Kataage Potato - Yuzu Kosho Citrus Chili Paste
Made in: Japan.
Yuzu koshō is a fermented Japanese seasoning made from green chili, yuzu peel, and salt.
They have a strong green chili scent, yet you can barely see the seasoning. Taste-wise, the flavor is of very green chili and sharp bitterness from the yuzu peel. Surprisingly there isn’t any heat at all from the chili.
The chips themselves are crunchy and tasty; the flavor is just a bit on the weird side to the inexperienced palate.
Grilled Prawn With Gojuchan Sauce
Made in: Thailand.
Korean cuisine is taking over the world now, not just for its K-Pop and K-Dramas. Gochujang sauce is a typical all-purpose Korean sauce used for grilling and stir-frying.
Smelling similar to Dried fish with a bit of smokiness, almost like smoky bacon. The taste is like having prawns slathered in a spicy sweet, smoky bbq sauce. By having ruffles, they have a nice crunch and are covered in flavoring.
Lay's Fried Crab Flavor
Product of: China
Ordering Fried Crab with a crispy fried garlic topping at any Chinese restaurant causes even the most civil in our team to lose their minds. Our expectations were sky-high when we first saw the Fried Crab flavor from Lay’s.
Surprisingly, there’s no strong smell, just a subtle hint of fishiness. If you’ve had crab meat from a can before, it smells similar, not fishy. It did smell like Fried Crab overall.
The taste is a generic fishy with some garlic notes; overall, we found them underwhelming.
Lay's Salmon Chili Lime Flavor
Made in: Thailand.
Salmon has become a popular fish in Thailand in recent years, thanks to the popularity of Japanese sushi and sashimi. And Thai restaurants have successfully implemented salmon into many Thai recipes.
What surprised us was that there was only a slight citrus smell, no real sign of salmon. But the flavor has a strong slap of salmon and garlic, chased by a lime and chili finish. Salmon in certain dishes is delicious, but most of the team couldn’t stand these!
Lay's Grilled Squid Flavor
Product of: China
Now for the Chinese Grilled Squid flavor, the packaging looks more appetizing. With seafood being popular in China, it’s easy to understand why a chip would be flavored with squid.
There’s a familiar chili jam scent when opening the bag, followed by a slight grilled squid scent. However, we expected it to be more powerful or off-putting.
The saltiness was intense from the soy sauce rather than salt. Followed by Chinese five spice; there was a presence of anise in this seasoning, and it is not spicy. Yet we could hardly taste the grilled squid.
Red Rock Deli Thai Chilli and Lime
Made in: Australia.
Most of us here would never have gone out of our way to buy chips flavored with chili and lime, but after this taste test, things are changing!
Surprisingly we couldn’t smell the chili and lime, but we could see some signs of red seasoning dust coating the chips, which we presumed to be chili.
These chips burst with freshness from the lime and have a good amount of heat from the chili. They sound a little weird but are much better than expected.
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