by Bottom Line: The ASS KICKIN’ Jalapeno Cheddar and Spicy Pickle Pretzels surprisingly come up short on the heat from a company that has delivered in the past.
The ASS-KICKIN’ brand has been around for a while, putting out hot sauce, seasonings, and various snacks, and their Habanero Popcorn has long been a favorite of mine. I was recently wandering around World Market (a great place to find spicy foods) and stumbled upon their Jalapeno Cheddar Pretzels and Spicy Pickle Pretzels. I am a lover of spicy pretzels, which you just don’t find enough on the snack aisle, so I decided to give both a try.
According to the website, the Jalapeno Cheddar Pretzels deliver “a perfect blend of heat and cheese that will have your taste buds doing a happy dance”. And while I did enjoy them, that seemed to be overselling the snacks. These are the twist-type pretzels that have become so popular of late, and they deliver a nice crunch. Along with that, they bring a good cheddar flavor, or at least as good as you can expect from that cheese powder they use. There is also a bit of a peppery kick, but not much heat to accompany that. These barely get to Mild on my scale and do not quite live up the ASS-KICKIN’ name. Still, they are good as cheese pretzels go, and they have a little bit of a bite, so I did enjoy snacking on them. I just would have preferred a little more heat.
As for the Spicy Dill Pickle version, these are heavy on the dill and have less of the pickle tang than you might expect. And since I do enjoy the pucker from the various pickle snacks out there, these fell a little bit short on my taste expectations. Like the Jalapeno Cheddar Pretzels, they did not deliver on the heat, barely getting to Mild on my scale, and they certainly could have used more of a kick.
Since the ASS KICKIN’ brand has delivered on the heat in the past, I was surprised that both of these pretzel snacks came up short. Maybe they are trying to expand their market and are catering their snacks to the average consumer like many of the big snack brands are doing which would be unfortunate. I did still like the Jalapeno Cheddar Pretzels, though, and I would get those again. But I will likely pass next time that I see a bag of the Spicy Dill Pickle Pretzels.
Nutrition Info:
Jalapeno Cheddar Pretzels
Ingredients: Jalapeno Cheddar: Pretzels [Wheat Flour(Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate B!, Riboflavin B2, Folic Acid), Salt, Soybean Oil, Malt and Yeast], Vegetable Oil, Cheddar Cheese [(Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Whey, Buttermilk, Maltodextrin, Green Bell Pepper, Onion, Garlic), Natural and Artificial Flavors, Chili Pepper, Yeast Extract, Extractives of Paprika, Extractives of Tumeric, Spicem Disodium Inosinate & Disodium Guanylate, with Silicon Dioxide and Calcium Silicate added to prevent caking], Butter and Xanthan Gum.
Serving Size: 28g
Calories: 120
Fat: 3.5g (2.5g Sat/0 Trans)
Protein: 2g
Carbs: 20g
Sodium: 370mg
Spicy Pickle Pretzels
Ingredients: Pretzels [Wheat Flour(Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate B!, Riboflavin B2, Folic Acid), Salt, Soybean Oil, Malt and Yeast], Vegetable Oil, Seasoning [Salt, Vinegar Powder (Maltodextrin, White Distilled Vinegar, Modified Corn Starch), Maltodextrin, Sugar, Spices, Citric Acid, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Yeast Extract, Natural Flavors, Habanero Pepper, Calcium Stearate and Silicon Dioxide added to prevent caking], Butter and Xanthan Gum.
Serving Size: 28g
Calories: 120
Fat: 3.5g (2.5g Sat/0 Trans)
Protein: 2g
Carbs: 20g
Sodium: 390mg
