Co-op Naturaplan Chips Herbes des Alpes

Made for the Co-op by Swiss crisp giant Zweifel; this packet of gluten free, suitable for vegans crisps looks about as healthy as a packet of crisps can get. Unless you bake them instead of frying which obviously means it’s not a proper crisp.

For myself, these crisps seem extremely herby; there’s a bit too much taste. The Chef , on the other hand, thinks there isn’t enough flavour. Apparently you can’t please everyone. A good thin crisp with a light crunch.

Howdah Onion Bhaji

I really wanted to like this Onion Bhaji crispy snack. 

I love the vibrant yellow packaging with the elephant and I love that the company funds a free school meal for a child in India for every packet sold (you can read more about that at Howdah Snacks, and take a look at their great tea towels while you’re visiting). I quite liked the spicy flavour too. But sadly the texture is not for me. It’s not the crispy snack I was expecting; more of a biscuit. Kind of. The bite is too dull and I like my snacks to be crisp and crunchy. 

It’s at times like these that I miss the reluctant taste testers because we all had different likes and dislikes.  Don’t pay any attention to what textures I enjoy - or don’t.

I found several Howdah crispy snacks at a great big Sainsburys opposite the court where I was doing jury service.

Co-op Naturaplan Mini Bretzel

You might think there’s nothing very exciting about a mini pretzel. Perhaps not. But a small pretzel, just exactly the right size? With the right crunch and exactly the right amount of salt? You really can’t go wrong.

What more can I say? The thing is, it’s a whole lot more difficult to write at length about a crispy snack you liked and enjoyed than about one you didn’t like. Naturally if you really disliked whatever it was, there’s always lots to say. So just imagine me sitting on the sofa idly watching a 2009 stage of the Tour de France on Swiss TV with the sound turned off (don’t ask), snacking my way through half a packet of these surprisingly morish little pretzels.

Zweifel Kezz Kessel-Chips Salt

Wow! What an amazing crisp this is.

Extra crunchy (as advertised on the packet), and with a very nice simple salty taste. I have seen ads on Swiss TV telling me this crisp merits 11/10 or even 12/10 on a scale of 1-10 (probably). The Chef, who has paid more attention than I have, is unable to tell me whether this score relates to taste or crunchiness, or both. It doesn’t matter. Searching for the ad online gave 4 results for Zweifel crisps followed by dozens of results showing Prince William enjoying a pint of cider and a plate of chips in his local pub. That’s French fries for North American readers but obviously in Norfolk where the Cambridges live they definitely call them chips. Possibly Prince William was demonstrating that it’s possible to visit a post-lockdown pub without getting completely smashed and beating up a police officer. But it’s a shame William is unlikely to taste this crisp any time soon. Maybe the next time he goes skiing though.

Kessel-chips are kettle cooked crisps which is usually crisp-speak for cooked in small batches, and often means a good crunch. In this case you get a very good crunch. Thicker cut than the regular Zweifel crisps and with the skin left on (de façon rustique), sans lactose, sans gluten and suitable for vegans. 

I knew this crisp would work well with a dip and we were lucky enough to find a very acceptable garlic and herb dip at a large branch of the Co-op. Yum yum. But honestly? This crisp is fab on its own. It’s a really authentic and delicious crisp. Definitely yum yum: very nice indeed.

And the Chef has already bought another packet.

Ten Acre Hand Cooked Crisps The Amazing Adventures of Salt and Vinegar

And another 40g bag of crisps found at the local bakery. Ten Acre give their flavours interesting names so this isn't merely a bag of salt & vinegar crisps. No. It's a bag of "The Amazing Adventures of Salt and Vinegar". Which you must admit makes a change from the norm.

I tried these hand cooked crisps on the reluctant taste testers at work and we rather enjoyed them.

It's light, delicate version of salt & vinegar with not too harsh a taste. We liked these.

Kettle Chips Sea Salt with a Hint of Rosemary

There are only four ingredients in these crisps. Which makes a change in these days of ultra complicated flavours. Potatoes, sunflower oil, sea salt and rosemary extract. And that's it. Suitable for vegetarians and vegans (again!).

 These are pale golden crisps. I'd say they look as though they are cooked in small batches (as it says on the packet) in really hot oil. And so you get a lot of wonderful bubbles in the crisp.

And they seem rather old fashioned. The crisps feel quite oily when you pull them out of the bag (just like crisps when I was young) and there isn't a vast amount of flavour dust. Which is great.

I think I have said quite often that although I'm happy to try interesting new flavours of crisp - and indeed, I frequently do -  in the end I often (not always) prefer a simple flavour. And this is a very simple flavour. It's a lovely gentle salted crisp with (as advertised) a hint of rosemary.

The Chef and I liked them a lot.

The packaging is nice and simple too.

Pret a Manger Kale Crisps

Noble friend at work bought a healthy half size sandwich (you only get one) and a packet of Kale crisps from Pret. The lunchtime sandwich looked healthy but very tasty; and the crisps?

I'm not sure Kale crisps were created with me in mind. And noble friend wasn't that impressed either.

I wrote about M&S Kale crisps some time back. I wasn't that impressed. And I really wasn't that complimentary. Sorry M&S. And very sorry Pret but I wasn't mad keen on your effort either.

We tried them out on the reluctant taste testers at work and mostly they felt the same as we did.

The thing is that these vegetarian and vegan (my second packet of vegan crisps in a week!) taste a little bit yummy at first bite. I'm guessing it's the onions. But then you get get a crispy crunchy (good crunch by the way) taste of cabbage stalk. And then there are loads of little bits of cabbagey stuff left behind in your mouth.

I'm sorry. I know these are a healthy option crisp with healthy flax seeds and buckwheat and sunflower seeds. And no sugar. Not to mention kale is the healthiest food in the universe. And they come in a tiny 30g bag which can only be a good thing. And the picture on the bag is really handsome. But I can't bring myself to like them.