Trader Joe's Ghost Pepper Potato Chips

Due to the ongoing proliferation of new stuff from Trader Joe's, we are forced to bump our regularly scheduled programming and continue New and Seasonal Products Week for at least three more days--and maybe even more after that, depending on what else comes out. Now on Day 8. 


Brand-new TJ's product; see the company's description of it here.

This is one that I wanted to try the instant I first saw somebody from LA tweeting a photo of it. They always get the good stuff first! I had to wait several more days before my store in North Carolina had it available.

It was worth the wait. These are wonderfully tasty chips. A bit on the oily and salty side, but man, the flavor! It's powerful and peppery, but not knock-your-socks-off. And it's not just heat, but a blend of several different peppers. There's some inconsistency, so that one chip will be mild, and another will smack your eyes wide open--but that's OK. In fact, it seemed kind of like part of the adventure.

If you're having a bland sandwich for lunch, I think these would be just the thing to have on the side to prevent terminal food boredom.

A TJ's employee told me that these were a seasonal item, available for only a short time, despite having none of the obvious hallmarks of the rest of the autumn/Halloween lineup. Get 'em while you can.

Will I buy it again? 

Definitely.


Nina's View

Okay, first off, the whole notion that you'll be doing something death-defying in consuming these chips—just no. The amount of actual 50-kajillion-Scoville ghost pepper action in these babies is pretty minuscule. You're going to get a little bit of heat going, but it's not going to raise your cranial lid.

My general objection to the whole ghost pepper hype is that ghost peppers pack huge firepower, but not so much flavor. Habeñeros at least have a nice fruitiness to them. TJ's has solved this problem by blending them with other types of chili and black pepper. But Bob is right, the result is nicely flavorful, almost a little smoky, with a nice slightly bitter edge.

They are too oily, but I like the lattice texture and the extra fattiness helps the pepper float out into your mouth in a nicely emollient fashion. These are eminently edible. I will not be buying them because I have no self-discipline and the bag is *really* large.