Maybe it’s the sneaker influence, but recently it feels like every snack company has decided to go wild with special edition flavors. It seems like every month Oreo drops a new, head-scratching flavor (like pumpkin spice). Pringles seems to only be releasing ridiculously bizarre flavor combinations these days, including a whole Thanksgiving dinner for some reason. Add Mountain Dew and all of its new creations (like its Flamin’ Hot) and you have quite a few brands getting really wacky with it lately.
Don’t forget Doritos. If you pay any attention to the snack food world, you may have noticed Doritos leading the charge in absolute strangeness. Don’t believe us? Take a look at their newest creations: Classic Ketchup and Spicy Mustard. Why the mad chip scientists at Doritos thought this was something the world needed, we have no idea. We get that the flavors work well in potato chip form (just ask Canadians about their love for Ketchup chips), but with corn chips? We’re not so sure. Have you ever seasoned your corn with mustard?
Since you’re surely wondering, these two limited-edition flavors were reportedly created to pay homage to that most important of summer activities: grilling. And you can’t grill burgers and hot dogs without mustard and ketchup, right? So why wouldn’t you make these two condiment flavors in corn chip form? Let’s see how it plays out!
The Story:
While this is an all-new flavor for Americans, Doritos Classic Ketchup is a take on the ketchup flavor already available in Canada (developing theory: Canadians love ketchup). It’s tangy, sweet, and just as strange as it sounds. Doritos Spicy Mustard is a little different. It doesn’t taste like yellow mustard. It was actually inspired by Chinese hot mustard. It’s tangy, sweet, and surprisingly spicy. Sadly, if you want to try these strange flavors, you can’t buy them in stores. These limited-edition condiment flavors are only available on Snacks.com for $5.59 for a 9.25-ounce bag.
Tasting Notes:
Classic Ketchup
This chip has sort of an acidic tomato smell. It really does smell like it was doused in ketchup. I guess that’s a good sign of things to come, right? The flavor is a little tricky to decipher. It starts off almost like a barbecue chip, but it’s much sweeter. It has a nice slight tang that hits the back of your palate and leaves you wanting more, even if you’re not sure why. Yes, it really does taste like ketchup. But is that a flavor I’d actually ever buy? Likely not.
Spicy Mustard
Here’s where things got a bit wild: Doritos Spicy Mustard straight-up smelled like jalapenos. I don’t know if there are any jalapenos in the recipe, but that doesn’t really matter to my nose. It smells spicy. Popping a chip into my mouth only added to my assumptions. While I first thought it tasted like Grey Poupon, I can absolutely see that it’s supposed to taste like the spicy mustard you throw in with your Chinese food takeout. It’s surprisingly spicy and has a clear mustard flavor. Luckily, the heat dissipates quickly. Overall though, I’d never buy these Doritos. They taste the way they’re supposed to, but it’s not a flavor I’d ever want to eat in Doritos form. Give me classic Nacho Cheese any day.
Bottom Line:
These two Dorito flavors are just silly. It makes me wonder if they planned to release them on April Fool’s Day because neither is worth buying. They taste like they are supposed to, but neither is a flavor I crave in Dorito form. Buy them to say you did and make your friends try them or just buy a party-size bag of Cool Ranch instead. You’ll probably be happier.
Ranking:
3/10 – They are edible, they taste like mustard and ketchup, but that’s the problem. These aren’t flavors anyone would enjoy coating a Dorito. Only buy these to prank your friends.