What are Tostitos Habanero?
Following up on last year’s super delicious Hint of Spicy Queso and the just-okay Hint of Guacamole, the latest crispy circle from Tostitos drops the “Hint” and brings the heat with habanero-flavored bite-size rounds.
How are they?
Continuing along the path of Spicy Queso’s cheesy footsteps, these Habanero rounds are excellent. The immediate comparison that jumped at me is Salsa Verde Doritos. They have the same authentic and richly deep pepper taste as that Doritos variety, but with a sweeter and more tomato-y flavor that gives them their own unique presence in the Frito-Lay spicy chip hierarchy. It’s that extra layer of acidity, like the difference between white rice and orange Mexican rice, that really makes the flavor stand out.
Anything else you need to know?
For a chip claiming to be habanero-flavored, they aren’t nearly as hot as I was expecting, but that doesn’t take away from how delicious they are. Their heat is a far cry from the brand’s Flamin’ Hot staple, but I find it even more impressive that they taste great and peppery in a way that isn’t just heat.
Conclusion:
If you’re looking to set your mouth on fire in the way eating a raw habanero would, this may let you down, but I’m hooked. I’ll take flavor over fire any day and these still have just enough heat to make my tongue tingle with an authentic peppery sweetness that makes them undeniable.
Purchased Price: $3.50 (on sale)
Size: 11 oz bag
Purchased at: Target
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (20 chips/28 grams) 150 calories, 8 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar, 2 grams of protein.
I’d really appreciate some creative flavours in the chip realm. It’s all about spice anymore…at least it seems to be to me.
Ah, darn, not Habanero heat? But, good habanero flavor (yes, kids, the habanero pepper has a distinct flavor), I’m all in for trying them out.
I still miss the hint of Pepper Jack ones…
I wish frito lay would bring back assume if the other habanero products… Cheetos, doritos. The honey habanero are amazing.
I probably have a pretty weak tongue but thought these had a decent amount of heat, even after just a few chips (I can feel it in my cheeks and the back of my throat, and now my nose; I had this review open when I opened the bag). I’m sure it’s not full habanero or Flamin’ Hot, but (based on my expectations, in general as well as from Hint of Queso and this review), this felt like more than a “hint” of Habanero heat.
Now if they could bring back the Habanero Doritos along with their spice level, or maybe even add some heat!
stupid weak heat… el yucateo hot sauce is pretty strong im comparison.. dont get y theses brsnds r lazy and not make them hot were itd burning ur mouth of. habanros r hot and if ur not used to it ul get a good expereince evrytime… they wont last much in the house here
Man, I don’t know what chips you guys are tasted, the bag that I got was extremely hot and it will keep your mouth burning for awhile. My forehead back of my neck has been sweating for well over five minutes. The heat stays around in your mouth for awhile. You eat one chip and you’re like oh that’s pretty good, you eat the second one and you’re going, yeah I could start feeling the heat and by the third one you’re sweating, you’re like oh I made a mistake, but you continue to eat the chips because they are good they will pack a punch. I recommend not eating them during the night they gave me massive heartburn. I pretty much stayed up all night playing video games could not sleep. Some of you might think I’m a total whuss for that might be just coming to old age and can’t handle the spicy foods anymore. Some good things might just have to come to an end for me.
I wish they were larger, but the heat was there as well as the flavor. I liked them pretty well.
Not hot enough to be advertised as habanero. Sure, the flavor is tasty, but the advertisements let me down. I was surely disappointed.
For those looking for a spicy corn chips, advertised accordingly (Which, by advertisements, I refer to the label on the bag, then the misleading commercials.), I recommend “Paqui”, ghost pepper flavored. Spicy enough that you want to put them down, but delicious enough for you to pick them right back up.