Everyone’s favorite ridged chip, Ruffles, is going out on a ridge – er – limb and bringing us a new take on the ribbed potato snack. Debuting in Double Cheddar and Smoky BBQ flavors, Ruffles Ridge Twists attempt to put a spin on the corrugated classic.
From their appearance on the package, these looked to me like braided pretzels, but in reality, they’re more like fusilli pasta or Fritos Twists. This seems like a silly point to make because the shapes are very similar, and I don’t think Frito-Lay was out to trick me. I just didn’t anticipate that these were going to be more of an extruded puff than a potato chip. Please don’t ask me how I expected them to braid potatoes.
Double Cheddar
Opening the bag of Double Cheddar Twists sends up a powerful aroma of cheddar popcorn which is very enticing even if it does look like someone has poured a batch of Cheetos Mac ‘N Cheese into my chip bag. The spirals are generously coated in bright orange powder that really delivers a buttery, cheesy taste.
What doesn’t deliver is the twist itself. It’s crunchy, but not in the same satisfying way that a chip is, and it doesn’t have the right potato flavor. Something is off, and a glance at the ingredients shows the first one to be dried potatoes. This makes sense when you consider the product is more of a puff, but because they’re advertised as “featuring the same iconic Ruffles ridges that fans know and love,” I was hoping for the base to be closer to what I know and love. I wouldn’t be mad if I went to some gathering and grabbed a handful of these to put on my plate next to a sandwich, but they aren’t a snack I would buy for myself and eat straight out of the bag. The cheddar part is on point, but after only a couple of them, I find myself not wanting to eat any more, and this very rarely happens to me with salty snacks.
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (29 pieces) 140 calories, 8 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 17 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 1 gram of total sugars, and 1 gram of protein.
Smoky BBQ
The scent from the Smoky BBQ bag doesn’t draw me in quite as much. I found it slightly off-putting at first, but after tasting, it’s a pretty solid barbecue chip flavor. As advertised, it’s smoky and a little sweet with some tomato and vinegar notes. Some of the twists have a lot of seasoning, but others have only a dusting which leaves too much room for the dried potato taste and texture to take center stage. These remind me of the bags of TGI Fridays snacks with flavors and shapes that mimic items on an appetizer menu. They’re novel, and it’s my duty to try every form of processed potato available, but at the end of the day, I wish I’d also bought a bag of actual chips.
Rating: 5 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (28 pieces) 140 calories, 8 grams of total fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 180 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of total carbohydrates, 0 grams of dietary fiber, 2 grams of total sugar including 1 gram of added sugars, and less than 1 gram of protein.
Even though these have grooves good for collecting flavor powder, they lack the same ridges that really define Ruffles and might’ve fared better with me if I never associated them with Ruffles to begin with. I can see where some people might enjoy them more than I did, but if you have four dollars and want to take a chance on something new in the chip aisle, I’d go with Lay’s Kettle Cooked Fritos Chili Cheese Chips.
Purchased Price: $3.99 each
Size: 5.5 oz bags
Purchased at: Mariano’s
The bbq seasoning was somehow too sweet & too smoky for me. The texture reminded me of puffed baby snacks, but not in a good way (and this is coming from someone who buys baby cheese puffs for herself lol)
I can definitely see that texture comparison!
There good but want you try a loaded bacon&cheddar
On an overall scale of 1 to 10, I would give Ruffles Twists a 6, and that’s largely for the seasoning flavors because they are the most appealing elements. The potato flavor is virtually nondescript, it barely even tastes like potatoes and is bland bordering on unappealing. And just as irritating…the product is overpriced! If you want people to pay the price of a small MEAL for a snack, it better be hella lit! This simply is not the One.
I like the cheesy type. Good and crunchy and cheesy, but different than Cheetos. I’ll buy them again.
The ruffles ridge twists smokey bbq has a weird flavor to them. I can’t figure out what it’s from, the powder the twist but it doesn’t taste good and in not going to finish the bag. I’m sorry, but the new smokey bbq ridge twists taste NASTY.
they taste like they should be gluten free
My feelings are that they consolidate the flavor more effective. You could raise price because of how much they are, 1. Snack ability 2. Flavor is strong. 3. Ruffles quality orientation. 4. If you make spaghetti (noodle)
Vs rotini you will see a huge difference in how the taste sticks to the desired intention. They are filling, so it’s a great app on counter before a meal.