Why “Burnt” Snacks Are About to Show Up on Grocery Shelves

It started with nacho-cheese-flavored tortilla chips. Then there was sour cream and onion-, ranch-, and barbecue-flavored snacks. And in the last decade there’s been a surge of creative flavors like Korean barbecue, flaming hot, dill pickle, and truffle salt as companies jostle for our attention in the crowded snack aisle of grocery stores. 

The latest, and arguably my favorite, trend takes a step back from the maximalist flavor blasting approach and relies instead on an old French baker’s secret: for the best flavor, simply bake until the product is “bien cuit” or extra-toasty.  

The basic premise of extra toasty snacks relies on the caramelization of sugars in the ingredients being cooked. Just like the cookie in the corner of your cookie sheet that gets a little browner than the rest or the extra-savory dark potato chip at the bottom of the bag, extra toasty foods taste more intense than their paler counterparts. 

It’s quite simple for food companies to achieve this next-level flavor: they cook their products a little longer to achieve a more baked/fried/roasted snack. Crackers, potato chips, pretzels, nuts, and even peanut butter are popping up advertising “extra toasty,” “extra dark,” “dark roast,” and “burnt” on labels, and consumers are eating it up, literally. 

Why are food companies turning up the oven? “With a more diverse demographic and a rise in interest in chefs and cooking processes, bitter, char, and caramelized are all flavors people are more comfortable with now,” says food trend expert Kara Nielsen. 

While consumers love to try bold, new flavors, they are also more likely to spend money on something familiar according to flavor forecasters at Mintel, a food industry trend forecaster. Nearly everyone has found the dark potato chip, singed cracker, or slightly scorched peanut in the bag, so it’s a familiar flavor that many snack aficionados seek out. 

The intensity of darker roasted snacks also goes hand-in-hand with the snack board craze, says Nielsen. “These snacks are a little more sophisticated than your average cheese cracker or pretzel. That makes them suitable for putting on a nice cheese or charcuterie board; they’re just a little more grown up.” The intensity of flavor also means you’re more likely to indulge in just a few rather than munch the whole bag. Indulgence in moderation #FTW!

Are extra toasty snacks going to bump our good old sour cream and onion chips off the shelves anytime soon? Probably not. Extra dark foods have always been a subjective thing, love them or hate them. Customer reviews of the extra-toasty crackers on the Cheez-Its website range from “Extra Toasty? More Like Extra Burnt” to “I have never eaten a better thing in my life.” 

It’s up to you to see which side of the debate you are on. While you’re at it, here are three new extra-toasty snacks to get your explorations started.