Trader Joe’s Just Launched My New Favorite Chip-Like Snack

In an effort to keep up with Trader Joe’s ever-changing snack landscape (for the sake of investigative journalism), I ran to the closest location after we caught wind of their latest release: Corn, Pea, Bean & Quinoa Crisps. (That really rolls off the tongue, right?)

Considering the fact that before today my favorite hexagonal-shaped treat was Post’s Honey-Comb cereal, please take the following information with 7 percent of your daily grain of salt intake. This light and airy snack reminded me (in the best way) of Popcorners, another very ingestible dip vehicle that lacks the grease-factor of a regular corn or potato chip.

The cashier who facilitated my purchase offered her opinion on these as if she KNEW I was traipsing back to work to write about them on the spot. “These are SO good. We all got to try them this morning. I thought they were going to be gross. But they are not!”

I concur. Do not be deterred by the bluntly descriptive list of ingredients that also doubles as the name of this snack. The back of the bag does a little more poetic justice to its contents, saying, “In what could be called a stroke of leguminous luck, we’ve developed Trader Joe’s Corn, Pea, Bean, & Quinoa Crisps. These are hexagonal corn-based puffs, accented with yellow & green split peas, black beans, and white quinoa. They’re spiked with a bit of salt & pepper making them delicious straight from the bag, and delightful in dips and salsas.”

While I only had them plain, I imagine they would be delicious dipped in hummus or, even more excitingly, TJ’s jalapeño artichoke dip (although, I could also eat that stuff just with a spoon). These are far zestier than their name gives them credit for — and would be made even zestier if they came in a Hint of Lime flavor. Hint, hint, Trader Joe’s! Although I guess it’s only a matter of time before TJ’s gives these crisps at least five different flavor punches.

Perhaps most satisfying is the degree to which these crisps stand up to the standard risks that plague bagged chips. Almost every single honeycomb-shaped cracker in the bag remained intact. Additionally, the bag is more than 3/4 full of said crisps and not a bag of air like other big-box brands are (cough, cough, chip companies).

Have you tried these? What’d you think?