Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor -- almost Doritos?
Written: Aug 09 '03 (Updated Aug 10 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: crunchy, ok flavor, 5g net carbs, protein content
Cons: very pricey, MSG, soy aftertaste?
The Bottom Line: Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor are a nice snack option for low carb dieters.
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| bops_mom's Full Review: Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese |
Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips, Nacho Cheese Flavor - the Low Carb Dieters answer to Doritos?
Unfortunately for me, chips are one snack item that I really enjoy eating, Nacho Cheese Flavor Doritos being my all time favorite. They're just so yummy! They've got the salty snack thing going on along with the satisfying crunch. It's all too easy to eat too many and lets face it, since they aren't a healthy snack choice more than a couple is 'too many' for most of us.
Along with my fondness for Doritos Nacho Chips and the fact that I'm working on keeping my carbohydrate intake at a certain (rather low) level I was highly interested in trying Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor.
Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips are also available in three other flavors: Sour Cream & Onion, BBQ and Original.
Finding them, Buying them.....
Before trying them, I had to find them. I knew they were available for purchase some online buy both the individual bag and the 12 bag box. I'd seen them at thebetterhealthstore.com, atkins.com, and a few other online stores; I just hadn't gotten around to placing an order. So, when I saw Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor in my local grocery store (Albertons) I quickly snatched up a bag to try. I wanted to buy more bags that first time, but one: I wasn't sure if I'd really enjoy the Atkins Crunchers and two: the price for the small 1 oz. bag was enough to make me choke.
Those who have been buying Atkins products will probably not be shocked to learn the price of Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor. A 1 oz. / 28 g., single serving size bag will cost anywhere from $1.20 to nearly $2. A box of 12 one oz. bags will cost around $20; thebetterhealthstore.com sells a box of 6 for $8.95, which is better, but still, that ain't cheap. That ain't even reasonable. Think about how much you'd pay for Doritos. A bag of 12 individual sized bags costs me less than $4 and a 12-16 oz. bag costs $2. When it's put like that..... Yikes. Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips are not cheap!
The Skinny on the Carb Info
This food item is intended for use by those who are living a low carbohydrate lifestyle. Although they are Atkins Brand, they are not intended to be eaten by those who are currently on the Induction Phase of the Atkins Diet. They are for those who are past that phase and are continuing to live a low carb lifestyle.
The net carb count in a 1 ounce bag of Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor is 5g. The actual number of Carbohydrates in the bag is 8g. However, Atkins has you subtract the Fiber (3g) from the total carb count (8g) for the net carb count (5g). The reasoning behind this is that not all carbohydrates cause blood sugar levels to react the same way. Note that should you choose to try one of the other three flavors the net carb count may be 4g.
My Take on Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor
In a way I had some high hopes and at the same time I thought they could taste really terrible. I opened up my first bag and the lovely scent of Nacho Cheese wafted up to my nose. Sure enough, these smell like Nacho Cheese. I looked inside the bag to find a bunch of bubbly looking circles. They are Snack Chips, not Chips in the traditional sense in my opinion. More like a snack crisp if I had to call it something since they aren't quite a chip and aren't quite a cracker.
Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor pack a very satisfying crunch! They remind me a great deal of Bugles Nacho Flavor (a crispy corn snack from General Mills) as far as the texture and flavor except that the Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor has a slight soy aftertaste to it. I know the aftertaste is soy as I've had soy nuts and sure enough - this is it. Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor can turn into a thick paste in your mouth if you eat a few at a time, so they're definitely better one at a time. That's just as well for at this price the longer the tiny bag can last the better!
Besides how these are low carb, Nacho Cheese Flavor and crunchy, I really like how they aren't high in fat and offer plenty of soy protein. They're a great source of protein - 13 g is not something you'd get from any other snack chip that's for sure! The flavor of Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor is good. The crunch is fabulous, the salty snack factor is great. The fact that they are low carb is a huge deal for those living a Low Carb Lifestyle. A bag won't fill you up, but then again, they aren't supposed to.
Final Thoughts and Recommendation
The average person (someone who isn't on a low carb diet) who may be looking for something that is very similar to Doritos Nacho Cheese Flavor Chips, I feel, will be disappointed in Atkins Crunchers. However, for Low Carb Dieters Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor make a nice addition to the somewhat small list of low carb snack options. I'd give Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor 3.5 stars as they contain MSG and there is a soy aftertaste. I'm rounding up to 4 stars as they're low carb and I feel that since soy protein is the main ingredient, the aftertaste is a bit of a given.
I don't love these snack chips, but they are ok. I hate the price but know as long as I'm living a low carb way of life I'll keep a few bags on hand for times when my Doritos craving may pop up - I know Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor will keep me away from my son's Doritos. Perhaps that alone makes Atkins Crunchers worth the outrageous price? Or maybe not.....
Thanks for reading!
~ Melissa :o)
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For those who may want to view all Nutritional Information given on the bag of this product, here it is. Everyone else - feel free to skip this part.
From the bag of Atkins Crunchers Snack Chips - Nacho Cheese Flavor:
Calories 100
Calories from Fat: 25
Total Fat: 3 g
Saturated Fat: 0 g
Total Carbohydrate: 8 g
- Dietary Fiber: 3 g
- Sugars: 1 g
Protein: 13 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 400 mg
Potassium: 460 mg
Vitamin A: 0% DV
Calcium: 8% DV
Vitamin C: 4% DV
Iron: 10% DV
Percentage Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calories a day diet
Ingredients: Soy Protein Concentrate, Tapioca Starch, Sunflower Oil, Nacho Seasoning (Cheddar Cheese Powder [(Milk, Salt, Cheese Cultures, Enzymes) Whey, Buttermilk, Maltodextrin, Salt, Disodium Phosphate], Whey Powder, Buttermilk Powder, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Romano and Parmesan Cheese Powders (Partially Skin Milk, Culture, Salt, Enzymes, Disodium Phosphate), Tomato Powder, Monosodium Glutamate, Natural and Artificial Flowers, Onion Powder, Lactic Acid, Garlic Powder, Citric Acid, FD&C Yellow #5 Lake, FD&C Yellow #6 Lake, Spice and not more than 2% Vegetable Oil and Silicon Dioxide added as Processing Aids) Salt.
1-800-6ATKINS
www.atkinscenter.com
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Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID: bops_mom
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Member: Melissa S.
Location: California
Reviews written: 605
Trusted by: 723 members
About Me: Rest in peace, feel no more pain dear Barb (ifif1938). You are missed!
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