For years, without ever trying it, I dismissed the cheddar and caramel popcorn mix.
I couldn’t wrap my head around how the two could work together. But then I tried it and my preconceived notions got shown the door. It was at this point I had an existential crisis and wondered what other combinations I thought don’t work well, but actually do.
Oil and water? Nope, got the burns to show they don’t work together.
Toothpaste and orange juice? Nope, I’ve got the worn down enamel to prove they’re not a good duo.
The sweet and savory combo works so well that I thought the Cheez-It Duoz Caramel Popcorn & Cheddar would get some serious kudos from me, but it won’t.
At a quick glance, the popcorn to cracker ratio appears to lean more towards the Cheez-Its. But as I ate my way through the box, one piece of each at the same time, it turns out there’s an almost even balance of the two. Of course, your box may vary.
With the caramel and cheddar popcorn mixes I’ve had, there’s usually been a balance of flavors. But that’s not the case with this.
The caramel popcorn tastes fine on its own, it’s crunchy, buttery, and sweet. But its flavor gets pushed out of the way by the tang and potency of the cheddar seasoning, making it much more savory than sweet. Also, it tastes as if some of the cheesiness attaches to the popcorn, dampen their sweetness. There were delightful moments of flavor equilibrium, but it happened when the popcorn was heavily coated with caramel and the Cheez-It wasn’t seasoned very well.
Overall, the Cheez-It Duoz Caramel Popcorn & Cheddar is okay, but its sweet and salty fusion isn’t good enough to make it a hard-to-put-down snack. I’d rather get a bag of cheddar and caramel popcorn.
DISCLOSURE: I received a free sample in order to review it. Receiving it for free did not influence my review.
Purchased Price: FREE
Size: 8.7 oz. box
Purchased at: Received for free
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: (1/2 cup) 130 calories, 6 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 2 grams of polyunsaturated fat, 1.5 grams of monounsaturated fat, less than 1 gram of 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 200 milligrams of sodium, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 0 grams of fiber, 5 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein.
Why couldn’t cheez it coat some of those crackers into caramel? Or even made caramel flavored crackers.
Cheez it Carmel popcorn duo Looooove this. Please continue making this.