Bakauke is rapidly becoming my favorite band for sembei. They have the most immensely bold and flavorful flavors on a consistent basis and that's pretty much what I want in a salted snack food. I have long been told that Japanese people prefer weak or subtle flavors, but I wonder if the emergence of these types of flavors on a more regular basis means that tastes are changing, or if the alcohol that people tend to drink with very spicy snacks is getting weaker and they want to offset the loss of quality of experience.
I found these alongside the previously reviewed sea salt wasabi sembei at Okashi no Machioka. They were also for about 180 yen ($1.97) for a bag of 9 2-packs of crackers. Each serving of two sembei is 40.5 calories. I'm always impressed by the way they offer calorie information out to a decimal place.
As soon as I tore open a packet, I could smell the sweet corn seasoning. The cracker is generously coated with what must be tiny granules of miniature sweet corn cobs. These have all of the flavor of the best corn without any of the part where you have to actually eat the corn and get its fibery bits caught in your teeth. The flavor profile has added depth because of the addition of various flavor powders including soy sauce.
I'm pretty sure that this sembei is yet another step in the master plan for world domination by corn. It's irresistibly good, and I recommend it to any lovers of corn, and don't we all love corn?
Hello I find your blog very very nice:)
ReplyDeleteif you give me permission I publish to my favorites?
Let me know
kisses Emi san
http://uncuoregiapponese.blogspot.com/
I'm heading to Little Tokyo this weekend here in Los Angeles and I hope I find these snacks at the supermarket there!
ReplyDeleteI just wanted mention how much I enjoy reading your reviews. I only wish that I could follow up with sampling of my own (and there have been a few things that you've reviewed that I've found in the States), but for now I'm eating vicariously. Thanks for a really fun blog.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, if the rulers of the world will keep me in yummy corn snacks, maybe world domination won't be such a bad thing, after all :o)
It'd be great is more of these "corn-flavored" items will make an appearance in the US. But I highly doubt it...I guess it's still about about ranch, sour cream & onion, and BBQ flavors. But it seems like the niche snack brands are slowly starting to carve out their space on the store shelves, which is a great thing in my book! I'm not sure how aware you are of the whole "foodie" movement going on here, but it seems that a lot of Americans are going the direction of becoming self-professed gastronomes! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks to all of your for commenting! I really appreciate it!
ReplyDeleteEmanuela: You have my permission. The only thing I ask is that you link back to the original article on this site when you publish your favorites.
Dani: Good luck! I have been trying to find these again in my area and they appear to be sold out! I wanted to send a package to my friend in San Jose, but they must be really popular so I can't find another one!
Kathy: Thank you so much for your kind words. It really means a lot to me and keeps me going! Vicarious eating is sometimes the best - it's the lowest in calories. ;-)
C: I miss the "pedestrian" charm of American barbeque snacks. I know they're really not great, but I have a nostalgic sense about that flavor (and haven't had it for ages). I wish we'd get Pop chips over here. My husband brought me back a huge bag of barbeque flavor ones and I loved them!
I know a little about the gourmet movement via the "Chow" web site, but I can't claim to know much. ;-)