Mexican Street Corn Cheetos - 7-Eleven

Mexican Street Corn Cheetos - 7-Eleven

When I heard Cheetos was coming out with this particular flavor, I was pretty excited, but still cautious. If you've been reading the blog for a while, you might remember that flavored Cheetos don't have the best track record. To be fair, most of the Cheeto flavors I have tried came from overseas, more specifically, Korea, and every flavor has been far sweeter than I prefer. (It's a toss-up between a savory snack food seasonings and a sugary cereal. I was not a fan.)  

Black Bean Paste, Honey Cheese, Smoky BBQ and White Corn Soup, all flavors I was happy to try once, but never wanted to buy again. And they all came in full-size bags. So given the option this time around to choose a snacking size or a full size, I opted for the small single serving bag before committing to anything larger. 

I used to make elotes fairly often, and this is how I made mine: I take the cooked corn cob (preferably grilled), cover it in layer of melted butter, then a layer of mayo mixed with lime juice and Tajin, and then roll the whole thing in Cotija cheese and top with more Tajin or a squeeze of more lime juice. It's messy, but so incredibly delicious. You get the sweet corn, rich butter, bright citrus, and salty, tangy, cheese, all with a bit of heat. 

So, how will that translate into Cheeto-form?  

When opened, the bag smells kind of like Cool Ranch Doritos with a hint of lime. Other than the lime this isn't reminiscent of street corn, but it is appealing. 

The Cheetos themselves kind of look like they're Cool Ranch too. The corn puffs are yellowish, like normal, with flecks of green, red, and brown seasonings. I grabbed a few and popped them into my mouth and... 

I should have bought the big bag. 

These don't taste like elotes, but given the layered and textural differences between a crunchy snack and the real thing, I think that would have been impossible, but they are addicting and absolutely delicious. I can taste a tangy lime flavoring for sure, that's in the fore-front, with a savory salty cheesiness that is kind of a mixture between Feta and the shelf-stable shakers of Kraft Parmesan, along with some garlic and sour cream. It's kind of like Cool Ranch Doritos, sour cream and onion chips, and lime flavored Tostito's had a corn-based snackfood baby. I am 100% into it and will have no trouble at all finishing this bag. 

Are they spicy? Not really. If you eat a lot of them in a row they have a build up, but I would say it's more of a zesty-build up than a heat-based one. If you're totally against any hint of flavor and spicy at all, they might be too much for you, but if you like Tajin, you'll like these. (Although they're weaker than straight-up Tajin.)

I love these.. They are bright, tangy, cheesy, and just all around amazing. The only thing that would make them even more addicting would be adding some Flaming Hot Cheetos to create a mix, giving these a spicy kick the current version is lacking, but I love them just as they are. Fingers crossed that these stick around!

Fans of these would also like: Korean Cheeto Flavors: Black Bean Paste, Honey Cheese, Smoky BBQ and White Corn Soup

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