Mexican Street Corn Take 2 - Aldi Edition

Mexican Street Corn Flavored Corn Chips - Aldi

What a week, and it's only Monday. My bathroom gremlins are getting spayed/neutered today, one step closer to finding forever homes, and my dog, Pepper, had to go to the emergency vet because he somehow damaged his junk. That's right, his junk. I was making panicked emergency vet calls to talk about my dogs genitals to not one, not two, but four different animal hospitals. Thankfully the last one had an availability and we were able to be seen. 

His bits are now on the mend. How did it happen? Absolutely no idea. Best guess the vet had is he lifted his leg to pee on something during our current heatwave and somehow burned himself. Which I don't entirely buy because I have no idea what in my grassy backyard could have ever gotten that hot or only harmed him in such a specific place, but it's not like Pepper can tell us what he did to himself, so it shall remain a mystery. Thankfully he is okay now. If there was ever a time to binge on some junk-food, it's now.

I picked these up at Aldi and, after having such a positive experience with the Mexican Street Corn Cheetos, I was really excited to give them a try. When I posted these on Instagram, a friend of mine, Hangry Wife Life, said they look like a snacking item at Trader Joes. Which given the history of suppliers between Trader Joe's and Aldi, would make sense.

As far as a no-frills house-brand is concerned, the packaging is pretty nice. We have close-up detailed images of the product, a window to see the actual chips inside, and colors/imagery that reminds me of every small mom-and-pop Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. 

When opened, the chips inside smell salty, and corny, but with a hit of tangy citrus and some cheesiness. A lot like the Cheeto-version, but with a corn-ship twist.   

Oo! Okay. Right off the bat, I like these. I like these a LOT. They have the spicy kick the Cheeto version lacked, and a similar flavor profile. I can taste a creaminess, similar to the dry sour cream powder used on chips and other snack foods, plenty of corn-y goodness from the corn chip base as well as the added buttered corn seasoning, and a hint of citrus with a healthy amount of dry pepper-heat. Again, kind of like Cool Ranch Doritos, but spicier, and cornier. It doesn't taste exactly like elotes, but it's close enough that I can tell what it's going for. 

If you take your time to savor the seasoning on the outside of the chip, you get more of the sweet buttered corn flavoring, and some added smokiness. 

Like the Cheetos, these are really addicting, BUT there is a hiccup. Not only does the heat build up as you snack, but the salt does as well. After some (possibly overzealous) snacking, the sides of my tongue started to burn from saltiness more-so than spiciness. Before I knew it, I had decimated my entire 32oz. water bottle. For me, this wasn't a deal breaker and pretty much expected. Corn chips, like instant ramen, are always extra salty, which is why I think it's sold in such small bags. To limit us from salt-curing ourselves from the inside out. As long as you're munching in moderation it shouldn't be an issue, but anything more than a handful left me feeling like I drank ocean-water. 

Aldi seems to have a quality control issue in regards to salt, so this could be on a bag-to-bag basis and not an overall issue with the flavor as a whole. I buy bags of tortilla chips from Aldi all the time, and 9 times out of 10 they're awesome, but on a not-so-rare occasion I'll get bags of tortilla chips absolutely covered in fine salt. They're extra salty, not to the point of being inedible or making me want to return them, but it's a very notable. This could be the case here. That I just ended up with an extra salty bag, but either way, heads up. These are yummy, but they're saltier than me when you ask me about my exfiancée. 

These are meant to be dipped, so maybe if you had a really bland guacamole or salsa, the extra saltiness would balance out, but for straight up snacking, best to keep a beverage handy. Even so, I really liked these, even more-so than the Cheetos, and would definitely buy them again. If you give them a shot, let me know if your bag is also extra salty in the comments down below!  

Fans of these would also like: Mexican Street Corn Cheetos, 7-Layer Dip and Taquito Potato Chips, or Mexican Jalapeno Peanut m&m's

Keep Up with My Adventures on Social Media!