Junk Food Nation, yawn… I am TIRED from watching election returns.  Big races all around, people, big races all around, having big impact on the country. And yet, my subway car still smelled like fish this morning. CAN’T YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT, WASHINGTON??

Of course, then I walk into a S*storm at work, and that’s the way the ball bounces.  So no snarky commentary today. Instead, I’ll heave a question out there for you guys to discuss in the comments below. A legitimate question that I want to know your opinion: when it comes to holiday flavors, I tend to think of gingerbread, peppermint, and egg nog.  Maybe there are some others.  But mainly those three. So, my questions is how would YOU rank them in life and why?

Me: Gingerbread, Egg Nog, getting hit by a car, and then Peppermint. I’ve really soured on mint these past few years – OVER IT. Gingerbread has always been my favorite simply because its a natural extension from the Fall’s pumpkin spice juggernaut.

You? Tell me in the comments below.

Today’s junk food: Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips!

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: The Money Shot

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips! After all the Asian potato chips I’ve tried, it was about TIME Lay’s took a crack at seaweed. Enough with the random fish and meat flavors, guys.

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: BBQ THEM!

The last time I tried a seaweed chip, it was the Salt and Seaweed Pringles from Thailand. Back then, my review was: MORE OF EVERYTHING. More seaweed flavor, more salt, more umami! Would these Lay’s be bold enough?

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: ?

Yeah…no idea what this text on the bag of Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips says. Lil help?

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: MSG! MSG!

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: 164 cal?

Have to give these Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips credit – there aren’t a ton of ingredients, which means the flavor of these chips should be pretty basic….which, in my eyes, is a good thing.

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: Speckled

When I opened this bag of Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips and sniffed, I smelled the FAINT FAINT smell of seaweed, but barely. Honestly, these didn’t smell like much.  They looked REALLY cool though – just basic Lay’s chips SPECKLED all over with bits of seaweed.  I mean, you can’t get much more basic than that.

Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips: Flecks of seaweed

Popping some off these Lay’s Kyushu Seaweed Potato Chips, I was pretty pleased – these tasted almost exactly how I hoped they’d taste.  The underlying chip itself was very basic – good crunch, nice and light, plenty of potato flavor.

The seaweed flavor was immediate and decently strong. For anyone who eats dried seaweed as a snack, these tasted spot-on – immediate umami flavor, with the familiar taste of MSG and seaweed mixing together. As I chewed and the seaweed flavor spread across my tongue, I got that distinct soy/seaweed I’m used to having eaten dried seaweed for much of my life. Savory with a good amount of soy sweetness.

My only complaint? Like the Pringles I mentioned earlier, these could use a LITTLE more salt to help carry that umami flavor out to the proper level.  But that might be my own personal taste.

Either way, these were a good add to the Asian potato chip world.  Nice work, Lay’s!

PURCHASED AT: Great Wall, Germantown, MD

COST: $1.50

Thoughts? Please comment below or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. I also have Google+!! Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy