Cackalacky – Spiced Nuts
Bitter: ⭐⭐✰✰✰
Salty: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰
Sour: ⭐⭐✰✰✰
Sweet: ⭐⭐✰✰✰
Umami: ⭐⭐⭐✰✰
Heat: ⭐✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰
Quick Flavor Notes: Peanut, onion, garlic, red pepper, black pepper, celery, savory
Texture: Crunchy peanuts with nice coating
Recommended: Conditional
Ingredients: Peanuts, Peanut Oil, Spices, Salt, Onion Powder, Corn Syrup Solids, Corn Starch, Garlic Powder, Yeast Extract, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Vinegar Powder (maltodextrin, white distilled vinegar, modified food starch), Spice Extractive, Natural Flavor, Extractive of Paprika, and Calcium Stearate added to prevent caking
Cackalacky brand started as a family business in North Carolina with their flagship product their Cackalacky Pepper Sauce. From their beginnings being bottled at home the company has grown to national retail distribution and a surprisingly wide product range that includes everything from their original hot sauce to barbecue sauces, prepackaged cold-packed seafood meals, coffee, collaborations with Cheerwine, beer, and snacks such as these nuts.
Cackalacky states that these are seasoned with the spices of their signature pepper sauce. Converting a sauce into a dry spice sometimes results in some interesting changes and in this case other than onion powder and garlic powder there’s a lot of scientific and artificial trickery going on including various extracts of spices and and a catch-all “spices” listing that doesn’t go into any detail. Some citric acid and vinegar powder add tanginess and I’m sure there’s some red pepper and black pepper in the “spices” catch-all as well. There’s also some yeast extract which is often used to give a slightly cheesy and umami boost to things. Something interesting is these including xanthan gum in the ingredients, something I haven’t seen in a dry spice blend before. The peanuts themselves have a good crunch and size
Cackalacky Spiced Nuts are well seasoned, something I always look for and appreciate in a spiced nut snack. The flavor comes across as more savory than spicy, though there is a hint of spice in these. The onions and garlic do come through along with some red and black pepper and a hint of sweetness. The vinegar element is more subtle but does give these more tang than your average nut. I’m picking up a vegetable flavor that I believe could be celery salt or celery seed included in the general “spices” category as well. There’s enough loose spice in the can that your fingers become a bit coated which adds to the experience and flavor.
Overall these are tasty nuts. They have a nice savory flavor though I do wish they had more heat. I likely wouldn’t buy them again, but I wouldn’t turn them down if they were offered to me. For that I’ll give these a conditional recommendation.
