Product Review: Kropek Ni Mang Juan

If you're from the Philippines, Mang Juan may not be a stranger any more if you've tried his chicharon, which I think started Jack n' Jill's line of food products that are named after him. If you browse the junk food or snacks section in any major supermarket or grocery, you're likely to find the infamous Chicharon ni Mang Juan (I guess I could translate that as 'Mr. John's Pork Rinds') in different flavors, and you might even discover that there are such things as Shing-a-ling ni Mang Juan and Kornik ni Mang Juan. Recently, I even caught a glimpse of Pancit Canton ni Mang Juan at an SM Hypermart branch. Mang Juan is obviously expanding his snack and food line, and recently, I discovered Kropek ni Mang Juan at a pharmacy near my house.

Kropek or Shrimp Cracker is one of my favorite local snacks, so I was immediately intrigued by this product. The picture on the packaging looked enticing, too. I don't know if other flavors exist, but this one is sinamak flavor, which is basically spiced vinegar.

Expect it to be spicy

The packaging is large, and the size is comparable to Oishi's huge Marty's Cracklin' or Bacon Strips bags. As for the price, it's around Php18.00, but I've yet to see if it's cheaper in the supermarket (because food bought from a pharmacy or drugstore tend to cost more than when you buy it from a commercialized grocery or supermarket.)

It's easy to open the bag by pulling it apart from the top instead of following the "Tear Here" sign. No strange/funny/strong smell escaped upon opening the package. Here's what's inside:

I'm used to opening large bags of chips and realizing that they just look fat and bulky because there's air to cushion the chips and prevent them from getting crushed easily, so I have no qualms about seeing that the kropek are in the middle part of the package already. The pieces are quite big and you probably can't fit a huge whole piece in your mouth unless you open real wide or you really have a big mouth LOL. Check out the texture of one of the chips: 

It has ridges like Ruffles, but not that noticeable like Ruffles. :p

And then I took a bite.

I usually love spicy food, but I had the urge to cough when the powdery seasoning reached my throat. I experienced the same thing again on the second and third bites until I finally got used to it. However, I realized that there seems to be too much seasoning powder on that particular chip and the rest of the chips inside the package, so overall, the taste became too overwhelming and I easily got tired of it after the 10th piece.

Yes, I wasn't able to finish the entire bag. It's still here taped and waiting to be eaten again. And there are still a lot of kropek inside.

Perhaps Jack n' Jill can improve the manufacturing standards of the chips and make sure that they don't put in too much seasoning? Otherwise, it's just going to be overwhelmingly salty and spicy all at the same time. It's just too much. However, if I drank beer or cola with this, the taste will probably be more tolerable.

Here are other things you should know about Kropek ni Mang Juan:

Nutrition Facts

It has 520mg of sodium, which is way more than what a serving of Cheetos has. So I guess that explains the overwhelming salty taste/strong flavor of Kropek ni Mang Juan. Surprisingly, I didn't feel bloated after eating this. And wow, it contains a little bit of Vitamin C, too!

I would probably recommend this if you have beer or soda (preferably cola) as a companion while eating. If you hate salty food, stay away.