Spicy Strips - Spicy Gluten Latiao, Chinese Special Casual Snack Food, Made From Wheat/Chili/Spice, Low Sugar and Low Calories, Best Vegan, 78g (Pack of 2)

A lot of negative reviews were right about this product. I really wanted to experience these after seeing them in those Chinese candy store videos, so I bought them regardless. They smell odd, but nothing too potent. They're VERY spicy, but I have always enjoyed spice. Rather than that they're quite bland. They have a very strange texture, being very, very oily and chewy. Still, product was exactly as advertised and I enjoyed them, so it'd feel unfair to leave a bad review.

The flavor and texture is good. It taste spicy and sweet, what threw me off is the fact they’re juicy. But not bad. An acquired taste, my husband said they taste like dog food.

Oh my god, I had no idea what I was buying. These are so weird from the first bite. The product is a mylar bag of gluten 1/3" inch (9mm) diameter flexible 6" inch (150mm) long tubes. Can't eat one in one bite, one bites off a part of the vegan slim-jim-like snack unit. We hated them on first bite -- but we were still intrigued. We brought a bag to a party and left them out. Three of six people who tried them guessed they were a weird Asian fish product of unknown origin. They *loved* the strange experience. Biting into this: it's a chewy tube (of what?!!) inside another chewy tube with spicy-chile-oil-goo between the tubes or something. It's so weird. So, do not buy this if you live in the US and you don't want to try something VERY weird. This is a really odd product. It's not bad, it's not bland, it's not ... well. It's a curious east Asian snack with textural and flavor challenges for most of us. Note to those who hate them: these are EXTREMELY popular in some areas of east Asia and this brand is one of the top brands. Search for "Latiao" (and other spellings) to read some really crazy stories about how they are so good they are "addictive".

To give context to my review, I regularly eat lots of food from different regions of asia (thai/lao, south korean, etc). This has a very strong, pungent smell (best way to describe it is chili with rubber). Even after washing my hands, it still smells like it. Flavor wise, it has somewhat of an earthy flavor with lots of chili and saltiness. They use a mala spice which gives a slight numbingness to your taste buds but the heat itself isnt crazy. Texture it feels like a sponge (like most reviews said). Overall, I would not recommend this unless you are feeling adventurous. Personally speaking, I was expecting more of something along the lines of the korean Buldak Jjondeugi (I highly recommend that snack over this one). TL;DR: Gluten stick that smells like rubber and chili, Earthy flavor. Not recommend for general public. Try some Buldak Jjondeugi instead (if you can find it).

My daughter decided she wanted to try these. Why? No idea, but I bought a pack. First, they look absolutely nothing like the picture. They’re very small, thin, and hard. They are incredibly spicy, but not in a good way. There’s a very strange smell, taste and aftertaste that’s hard to place and very hard to get rid of. My daughter has tried everything to make them edible. She has wiped them down and soaked them to try and get some of the taste/smell out. But, there’s no way she or anyone else in the house are going to eat these things. A total waste of money and false advertising with the picture.