6 OF THE BEST

Vegan cheese crisps

By Morgan Lawrence

Crisp flavours have not, historically, always been the most transparent. Meaty packets are often suitable for vegetarians. In fact, Walkers caused a huge upset in 2013 when it announced it would use real bacon and chicken in its meat-flavoured snacks instead of artificial flavour enhancers; it reverted to vegetarian ingredients three years later. Vegans have it harder, since many products are made with milk powder, or milkderived ingredients, for an authentic taste. But thanks to a steady incline in plantbased diets, many brands have expanded their snack ranges to meet demand. Dairy-free cheese crisps are hitting the shelves, many containing extra, healthboosting elements such as fava beans and quinoa. Just this month, Kettle Foods launched its own version in collaboration with vegancheese brand Sheese, while Qwrkee claims its “cheese flavour” puffs contain more than a billion gut-friendly cultures. Probiotics aside, which taste the best? We test the latest launches.

QWRKEE GUT-FRIENDLY PROBIOTIC CHEESEFLAVOUR PUFFS £1.75 FOR 80G, OCADO

These fava-bean puffs have a strong scent that’s somewhere between curry powder and dried herbs. The taste starts off spicy, but mellows into something reminiscent of day-old dill. 6/10

TEN ACRE THE STORY OF WHEN THE CHEESE MET THE ONION CRISPS 84P FOR 40G, THEVEGANKIND SUPERMARKET.COM

Perfectly light and crunchy, but the flavour is non-existent – they taste like good salted crisps. Despite the lack of cheese or onion notes, they’re still nice to snack on. 6/10