Nacho Cheese Chips Head-to-Heat Taste-Off: Beanfields vs. Poptillas
You know we couldn’t do our first-ever Fit Bottomed Eats Week without doing a head-to-head taste-off, right? So here we go—today’s battle for the taste buds is between Beanfields Nacho Bean and Rice Chips and Poptillas Nacho Cheese chips. May the nacho-iest and cheesiest chip (that’s better for you than Doritos, obviously) win!
Beanfields Nacho Bean and Rice Chips
First, the facts on this chip that’s made of beans and rice: it’s vegan, gluten-free, corn-free and has no genetically modified ingredients. A one-ounce serving has 140 calories, 5 grams of fat, 4 grams of fiber, 18 carbs, zero sugars and 4 grams of protein. The ingredient list is a little lengthy, but pretty darn good for anything with “nacho cheese” in the title. So, all in all, not bad in the nutrition department, especially if you have special dietary restrictions or are simply looking for a more nutritious chip to crunch on.
So how do they taste you ask? Oh, they taste. They taste all kinds of nacho cheesiness. Denser and more filling than the king of nacho cheese (aka Doritos), I found these Beanfields Nacho Bean and Rice Chips to be addicting and satisfying. While it was hard to stick to the one-ounce serving size, if you did eat a couple of servings, at least they filled you up and didn’t leave you craving M&M’s (or is that just me when I eat Doritos?!). In fact, I’ll go ahead and say that, even taste-wise, I prefer these to Doritos. For reals. And they don’t even leave your hands all neon orange either.
Poptillas Nacho Cheese
Poptillas are kind of like PopChips, but instead of potatoes they’re made from corn (so obviously not corn-free like Beanfields). These whole-grain popped tortilla chips have all-natural ingredients, are gluten-free and contain no cholesterol, preservatives, high fructose corn syrup, trans fat, MSG, artificial flavors or colors. Made by Classic Foods (the makers of these amazing chips), a one-ounce serving has 120 calories, 6 grams of fat, , 17 grams of carbs, 2 grams of fiber, 1 gram of sugar and 2 grams of protein. Like Beanfields, the ingredient list isn’t short, but it’s made of mostly stuff that you can produce.
If you’re looking for an airy and lighter nacho cheese chip, this would be it. These go down eaaasssy, which is both good and bad. Poptillas Nacho Cheese chips aren’t overly seasoned and are a bit sweeter than Beanfields—they have a touch of that sweet corn flavor with some spice and a little cheese. Definitely more PopChips than Doritos in flavor and texture.
The Healthier Nacho Cheese Chip Winner!
After multiple taste-tests (it’s a hard job but someone has to do it), we declare Beanfields Nacho Bean and Rice Chips the winner! It was a close one and both are super delicious, but when it comes to nutritional facts and true nacho cheese flavor, we think Beanfields had just the slight edge over Poptillas Nacho Cheese. However, during our taste-tests, we also tried Poptillas Salsa Verde flavor and, holy moley, it was delicious—spicy and limey. And, really, you can’t go wrong with either brand. Just watch those portion sizes as it’s easy to gobble a whole bag before you know it!
Do you have a favorite healthier nacho cheese chip? What is it? We might need to munch it. —Jenn