Paqui Carolina Reaper Madness Chips: I Took The #OneChipChallenge And Lived To Talk About It

The Paqui Carolina Reaper Madness chip with its coffin box
The Paqui Carolina Reaper Madness chip with its coffin box Paqui

Spicy foods are more popular than ever, and I like to think of myself as a spice-fiend. Up to this point, I’d yet to find a hot sauce that can best me. Habanero, Scotch bonnet, even the feared ghost pepper were no match for me. That all changed when I had the spiciest snack food ever made.

Chip company Paqui is still new to the snack food game, having only been around a few months. To get the buzz going, the company has made the Carolina Reaper Madness chip, one flavored with the hottest pepper available right now, the Carolina Reaper. These are so hot, one box contains a single chip. Yes, you can only buy one chip at a time.

Unlike Pringles, once you pop, you’ll have to stop. I only managed to get about half the chip down before my mouth lit up. Sweat started rolling down my face and talking became increasingly difficult. Even my breathing had to come in long, slow breaths. Anything else, and the spice would start acting up worse than before.

I’ve never previously needed to resort to dairy to cool myself off, but was thankfully provided with a pint of ice cream. That ice cream saved me, no joke.

While normal spicy snacks ramp up the heat, then die out quickly, the Carolina Reaper Madness spice would not die down. I was feeling it for a good 10 minutes. Remember, I only ate half of one chip here. Not only that, my ears were ringing for another 10 minutes after the heat had died down.

If you think spending money to get one chip sounds way too excessive, even if it is hotter than any other, you’re right. Don’t worry, though, because you’ll get a coupon for a full-sized bag of one of the other Paqui flavors with each Reaper chip you buy. These flavors include a Nacho Cheese flavor, a Cool Salsa Verde and a Haunted Ghost Pepper among others. The ghost pepper chips aren’t killer like the Carolina Reaper Madness, but they still should not be eaten by those who think Tabasco is too hot.

The deadly chip
The deadly chip Paqui

If you think you’re up for the #OneChipChallenge yourself, Carolina Reaper Madness chips will be available in stores starting this October. The chips will be a limited run item, so make sure you act fast and snatch a box for yourself if you see one on store shelves. Sharing a video of you eating the chip on social media will enter you into a drawing to win prizes like more chips and a GoPro.

Oh yeah, and a pro-tip for those crazy enough to eat one themselves: wash your hands after you touch this chip and before you touch anything else. You’ll thank me.

The worst part: later in the day, I wanted to go back for more.

So what do you think? Are you up to eat the hottest snack food ever? Do you think you’ll stick to Paqui’s regular flavors for now? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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