Review: Tostitos Chunky Salsa Medium

That's right, Tostitos

That's right, Tostitos

This is in honor of Cinco de Mayo! Which yes, yes, I realize was yesterday.  However, I don’t do reviews on Tuesdays so you’re just going to have to live with it being today.

I knew you’d understand. :D

This right here is my favorite salsa.  Yes that’s right, MY FAVORITE.  Before your head explodes from the fact that this is a Frito-Lay product and it doesn’t say “Organic” or some other buzz word and it resides permanently at the OHC HQ, let me explain myself.  The first time I ever had salsa I was probably around 12 years old.  It was introduced into my family from an outsider who clearly had been eating salsa for a long time because it’s a common thing to everyone else.  But in my little podunk town people didn’t really eat ‘tat ‘ere salsa stuffs.  My parents never bought it and it was never served at any of my friends’ houses. Weird?  Totally.  But when I tell you that the first day of buck hunting was considered a holiday and we didn’t have to go to school (no really, there was no school that day) and people could miss work, perhaps you’ll understand why salsa  was not a popular snack.

That said, from my first bite of salsa I was in love with it.  It was awesome!  I preferred it chilled but would eat it any way you tossed it at me.  And from that point on I tried to be around salsa as much as possible.  I’ve grown since then and can now handle the medium spice level of salsa.  I realize how impressed you are with my heat tolerance maturity level.  I’m impressed with myself as well, so we have something in common already!

Because of my love for salsa I have tried lots of varieties.  And I’ve tried plenty of the organic and other froo-froo salsas.  None of which I like.  I disliked them so much I wouldn’t even eat them.  Some of them taste very manufactured and fake.  Some of them had a chemical kind of taste that sat on my tongue like an acid mouthwash.

Yuck. I know.

I do tend to like the salsas from Mexican restaurants. And I mean small family owned ones, not places like Chi-Chi’s or Chili’s.  Oh Chili’s; it wants to be Mexican but isn’t at all and has a sort of identity crisis that it can’t seem to get under control.  But I digress.

Since we don’t get Mexican all that often (or at all now really) I have to find an alternative supplier.  Enter in my Tostitos affair.  By now you all know me and how I am with ingredients.  It needs to be short and I need to be able to understand everything.  Tostitos salsa fits that requirement. Check it.

All things I understand

All things I understand

Yes “Natural Flavor” is vague but everything else is recognizable and it’s all vegetables.  That is awesome.  This salsa has a perfect chunky to sauce ratio, which clearly sounds disgusting if taken out of context.  Or not if that’s how you roll.  I don’t judge.

There is plenty of veggies mixed with the right amount of tomato sauce.  And the most awesome thing about it is the taste.  It tastes fresh.  It does not taste like it came off the assembly line and has no weird chemical acid mouthwash going on.  And I would be lying to you if I said that at no time have I ever stood around the kitchen and ate it right from the jar with a spoon.

I know you don’t judge either.

I’m just keeping it real and providing evidence so that you’ll see not everything is organic and from Whole Foods at the HQ. Sometimes we cross the tracks to the other side of town.  It’s fun over there and dancing isn’t illegal.

This salsa is pretty widely available and I buy mine by the big honking jars at Sam’s.  If you like salsa, don’t be afraid to try some Tostitos.  The ingredients are spot on.  Now if you go exploring deeper into the other side of town and start messing around with the Ranch Dip and the one that calls himself Salsa Con Queso, you are on you’re own there. I’m not bailing you out of that.  I won’t judge but just make lots of “tsk tsk” sounds that will probably annoy you. Don’t mix with the wrong crowd, yo.

Stick with straight-up Salsa, he at least has good intentions.

21 thoughts on “Review: Tostitos Chunky Salsa Medium

  1. I’m really picky about salsa, too – in fact, I’ve not found a premade regular salsa I liked yet. But (you knew there was a but in there) I found peach salsa at TJ’s that is TO DIE FOR. Now before you go saying “gross!”, know that I hate peach-flavoured anything. I can’t even stand the smell of it. (I do like fresh peaches, though. In small quantities.) And, for the most part, I don’t like cooked fruits of any kind.

    This salsa, though.. it’s sweet and spicy without even a hint of the vomity smell that most peach stuff has. And, of course, being from Trader Joe’s, it’s all natural, too.

    (No punctuation marks were seriously damaged in this comment, though they were abused.)

  2. I think Tostitos makes a good, basic salsa as well though I think we normally get a different kind of it. We’ve recently discovered corn salsa (no tomatoes) at Trader Joe’s and it’s also delicious.

  3. Mary says:

    This salsa is the BEST!!! My favorite snack is (I can’t believe I am admitting this) salsa in a bowl and crushing up some chips and mixing it all up and eating it like cereal. There has to be just a little more chips than salsa for the perfect crunch. I add it to EVERYTHING. Best kept secret…….add some to chopped meat for a kick butt burger. I think I need a 12 step program :)

  4. Bradley says:

    I think this particular salsa is far better then any other kind but about the good intentions thing some of the most horrific acts known to man have come about because of good intentions

  5. Marissa says:

    This salsa is SOOO good I’m eating it as I type,lol…I am a salsa fanatic! If you havn’t tried it yet, try Totitos sweet and spicy summer salsa…its heaven in a salsa form… if you google it you’ll find lots of positive reviews and whatnot:] I’m glad we both love this salsa! And I hope you find the other 1 I mentioned[:

  6. Stephanie says:

    I’m surprised many people like this salsa. I think it’s the worst ever. I prefer On the Border jarred salsa.

  7. Metellus, Destroyer of Worlds says:

    This is a fantastic salsa. I’ve been craving salsa and chips lately. I picked this up and am already through half a jar in one night. I love it!

  8. Diana says:

    My mother-in-law was a fabulous cook. She mixed this type of salsa with a lttle mayo and put it on turkey or sliced chicken sandwiches and it was very delicious!

  9. Bibi says:

    Weird… It felt like I was writing it… I’m from Brazil… and I’ve lived in US for 1 year.. oh my god… the first thing I remember when I think of my days in America is Tostitos + Salsa uhahuahuahua… I totally fell in love with it… just like you did… and we don’t have tostitos or salsa here… too sad =[

  10. Donny Wallace says:

    I love this salsa too although sometimes I want it hotter, but after how I have to break my hand to open it for 20 minutes with the 5 techniques doing absolutely nothing to budge the superglue I’m tempted to go with other salsas instead of this one of a regular basis. What is it that makes the Lay brand stick like Crazy Glue?

  11. Kathy says:

    I also love this salsa! I have tried others but they just don’t compare to Tostitos. I have also worked my way up to enjoy the “medium”. I never get the small jar….it has to be the bigger one.

  12. Jay Cradoct says:

    I couldn’t agree with you more Andrea. We’ve been using the TOSTITOS® Chunky Salsa for a very long time and used to be able to buy those “big honking jars” at various locations. However, all we can find down here now are those small jars. I just now went so far as to send a personal message to Fritos / Tostitos asking them to please distribute those larger jars available again or at least make them available via the web. We, too, go through at least 3 jars a week; mixing it in with eggs, on chicken patties, into our rice, etc.

  13. Tostitos isn’t bad for a commercially produced Salsa. What about a salsa made from tomato, onion, bell and chile peppers, onion, organic lime juice, a little white vinegar and sugar? No added salt or garlic powder. A much fresher tasting salsa than Tostidos. I can send you a small jar at my expense to try and in return if you like it if you could post a review on your blog :)

  14. I’m living in a dorm and I don’t have a fridge in my room. And I am in love with salsa and tostitos and all that. So the first time I got one to myself over where I am right now, I was so clueless about it having it kept refrigerated. After I had some and didnt finish all of it of course, I just left it on my table admiring it for like… a couple of days. I was so disappointed when I finally opened it again and excited to eat it again it was all… moldy… and the smell! But now I got one again and it’s too much for one bag of tostitos chips and I havent finished it yet and I am so paranoid that any minute now its gonna spoil again. Im thinking of reheating it, but will that even stop spoilage? I do not have a fridge whatsoever. Or do you think Ill just finish it right now while its still good? I would honestly rather flush it into my mouth rather than into the sink. Please reply asap? Thank youuuu!!! :)

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