NERSQELX Spicy Strips - Spicy Gluten Latiao, Chinese Special Casual Snack Food, 102g (Pack of 3)

As respectful as possible without sugar coating it. As soon as I opened the bag, a strong odor filled the room, smelled like old grease trap. The taste was “ok” but tasted like sweet taco seasoning with a faint spice. The texture was good to me atleast, I liked the “sponge” feel. However the aftertaste is pretty strong and will make your breath smell pretty bad for a while. Not recommended for sensitive stomachs. The product itself is great quality and good for what it is and but misses out on the spice level.

I liked these, they have a very spicy kick to them, the texture is interesting, so if you're not good with textures, they're not for you. They've got a sort of tough chew to them (if you watch the same videos on social media I have, you know they give a pull to tear off some). The smell is strong-ish, and unusual to Western tastes, it makes me think of a sesame, peanut buttery scent, combined with the chili oil scent, this can seem strong to anyone not used to it. The taste is spicy. Now I know why those little kids were sucking their breath in to cool their mouths. Chewing on them, they have an almost spongey texture that releases an oily juice, that has all the spice. These aren't meaty, they're not like a snack stick, these are made with wheat gluten (hence the nutty scent) and is basically soaked in chili oil. So, if you like any of those things, you might enjoy these.

Saw the Chinese snack shop videos, watched some reviews and latiao looked awesome. I love spicy foods, when ghost pepper became a big deal I was eating nothing but ghost pepper wings. This stuff isn't that spicy to me, I was expecting it to be chewy and I love the way chili crunch by momofuke tastes, but this tasted like burnt bacon drippings. Like if you took the oil from cooked bacon and mixed it with the gristle from the pan and injected it all into a sponge. I also had to get something to eat after because it gave me burps that tasted just like the smell. The best I can describe that is a house of a smoker who let's their cat pee on the carpet. I'm not too upset because it was 11$ so not too much lost here, I wish I liked it as much as I thought I would but I had one strip and gave the other packs to a friend for then to try and throw away if they prefer.

Lots of people seem to leave negative reviews for these, but I don’t get it. I first discovered them during my freshman year of college because my Chinese international roommate ate them almost every day. One day I got curious and ordered a few packs for myself. Safe to say they didn’t last more than a day. They’re absolutely horrible for your health, and the aroma is interesting. But they are so good, the texture, the seasoning, the hint of spiciness, all combined in one is amazing. If you’re not a fan of Asian cuisine or umami flavor I don’t recommend, definitely do your research before you buy, as you should with most things you buy online. But once again absolutely delicious.

What I purchased is not what I got. First photo is what I ordered. Second photo is what I was delivered. I’m hoping it’s because they just changed the packaging and have not updated photos. Also, if you are sensitive to spice, DO NOT GET THESE! The flavor is good, but I want to cut off my tongue because they are so spicy.

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".

I learned about spicy sticks on TikTok. I was so sure it was going to be delicious. I’m positive this would have been an acquired taste, but it wasn’t at all what I was expecting so I couldn’t finish it. I’ll start off with the positive. The texture was absolutely immaculate. That texture is something I’ll be craving in the future. It was light but chewy. Super scrumptious. The spice was perfect. Your first bite, you’ll feel the spice and aroma go up your throat and through your nose. It was a nice experience. Now for what I didn’t like about it. The flavor. I’d like to say, again, this for sure could be an acquired taste. However, I was expecting something savory. It was unexpectedly sweet so I wasn’t able to finish it. It’s not sweet like cake or anything. I can’t exactly describe it. I saw a review saying it was slightly sweet, but to me, it was more than just slightly sweet. Overall I’ll give it three stars bc even though it wasn’t what I was expecting, it was still a pleasant experience to get to try this snack and maybe I’ll give it another try in the future.

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.