Viva Naturals Organic Cacao Nibs, Unsweetened, 1 LB (454 g), Keto Friendly, Vegan, Non-GMO, Gluten-Free Crunchy Chocolate Chip Substitute

These really are my favorite nibs. I roast them a bit, then top a bowl of fruit with them. There are few hulls and almost no bits that taste moldy, as with other brands. Near the bottom of the bag, the bit that settles always seems to be the least appetizing, so that couple of teaspoons goes into smoothies. But the rest are decent pieces with a rich, roasty flavor that hits my chocolate spot. My go-to brand. I buy a large bag and store what I don't toast up in the freezer so they last a long time.

Delicious, crunchy and perfect size.

As mentioned in the title, I am going to use these for a homemade chocolate liqueur that I do every year for sharing during my Christmas party. This is the first time that I have bought this brand and honestly normally just pick up whatever I can find, when I can find them, at my local grocery store. This year the grocery store didn't have them in stock so I headed here to see what was available and decided to pull the trigger on these since they had a lot of positive reviews. These are DELICIOUS, sweeter than expected despite being unsweetened and much better than the other brand nibs I have gotten in the past. I am used to having to pick out debris from some of the other brands but there is none in this product. They're also very fresh tasting - and don't have any bad smells indicating they have sat around a long time and all the nibs I have eaten (a couple small handfuls from the bag) easily chewable. Very happy with the price and quality and will probably be making this my go to brand.

I’ve been adding these Viva Naturals organic cacao nibs to my morning smoothies and the difference compared to other brands is immediately noticeable. The flavor is bold, bitter, and deep — exactly what you’d expect from cacao in its purest form, with no added sugar or unnecessary processing. The product delivers on every claim: USDA certified organic, gluten-free, vegan, and keto-friendly. I use them blended into smoothies and sprinkled over yogurt, where they add a satisfying dark crunch and a genuine chocolatey kick — guilt free. What I love: The intensity of the flavor is the standout quality. Made from Peruvian Criollo cacao beans, the aroma and richness are noticeably superior to milder or more processed alternatives. One thing to keep in mind: Because the nibs are quite small, if you use them in recipes that involve a fine strainer or mesh, some will slip right through. Not a flaw in the product itself, just worth knowing before using them in certain preparations. Overall, a solid buy for anyone looking for real, uncompromising cacao. Will definitely reorder.

The flavor and aroma and texture are far more consistent than a reasonably well-regarded competitor, indicating more quality control for bean sourcing and roasting. I've noticed little or no bits of shell so far, a definite improvement on an alternative that does have occasional un-chewable bits. I only leave the possibility that there may be some, because as with anything that MIGHT have shell or pits, a bit of caution is appropriate. Some may find the flavor a bit bland compared to other brands. But the flavor there is, is pleasant, and neither excessively bitter nor off. And the aroma when first opened is noticeable compared to the competition. For anything one wants to add the texture and flavor of cacao nibs to, or even just chewing a small handful at a time, these may well be the best.

Delicious.

Dangerous product- watch your teeth. I don't usually leave reviews but I thought it was important in this case. I should start by saying that I LOVE Cacao nibs, and Viva's are tasty. Cacao nibs are delicious, and an excellent source of fiber. I add them to yogurt, ice cream, and soup, and I even snack on them plain when I'm in the mood for something chocolatey and crunchy but don't want the calories of chocolate bar. I thought these Viva Cacao Nibs were of excellent quality, until I kept biting down on what felt like rocks or sand. These pieces were so hard that I was afraid I might've chipped my molars, and even The smaller hard pieces made eating the cacao nibs really unpleasant. I estimate that every 5-10 bites or so, you get one of these stone-like bites and it's really distressing and dangerous. Upon further investigation, I realized that these "stones" in Viva Cacao Nibs are actually tiny cacao nut stems and/or pieces of cacao nut shell. As it turns out, this company just does not do a careful job of de-stemming and de-shelling, so lots of shell pieces and stems are allowed into the final product. These are the superhard bits that you crack down on if you're not extremely careful. Last night I spent about a half hour manually checking and de-stemming the remaining half of the bag so I can eat the rest with confidence . I'd be willing to pay literally twice the price, or more, to get a product that's more carefully produced, because it's not acceptable to include such a high concentration of dangerous items in the mix. Viva needs to get its act together. UPDATE: After posting this review, I received a flurry of emails from Viva’s customer service team asking me to try another bag. The emails continued over a number of months. I wasn’t sure why they were so concerned with “making things right,” but I thought it was nice, so I gave them my address to send me a new bag, which they claimed would “make things right” ans show me that the “stone”-rich bag I had received was just a fluke. Finally I tried the new bag, and let me tell you: it was the SAME as, or WORSE than, the first one: CHOCK FULL ‘O “STONES” (aka rock-hard cacao stems and shells). Every third or fourth bite contained a tooth-breaking “prize.” Then I looked at my review and was surprised to see the number of “Helpful” ratings it has amassed. I realized that Viva’s desperation to contact me had nothing to do with “making things right,” because they hadn’t changed anything about the product. They just wanted to buy me off with a free bag of “rock”-nibs so that i’d change my negative review and so they could sell MORE bags of their “rock” nibs. Someone is going to be injured consuming this product (that is, if it hasn’t already happened- which I’m sure it may have). I genuinely hope that someone reports this product to the health department and that Viba is banned from continuing to sell it. If they correct the problem, I’m glad to take down this review. But until then, I’ll keep it up. Be ware of Viva Cacao Nibs!

I just started incorporating smoothies into my daily diet and wanted to add something i thought might be more treats feeling. I thought these would taste like dark chocolate with a coffee tone and be a substitute for chocolate chips but they are not like that at all. They taste more like nothing with three tones, a dark chocolate tone, a soft fruity tone, and like the bitterness of coffee without the coffee. Then they are not like chocolate chip consistency they are dry and crumbly. In my smoothie they don’t really add any flavor, like I said they don’t taste like anything much. But they add crunchy bits. I think it’s cool they are healthy and they aren’t as sharp as dark chocolate.

Taste dry and with little flavour compared to other brands I buy

Delicious 😋

I use cocao nibs for overnight oats, smoothies, etc. and these are great.

I like the nibs because they are healthier than a power. However, it says you can add to coffee, I wouldn’t recommend it, it doesn’t melt , you just a bunch of nibs floating around which pretty much ruins your coffee :) I add it to my yogurt with nuts and berries, they go well together.

Good fresh product. Reasonably priced next to my local bulk store. Also value the organic product. I bought this to grind and add to my coffee. Haven't enjoyed that as much as I thought. Great in smoothies. Will soon try in baking.