Eat Real Chilli and Lemon Lentil Chips, 95g

Eat Real makes chips from pulses and grains rather than potato slices, and this bag is its lentil chip with a chilli and lemon seasoning. It is the 95g sharing bag, which the label suggests serves five. The full product name on the pack is lentil based chips with chilli and lemon seasoning, and the pack names Eat Real Ltd as the maker.

The ingredients

According to the published pack listing, the chips are made from lentil flour (40%), potato starch, rapeseed oil, maize flour, a chilli and lemon seasoning (rice flour, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, chilli, yeast extract powder, citric acid, cayenne pepper, cumin, dried yeast, natural flavouring, black pepper, garlic, lemon powder, oregano and paprika extract for colour), and salt.

Lentil, not potato

Lentil flour is the main ingredient, at 40% of the chip, with potato starch and maize flour to bind it. The dough is formed into thin chips, which gives a light, airy crunch and a nutty, earthy flavour that a potato crisp does not have.

Maize flour and potato starch

Maize flour and potato starch bind the lentil flour and help the dough form thin, crisp chips, and rice flour carries the seasoning.

Garlic twice

Garlic appears twice, as garlic powder and as garlic, alongside onion powder, which gives the seasoning a rounded savoury base under the heat.

Where the heat comes from

Chilli and cayenne pepper bring the heat, with black pepper for a sharper warmth. Paprika adds a sweet pepper note, cumin an earthy warmth and oregano a herbal edge, a blend closer to a Mexican or Middle Eastern spice mix than a British crisp seasoning.

The lemon

Lemon powder and citric acid give the fresh, sour side of the flavour, which lifts the spices and stops the heat feeling heavy.

How hot is it

Expect a real, building warmth from the chilli and cayenne, lifted by the lemon. It is warmer than a paprika crisp but not fiery; try a few before sharing with children.

Yeast extract

Yeast extract powder and dried yeast add a savoury depth behind the spices. Yeast extract is naturally rich in glutamates, which is worth knowing for anyone who avoids them altogether.

A snack for sharing

At 95g, the bag suggests five servings of 19g, smaller than a typical crisp serving, which suits a salty, spicy chip best enjoyed a handful at a time.

The salt figure

The label gives 3.45g of salt per 100g and 0.66g in a 19g serving, high on the front of pack scale and the highest of the Eat Real packs we stock. Eat Real Salted Lentil Chips have 2.2g per 100g. A small serving is the way to enjoy these.

Numbers per serving

The label gives 83 kcal (350 kJ), 3.2g of fat, 0.3g of saturates, 11g of carbohydrate, 0.2g of sugars, 0.9g of fibre, 2.4g of protein and 0.66g of salt for each 19g serving. That is about 4% of an average adult's daily energy reference intake, 5% of the fat and 11% of the salt. Per 100g it is 439 kcal (1843 kJ), 17g of fat, 1.5g of saturates, 57g of carbohydrate, 0.9g of sugars, 4.7g of fibre, 13g of protein and 3.45g of salt.

Reading the front of the pack

On the UK front of pack scale, per 100g, fat at 17g is amber, just under the 17.5g line, and saturates at 1.5g are green. Sugars at 0.9g are green. Salt at 3.45g is red, well above the 1.5g line.

Allergens and diet

No allergens from the UK list of 14 are highlighted in the published ingredients, and the allergy advice says the chips may contain celery. The pack says they are suitable for vegans and vegetarians, and carries a gluten free claim with the Crossed Grain symbol, the gluten free mark licensed by Coeliac UK. Recipes and factory arrangements change, so check the allergy advice on the pack you receive.

Kosher

The pack carries the KLBD mark, the kosher certification of the London Beth Din, which is useful for households that keep kosher.

What the pack leaves out

The pack says there are no artificial flavourings; the flavouring is described as natural. The colour is paprika extract, from peppers.

Who it suits

A vegan, gluten free chip with a real kick suits anyone who wants something different from a potato crisp, and it can sit on a table where several diets need to be met. The high salt figure makes it one to share in small servings.

Serving ideas

Chilli and lemon suits a dip: guacamole, a yoghurt and mint dip for anyone who eats dairy, or a cooling cucumber salsa. It also goes with a cold lager or a glass of crisp white wine.

In the kitchen

Crushed, the chips make a spicy, lemony crumb for a fish fillet or a tray of roasted cauliflower. Use a light hand, since the seasoning is salty.

Storage and packaging

The pack advises a cool, dry place, and the bag is packaged in a protective atmosphere. The published recycling guidance says the whole packaging can be recycled with carrier bags at large supermarkets and should not go in home recycling.

Other Eat Real packs

In the same 95g bag we stock Eat Real Salted Lentil Chips, and there is a five bag pack of the salted chips. For a different base, Eat Real Veggie Straws come in sea salt and sweet barbecue glaze flavours.

The tasting notes on this page are our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description.