Golden Wonder Meaty Crisps, 16 x 25g

The Golden Wonder Meaty box is sixteen 25g bags in four of the classic British savoury flavours: four each of Roast Chicken, Smoky Bacon, Beef and Onion and Cheese and Onion, 400g in all. Each bag is one serving, and the published listing gives a separate ingredients list and nutrition table for every flavour. The pack names Golden Wonder Ltd of Corby, Northamptonshire, as the maker for Great Britain.

Meaty flavours, no meat

None of the four flavours contains meat. The roast chicken, smoky bacon and beef tastes come from flavourings, yeast extract and monosodium glutamate, and the box says the crisps are suitable for vegetarians.

Roast Chicken

The roast chicken seasoning lists whey powder (milk), salt, dextrose, sugar, buttermilk powder (milk), onion powder, flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate and disodium 5'-ribonucleotides), yeast extract, flavouring, rubbed parsley, ground sage, ground thyme, citric acid, garlic powder, ground black pepper and paprika extract. Sage, thyme and parsley give it a stuffing note, and the milk powders a creamy base.

Smoky Bacon

The smoky bacon seasoning lists dextrose, maltodextrin, salt, sugar, flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate and disodium 5'-ribonucleotides), flavourings, yeast extract, citric and malic acid and paprika extract. Dextrose and sugar lead the seasoning and give it a sweet edge, and the smoke comes from the flavourings.

Beef and Onion

The beef and onion seasoning lists rice flour, onion powder, monosodium glutamate, yeast extract powder, flavouring, salt, sugar, potassium chloride, citric acid and paprika extract. Onion leads, with a savoury beef note behind, and there is no milk on this list.

Cheese and Onion

The cheese and onion seasoning lists onion powder, sugar, whey powder (milk), salt, flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate and disodium 5'-ribonucleotides), yeast powder, cheese powder (milk), flavouring (milk), citric acid, paprika extract and black pepper extract. Onion first, cheese behind.

The crisps

Every bag starts the same way: potatoes fried in rapeseed and sunflower oils, in varying proportions, then seasoned. The difference is all in the seasoning.

Numbers for one bag

Per 25g bag, the listing gives Beef and Onion 129 kcal (538 kJ) and 0.33g of salt; Cheese and Onion 130 kcal (544 kJ) and 0.31g of salt; Roast Chicken 131 kcal (546 kJ) and 0.34g of salt; and Smoky Bacon 131 kcal (547 kJ) and 0.34g of salt. Fat is 7.7g to 7.8g a bag and saturates 0.7g for all four.

Per 100g

Per 100g, Beef and Onion has 516 kcal and 1.32g of salt, Cheese and Onion 521 kcal and 1.23g, Roast Chicken 524 kcal and 1.37g, and Smoky Bacon 524 kcal and 1.37g. On the UK front of pack scale all four are red for fat, amber for saturates, green for sugars and amber for salt.

Sugars

Roast Chicken and Cheese and Onion carry the most sugars, 3.6g and 3.5g per 100g, with Smoky Bacon at 3.1g; Beef and Onion has 1.1g. All four are green on the front of pack scale.

The four at a glance

Lowest salt: Cheese and Onion, 1.23g per 100g. Highest: Roast Chicken and Smoky Bacon, 1.37g. Most sugars: Roast Chicken, 3.6g. Fewest: Beef and Onion, 1.1g. Milk: Roast Chicken and Cheese and Onion only.

Allergens and diet

Milk is in the Roast Chicken bags, in the whey and buttermilk powders, and in the Cheese and Onion bags, in the whey powder, cheese powder and flavouring. The Smoky Bacon and Beef and Onion lists have no milk. The published listing gives no may contain advice. The box says the crisps are suitable for vegetarians; it is not a vegan box, because of the milk, and there is no gluten free claim. Recipes and factory arrangements change, so check the allergy advice on the pack you receive.

MSG

All four flavours use monosodium glutamate, and three add disodium 5'-ribonucleotides, so the box is not one for anyone who avoids MSG.

What the pack leaves out

The box says there are no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. The colour in every seasoning is paprika extract.

Sixteen bags

At 25g, each bag is one serving. Sixteen bags cover three school weeks of lunchboxes with one to spare, and the four flavours keep the week varied.

The pack

The brown bag carries the red Golden Wonder name with the line more punch per crunch around it, a 16 meaty pack label and four coloured bands, one for each flavour.

Who it suits

A box of meaty flavours suits a family lunchbox rota or an office snack drawer, and vegetarians who miss a bacon or chicken crisp. Keep the Roast Chicken and Cheese and Onion bags away from anyone avoiding milk.

Serving ideas

Put a bag in a sandwich of the same theme: roast chicken crisps in a chicken sandwich, bacon crisps with a cheese toastie, beef and onion with a ploughman's.

In the kitchen

Crushed, any of the four makes a savoury crumb for the top of a pie or a macaroni cheese.

Storage and packaging

The box advises a cool, dry place.

Other Golden Wonder packs

For a single flavour, we stock Golden Wonder Beef and Onion and Cheese and Onion in six bag packs, with Salt and Vinegar and Tomato Ketchup. For a non meat mix, the Golden Wonder Variety box has Cheese and Onion, Ready Salted, Salt and Vinegar and Smoky Bacon.

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