Schär Gluten Free BBQ Curvies, 170g

Schär is an Italian company that makes food for people who cannot eat gluten, and Curvies are its stacked potato snack: curved chips made from a potato dough, packed in a tube. This is the BBQ flavour, in a 170g tube marked new on the front. The listing describes it as a gluten free barbecue flavour potato snack, specifically formulated for people intolerant to gluten.

The ingredients

According to the published pack listing, the snacks are made from dehydrated potato (56%), sunflower oil, rice flour, glucose syrup, potato starch, sugar, a lower sodium salt, an emulsifier (mono and diglycerides of fatty acids), rapeseed oil, salt, paprika powder, natural flavouring, tomato powder, smoked sweet paprika powder, onion and garlic powders, ascorbic acid, citric acid and smoked paprika powder.

A potato dough

Dehydrated potato makes up 56% of the snacks. It is mixed with rice flour and potato starch into a dough, formed into curved chips and cooked, which is why every chip is the same size and they stack in the tube.

Rice flour, not wheat

Where Pringles use wheat flour in their dough, Curvies use rice flour and potato starch, so there is no gluten in the recipe.

Three kinds of paprika

The barbecue flavour leans on paprika: paprika powder, smoked sweet paprika powder and smoked paprika powder. The smoked paprikas give the chargrilled, barbecue smoke, and the sweet one a rounded pepper flavour.

Tomato, onion and garlic

Tomato powder, onion and garlic are the base of a barbecue sauce, and glucose syrup and sugar add its sweetness.

Two salts

The recipe uses a lower sodium salt blend as well as ordinary salt. The label gives 0.84g of salt per 100g and 0.2g in a 24g serving.

The emulsifier

Mono and diglycerides of fatty acids help the dough form and hold its shape.

Numbers for a serving

The label gives 118 kcal (495 kJ), 6g of fat, 0.6g of saturates, 15g of carbohydrate, 1g of sugars, 1g of fibre, 1.1g of protein and 0.2g of salt for a 24g serving, which the label says is about ten chips. The tube holds about seven servings.

Numbers per 100g

Per 100g the label gives 493 kcal (2062 kJ), 25g of fat, 2.5g of saturates, 61g of carbohydrate, 4g of sugars, 4.3g of fibre, 4.5g of protein and 0.84g of salt.

Reading the front of the pack

On the UK front of pack scale, per 100g, fat at 25g is red, saturates at 2.5g are amber, sugars at 4g are green and salt at 0.84g is amber.

Against the Original Curvies

The BBQ Curvies carry less salt than Schär's Original Curvies, which we also stock: 0.84g per 100g against 1.3g.

Glucose syrup and potato starch

Glucose syrup adds sweetness and helps the dough hold together, and potato starch gives the chips a crisp, even snap.

Two oils

Sunflower oil is the second ingredient, and a little rapeseed oil appears further down.

Ascorbic acid and citric acid

Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is listed as an antioxidant, which keeps the oils fresh, and citric acid as an acidity regulator.

Fibre and protein

The label gives 4.3g of fibre and 4.5g of protein per 100g, and 1g of fibre and 1.1g of protein in a 24g serving.

Made for a gluten free diet

The listing says the snacks are specifically formulated for people intolerant to gluten, which is the whole purpose of the Schär range.

Energy

The label gives 493 kcal (2062 kJ) per 100g and 118 kcal (495 kJ) in a 24g serving of about ten chips.

Why a tube

The tube protects the curved chips, which stack neatly and would break in a bag, and the lid keeps an opened tube crisp between servings over several days.

Tomato powder

Tomato powder adds the fruity base of a barbecue sauce under the paprika.

Allergens and diet

No allergen is highlighted in the published ingredients. The allergy advice says the snacks may contain traces of milk. The listing carries a gluten free claim and the crossed grain symbol; no vegetarian or vegan statement is made. Recipes and factory arrangements change, so check the allergy advice on the pack you receive.

The crossed grain symbol

The listing gives the crossed grain licence number IT-016-405. The crossed grain is the symbol licensed by coeliac societies in Europe for foods that meet the gluten free standard.

Palm oil free

The listing says the snacks are palm oil free; sunflower and rapeseed oil are the oils on the list.

Ten chips a serving

The label measures a serving as 24g, about ten chips, which makes it easy to count out a portion from the tube.

At a barbecue

A tube of BBQ Curvies suits a barbecue where some guests avoid gluten: the smoky paprika seasoning matches the food, and there is no wheat in the recipe.

With a dip

The curved chips hold a spoon of soured cream or guacamole.

In a lunchbox

Count ten chips into a small tub for a gluten free lunchbox.

Who it suits

BBQ Curvies suit anyone avoiding gluten who wants a stacked potato snack with a smoky barbecue flavour.

Storage

The listing advises a cool, dry place, with the best before date on the bottom of the pack. Put the lid back on after each serving.

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