Walkers Cheese and Onion Crisps, 45g

The 45g bag is the single packet of crisps that goes with a lunchtime sandwich or into a coat pocket for a day out. This one is Walkers Cheese and Onion, and at 45g it sits between the 25g bags found in multipacks and the 150g sharing bag: big enough to feel like a proper side, small enough to finish in one sitting.

The flavour on the label

According to the published pack listing, the crisps are made from potatoes, sunflower and rapeseed oils in varying proportions and a cheese and onion seasoning, with antioxidants (rosemary extract, ascorbic acid, a tocopherol rich extract and citric acid) to keep the oil fresh.

The seasoning reads: dried onion, salt, dried milk whey, lactose from milk, sugar, a flavouring containing milk, cheese powder from milk, dried yeast, citric and malic acids, whey protein, dried garlic, and the colours annatto bixin and paprika extract. Because ingredients are listed heaviest first, onion is the leading note. The dairy ingredients, five of them, build a soft creamy savour behind it, and the two acids lift the finish so it does not taste flat.

Where the colour comes from

The pale orange dusting on these crisps comes from two colours on the list. Annatto bixin is extracted from the seeds of the achiote shrub, and paprika extract comes from dried peppers. The listing says there are no artificial colours, which fits: both come from plants.

What a 45g bag adds up to

The label gives per 100g figures of 512 kcal (2137 kJ), 29g of fat, 2.4g of saturates, 53g of carbohydrate, 2.6g of sugars, 4g of fibre, 6.6g of protein and 1.2g of salt. Worked out for the 45g bag, that is about 230 kcal, 13.1g of fat, 1.1g of saturates, 1.2g of sugars and 0.54g of salt. Against an average adult's reference intake, the bag is about 12% of the day's energy, 19% of the fat and 9% of the salt.

On the UK front of pack scale the crisps are high for fat, medium for saturates and salt, and low for sugars. The size matters here: a 25g multipack bag of the same flavour is 128 kcal on its label, so this bag is close to twice as much. If you usually buy the multipack for the children and this bag for yourself, the numbers are not the same.

How it is made

Crisps like these start as thin slices cut from washed potatoes. The slices are rinsed of loose starch and fried in the sunflower and rapeseed blend until the water inside has boiled away, leaving a brittle, glassy sheet of cooked starch. The seasoning is added while the crisps are still warm and slightly oily, which is what holds the powder on. Frying turns a watery vegetable into something with almost no moisture left, which is why a sealed bag keeps well and an opened one goes soft quickly.

Allergens and diet

The published ingredients highlight milk in five places: the whey, the lactose, the flavouring, the cheese powder and the whey protein. The allergy advice says the crisps may contain cereals containing gluten, mustard and soya. The pack states they are suitable for vegetarians. There is no vegan claim, and with milk in the seasoning they are not vegan; there is no gluten free claim. Recipes and factory arrangements change, so check the allergy advice on the pack you receive.

When this bag makes sense

A single 45g bag suits a desk lunch, a day out or a picnic where nobody wants to carry a multipack box. It is the right size to go with a sandwich, either alongside it or, for the committed, inside it. Onion and dairy go with ham, cheese, egg and pickle, so this flavour is easy to pair with whatever is between the bread.

The crisp sandwich itself, crisps pressed between two slices of buttered bread, is a long standing British lunchtime habit, and cheese and onion makes a good filling for it. The onion does the job a pickle would, the dairy suits the butter, and the crunch is the whole point. Use soft white bread and press the top slice down gently so the crisps crack rather than scatter.

Other sizes and flavours

For a week of lunches, the six and fourteen bag Walkers Cheese and Onion multipacks hold 25g bags; for the table there is the 150g sharing bag. In the same 45g size we also stock Walkers Salt and Vinegar, Ready Salted, Prawn Cocktail, Roast Chicken and Worcester Sauce. For a baked take on the same flavour in a single bag there is Walkers Oven Baked Cheese and Onion at 37.5g.

Keeping it crisp

The pack advises storing it somewhere cool and dry. Shake the bag gently before opening so the seasoning is spread through the crisps rather than settled at the bottom. Once opened, finish it the same day, or roll it down tightly and clip it for later that afternoon.

Sizes of Walkers Cheese and Onion Crisps we stock

Figures as published on each pack's label.

The published listing gives the United Kingdom as the country of origin, and Walkers Snack Foods Ltd is the maker named on the pack. The tasting notes on this page are our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description.