Great promise, poor execution. Who wouldn't jump at the idea of healthy pork rinds? I did, and in so doing treated myself to 2 small sacks of OISHI's latest creation, MARTY'S CRACKLIN'.The packs read: VEGETARIAN CHICHARON. I get that. What I don't get is the second line: OLD FASHIONED STYLE. Now I'm intrigued. I tug at the seams of the first sack, PLAIN SALTED. The pieces resemble flat, thin strips of toasted bread, more than they do pork rinds. I pop one into my mouth and become more perplexed than ever. Perhaps the bold letters spelling out CHICHARON are there to condition my mind that that's the flavor OISHI is gunning for. Without the label, I would never have guessed it. The SALT & VINEGAR variant, meanwhile, is more successful only because the salt and vinegar cleverly mask the absence of pork.
But hey, MARTY'S CRACKLIN' is a decent snack. It tastes just fine. Although its flavor profile merely resembles chicharon vaguely, I would buy it again (P4 per sack). But if you're craving for the taste of pork rinds, go for the real thing. This doesn't hack it.
