The Good: Taste good, Low calorie
The Bad: Expense, Environmental impact.
The Basics: A decent meat treat, Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix are a low-calorie, protein rich snack.
It’s actually surprising to me how few salty snacks I have reviewed. Actually, that does not surprise me a whole lot; as part of getting myself healthy, I have attempted to lower my sodium intake. I have, traditionally, not worried about sodium or any other component in my diet. However, the desire to improve my heart health and lose the paunch I gained two winters ago has led me to drinking more water, consuming less salt and generally lowering my caloric intake. So, it was very much the fact that they were on sale that led me to buy the Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix that I bought for consumption and review.
I found the 3.75 oz. (5-stick) pack on clearance for $1.99 (regularly $3.99) and picked it up. Despite how much I enjoyed this salty, not-terribly-healthy snack, the expense and environmental impact of it makes it very hard to justify the expense.
Basics
Hormel is a manufacturer of meat products like pepperoni and jerky. The intent of the Hormel Stix is for the meat snacks to be their own snack, not a component (like pepperoni traditionally is).
Hormel’s Turkey Pepperoni Stix are a processed meat product. The package contains five 5 1/2" sticks that are each 1/2” in diameter. The individual sticks have easy to open wrappers that peel open, like cheese sticks. The five Stix are connected with perforated wrappers that make them very easy to separate. At a regular price of almost $1.00/ea., with such unenvironmentally responsible wrappings, it is hard for a cheap, healthy, environmentalist to justify these meaty snacks.
Ease Of Preparation
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix are a processed meat product, so basically, one opens wrapper and they begin devouring them. These are supposed to be refrigerated after opening, but given that they are each a single serving, they can be easily consumed in one sitting. . . . especially if one owns a dog or cat that sits there begging them from you!
Taste
The Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix has a spicy, peppered smell to it. The salty, meaty scent is instantly reminiscent of meat snacks like Slim Jims and there is not even the hint of turkey in the aroma to this snack.
In fact, the scent is so robust and spicy that the initial flavor of the Turkey Pepperoni Stix is surprisingly bland. The outer casing of the Turkey Pepperoni Stix is greasy, but not even overly salted. The moment the casing ruptured, the flavor is not just salty and generically meaty. Instead, the flavor is precisely that of good pepperoni. The first bite might taste like a cold hot dog, but almost instantaneously, the flavor turns to clove, salt and garlic. This is the defining flavor mix of pepperoni and these Stix are delightful for how well they embody that.
Nutrition
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix are a particularly poor choice for balanced nutrition. A serving size is considered one meat stick. In the recommended serving, there are 50 calories, 25 of which are from fat. This snack has 5% of one's daily recommended saturated fat intake and 20% of the RDA of sodium. On the plus side, it does have six grams of protein.
These are Gluten-free, but not marked as Kosher (I’m not sure why, the ingredient list does not indicate what might violate that diet). This meat snack is made primarily of dark turkey meat, salt and spices. That makes it mostly natural, but it does have preservatives that are not natural.
Storage/Cleanup
I’m not sure how long these last because I purchased them on clearance as they would have expired today. I would be surprised if these actually had a very short shelf life, given how salty they are and how many preservatives they have.
Turkey Pepperoni Stix are a meat product, so they are not going to stain or ruin anything unless it is a light or papery material, given how greasy they are. Baring that, cleanup of nonporous surfaces is as easy as wiping them with a damp cloth.
Overall
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Stix are good, but not particularly healthy or inexpensive, making them tough to recommend. But on taste alone, they are very much worth trying.
For other salty snacks reviews, please check out my takes on:
Yancy’s Fancy Steakhouse Onion Cheddar
Totino’s Pepperoni Pizza Chips
Orville Redenbacher's Butter Gourmet Popcorn
4.5/10
For other food and drink reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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