Finally, a gluten-free contender worth its salt.
I think that Cheez-Its are perfect. They’re my favorite snack cracker, and I’ve been obsessed with them since I was a kid. I vividly remember pouring some Cheez-Its into a small bowl to take with me into my room as a reading snack. It didn’t matter that I wasn’t allowed to have food in my room; Cheez-Its were worth the risk.
So it has been fascinating to watch the snack grow and evolve alongside me. New flavors pop up here and there to surprise and delight my snacking experience. Just this year I discovered the hot honey flavor, which is now my favorite flavor of all time—ousting the discontinued garlic Parmesan version.
But there is one new variety that has taken the internet by storm: the gluten-free Cheez-It, which debuted this year. I was able to sample a box, and here’s what I thought.
What are the gluten-free Cheez-Its like?
First, I’d like to give a caveat by saying that I am someone who eats gluten. So I’m providing a review of the gluten-free version based on my understanding of the OG Cheez-It. That being said, it’s kind of like when someone who doesn’t eat meat tries shredded tofu to see if it’s actually good, or just good if you haven’t had meat in years. If you are gluten-free for health or dietary reasons, you can rest assured that these are a Gluten-Free Certification Organization–certified product.
When I took these out of the box, I noticed they looked much crumblier than regular Cheez-Its. That’s definitely to be expected when using gluten-free flour; the brand uses a blend of rice, sorghum and corn. They also had a brighter, more intense orange hue than the OGs, which are more of a muted brownish orange.
My first thought after my first bite: They’re super crispy! They definitely have that distinctive snap you’d expect from a Cheez-It. They’re also very buttery and have a deeper, richer flavor than the regular Cheez-It. When I looked at the nutritional information, I noticed that the GF version lists cheddar cheese as an ingredient, while the OG lists cheese made with skim milk. It could be that the gluten-free Cheez-It is made using full-fat cheese, because this would give it that additional depth of flavor.
After pouring some into a bowl to accompany my reading session (gotta stay consistent!), I forgot that I was eating a gluten-free cracker. Sure, there is a taste difference when you compare them to regular Cheez-Its, but it wasn’t unpleasant in any way. I can confidently say that these are an absolute slam-dunk in the gluten-free snack category. The one downside is that there were a lot of broken pieces in the box. One of my favorite ways to use broken Cheez-Its is as breadcrumbs on top of baked mac and cheese, so I am definitely going to do that with these.
When will the gluten-free Cheez-Its be available?
OK, here’s where it gets a little tricky. The gluten-free Cheez-Its have already been spotted in some stores, but they aren’t available nationwide yet. Because of this, people have been grabbing them up and trying to sell them on eBay at a huge markup. These are good, but not $40-a-box good (I can’t think of any snack that is).
I reached out to Cheez-It’s senior brand director, Cara Tragseiler, to see if she could clarify when they will actually be available. This is what she had to say: “We’ve loved seeing how excited fans are about Cheez-It Original Gluten Free crackers. Fans should expect to see the product more widely available in stores starting in February through March. Each retailer has its own delivery and stocking schedules, so availability can vary by location.”
So there you have it! You can start looking very soon for these gluten-free Cheez-Its in a store near you.
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