I tried all the truffle-flavoured chips in the supermarket — here's how the new Lay's one stacks up

Apart from salted egg and mala, Singaporeans also seem to be obsessed with all things truffle. So when I heard that Lay's recently launched new truffle-flavoured potato chips, you bet I was stoked.

However, truffle chips aren't exactly a new phenomenon either. There are various other options — of varying price and quality, granted — that you can easily obtain from your neighbourhood supermarket.

Curious to see how the Lay's chips matched up with truffle chips from other brands, I put the AsiaOne team through a taste test to get their opinions.

Do you really get what you pay for when it comes to truffle chips? Which is the most value-for-money option?

Here's our verdict.

Lay's

Of course, we had to start off the taste test with Lay's truffle-flavoured chips. We initially had some problems procuring these chips as they seemed to be unavailable everywhere we looked. Thankfully, we eventually got our hands on them after scouring multiple FairPrice outlets.

I have to say that its royal purple packaging is rather eye-catching and might hint that these chips are on the more luxurious end since they are, after all, truffle flavoured.

Upon tearing open the pack of Lay's, I was hit by a faint truffle aroma. I was honestly anticipating the chips to taste like petroleum, like some cheap truffle imitations do, but surprisingly, they tasted rather similar to an actual truffle.

One colleague also mentioned that the chips had a very distinctive Lay's taste and texture, making it easier to differentiate it apart from the other truffle chips.

Others felt that while the truffle flavours were decent, they weren't strong enough.

Price: $5.25 for 184.2gram of chips

Price per 100 grams: $2.85

Our rating: 3/5

Meadows

Ah, Meadows. How can one leave these legendary chips out? With just a one dollar coin, you can get yourself a bag. Not only are these dirt cheap, they taste pretty darn good too.

For the price point, these chips definitely give you plenty of bang for your buck. They have a strong truffle taste and smell with a decent amount of saltiness. However, we have to admit that there's a slight petroleum taste which most truffle chips have. Fortunately, it wasn't so overwhelming to the point where it completely blocked out our senses.

While the bulk of us agreed that Meadows is a classic that is hard to defeat, one of our colleagues commented that he feels this is a "beginner-level truffle potato chip" and that there are better ones on the market.

Price: $1 for 60 grams

Price per 100 grams: $1.67

Our rating: 4/5 

Aroma

Aroma's Black Summer truffle potato chips were probably the most popular option out of the lot and most of the AsiaOne team stated that this was their favourite truffle chip.

Before indulging in them, we were drawn in by the lux black packaging complete with a zip-lock opening for easy storage. Very classy.

These chips did have a stronger and earthier truffle aroma as compared to the other brands and the smell permeated the air when we opened the packet. We also really liked the ridged texture of these chips, which reminded us a little of Ruffles.

Another plus point is that the Aroma chips actually contain real truffle, unlike most of the others we tried, which are artificially-flavoured. 

In my opinion, the truffle taste was actually a little too strong for my liking and it had that slight petroleum taste. However, if you prefer heavier flavours, this will be up your alley.

Granted, it is one of the pricier bags of chips on this list, but considering how good they were, we wouldn't mind forking out the occasional pretty penny for these.

Price: $10 for 100 grams

Price per 100 grams: $10

Our rating: 4/5

Torres

One of Torres' best-selling chips is their black truffle premium potato chips — when it was first released, it was perpetually out of stock in most supermarkets.

These chips did have a pretty strong aroma and you could immediately tell that they were truffle chips — this is another brand that contains the real deal as well. 

One colleague commented that while you could definitely taste the truffle, she felt like it had a stronger salted flavour which overpowered the truffle a little.

Others felt that they could barely taste the truffle at all and these chips were more like salted potato chips than truffle.

Price: $6.95 for 125 grams

Price per 100 grams: $5.56

Our rating: 3/5

Chirrup

I have to admit — I was rather excited for Chirrup's chips because their packaging was so fun and colourful. Unfortunately, I was left disappointed.

"Ooh, more Ruffles!" My colleague had chirped after she had felt around the ridges of the Wild Truffle Herb chips. However, her happiness soon faded after she put the chip in her mouth.

"It tastes weird, I don't taste any truffle," she commented unhappily after a few chomps. And she was right — the chips tasted a little odd and there wasn't a hint of truffle in them at all.

We did, however, really enjoy the texture. It's just a shame because these had looked rather promising.

Price: $3.50 for 60 grams

Price for 100 grams: $5.83

Our rating: 1/5

Luke's Organic

In all honesty, if no one had told us that the White Truffle & Sea Salt Potato Chips from Luke's Organic were truffle chips, we wouldn't have guessed.

This was because these didn't have much of a smell in general, let alone the scent of truffle. Upon first bite, you don't get hit by a wave of truffle either and you only get hints of it after a few chews.

"Oh there is the truffle taste," one of my colleagues had said after a few confused chews. She had initially sniffed the chips sceptically for quite some time before popping them in her mouth.

Overall, I feel that if you detest being attacked by the pungent aroma of truffle but still enjoy its taste, this is a good option for you.

Price: $6.90 for 113 grams

Price for 100 grams: $6.11

Our rating: 2.5/5 

Quillo

The entire AsiaOne team has unanimously agreed that out of all the truffle chips we sampled, this by far was the worst of the lot.

The first thing that hit me when I ripped open the bag was a very strong smell that was akin to, as my colleague succinctly put it, "the darkest corner of Ikea". Others described the smell as "a cupboard that hasn't been cleaned for a very long time" and cardboard.

"I'd rather smell paint than smell this!" exclaimed another colleague.

We were hoping that the chips would taste better than they smelled but unfortunately, the musty aroma was only just a foreshadowing of what was to come.

If you had told us that these chips had been left open-bagged in storage for a decade, we wouldn't have doubted you because they tasted as stale as they smelt — we almost forgot that these were supposed to be truffle-flavoured chips.

Price: $5.85 for 130 grams

Price for 100 grams: $4.50

Our rating: -5/5 

Final thoughts 

Overall, for us, it was a tie between Aroma's Black Summer truffle potato chips and Meadows' truffle potato chips. When it comes to taste, Aroma's chips are definitely the most superior out of the lot but when it comes to affordability and flavour, Meadows is a clear winner. 

melissateo@asiaone.com