SNACKS: Great Balls of Fire!
What we have here is half a container’s worth of my most favorite snack food: wasabi coated peanuts. These Shrek-colored treats pack a fiery punch familiar to those who enjoy the occasional sashimi. For the uninitiated, wasabi’s kick is very much like horseradish’s – a non-lingering heat that burns the nasal passages much more so than the tongue. Maybe that doesn’t sound so great, but believe me… it’s exhilarating!
I liken the experience to that of riding a roller coaster. You know that big drop is coming, it’s just a matter of when. Same with the wasabi. You pop one of these snacks into your mouth, crunch down and then… wait for it… wa-hoo! An intense rush of electricity shoots upward from the back of your throat toward the nasal passages where the sensation briefly lingers before quickly exiting via the nostrils (or tear ducts). The vapor action of Halls Mentho-Lyptus has got nothing on wasabi.
The real payoff is that hidden inside this green egg shell of sorts is a perfectly roasted peanut. Maybe it’s due to the coating’s extreme heat, but this peanut tastes sweeter than your typical, fresh-from-the-shell variety. Whatever the cause, it’s a nice little reward for having ridden the wasabi-coaster.
As the label clearly states in the photo at the top of the page, you can find wasabi peanuts at the Capitol Market’s Purple Onion. But consider yourself warned: these ‘great balls of fire’ truly do live up to the billing, so don’t go eating them by the handful. Savor the somewhat crazy experience of each individual one. And while you’re at it, savor this blast from the past:
December 6th, 2007 at 10:44 am
I’d be interested in Wasabi Rasinettes
December 6th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Oh man, Drew… that would be nasty. Probably.
December 6th, 2007 at 11:05 am
I favor the wasabi peas myself! Love the hot stuff– did you know that most commercially provided wasabi actually is mostly horseradish with a tad of the authentic root blended in?
December 6th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
I haven’t tried the peanuts (I will, though), but I can attest to the tastiness of Blue Diamond brand Wasabi Almonds. I reccommend them.
December 7th, 2007 at 2:41 pm
Hey Mike… you try the peanuts, I’ll try the almonds, and we’ll compare notes in the near future.
Jennifer: The wasabi peas are great, only not as crunchy or spicy as the peanuts. For more info on commercially produced wasabi, click on the link in the first paragraph. Chances are we’ve never experienced actual wasabi in our neck of the woods.
December 8th, 2007 at 4:48 pm
I like the peas better.
Can you get these anywhere in charleston other than the capitol market?
December 8th, 2007 at 8:04 pm
I have tried the wasabi peas but not the peanuts. What I like about them is that you will have a few and they will be quite mild and then suddenly one will pop in your mouth that just about knocks you out….but you just never know which one it will be.
December 10th, 2007 at 9:25 am
d.o.l - I’ve seen the wasabi peas at the Ashton Place Kroger in the ethnic foods aisle. And I’m fairly certain that I’ve seen wasabi nuts on the other end of the store where the chips and sodas reside.
I’m sure the International Grocery in Kanawha City has some variety of such a snack. The Asian market in South Charleston’s “Mound District” carries them, as well.
December 17th, 2007 at 9:01 am
Brooke–I tried the Wasabi peanuts over the weekend, and they’re very good. The first one had absolutely no kick at all, but the next five or six seemed to have a cumulative effect. Potent, for sure!
I reccommend having a tissue or two handy, and maybe keeping a supply of these babies around for for “head colds” and sinus problems.
December 19th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Right on, Mike. I still need to grab a canister of the wasabi almonds.
February 4th, 2008 at 2:14 am
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