Just One Food - Muji Snacks

I always enjoy browsing and shopping in Muji stores (more browsing than shopping since their products are on the expensive side).  I adore their storage boxes and stationery items, especially their kitchen and dining ware.

And because I spend time in this very section (at their Pavilion Elite store), gazing at all the kitchen/dining stuff I wish I could own, that I first came to notice the snacks section next to it.

They've got all sorts of crispy snacks, popcorn, pies, crackers, cookies & biscuits....

.....to sweet snacks of candies, marshmallows, mochi & chocolate nibs.....

....to all types of green tea & matcha flavoured lattes, masala & chai tea, and even yuzu & honey drinks. They also offer instant soups, ramen & sauces.

I (of course) just had to buy a couple of these Japanese Muji Snacks to try, starting with this Green Pea Snack @ RM6.90.  I was initially attracted to it thinking they were some kind of French bean fries coz they looked the part.

But when I ate the first piece, the taste of green peas was what I first tasted.  So, I looked at the packaging again and realised they were actually a green pea snack.  I used to hate green peas when I was a child but has now grown to love it (like bitter gourd).  I especially like a good mashed green peas with fish and chips.  I loved the fragrance and prominent taste of green peas in this snack! ^.^

I love the taste of onions, so I couldn't resist the Onion Snack @ RM4.90.

Again, the intensity of the onion flavour was very notable in the crispy onion crackers.....yummeh! Quite unlike our local crackers that usually just taste crispy and salty without any flavour.

Another almost similar crispy snack is this Burdock Snack @ RM4.90.  Fresh burdock looks a bit like white radish or jicama, usually stir-fried with carrot (and has a crunchy texture like lotus root) or braised in a soy sauce, sesame oil, mirin and sugar concoction till tender.  I don't think I've had fresh burdock before.

The moment you open the pack, you get this whiff of Chinese herbal smell...something like ginseng or maybe Chinese angelica root ("dang gui") or codonopsis root ("dang shen" aka poor man's ginseng).  I don't know which Chinese herb exactly but let me tell you that it tastes better than it smells! :D  I'm ok with it but may be an acquired taste for some because of the herbal smell.

Well, in the remote possibility that you don't like crispy snacks (!), they have some non-crispy choices too like these Matcha-Flavoured Mochi @ RM6.90.....

......or Matcha Chocolate with Cocoa Biscuit @ RM10.90.

I also got these Mini Ramen Chicken @ RM6.90 thinking they're similar to those Mamee Monster noodle snacks that you can just eat out of the packet.  But that was before I read the instructions on the packet and found out that they're actually instant noodles that need to be cooked....haiz!

You can cook it like you do a cup noodle by pouring hot water over two cubes of noodles and let it steep for 3 minutes.  Or cook two noodles over a pan of boiling water (instructions say to use 220ml) and crack an egg into it (the noodles will not take more than a minute to cook).  Taste wise, it was like having yee mee with eggs...very savoury noodles in a very savoury broth (you may want to use more than 220ml water to dial down on the saltiness).

Seeing that there were some crushed bits of noodles left in the pack, I poured that into my mouth and realised that you can actually eat it like straight just like Mamee noodles...only better.  It makes for a nice, salty, crispy snack.

Then, you have this more common snack of Yolk Bolo @ RM5.90 which are small egg yolk biscuits with a slightly chalky, sweet and crispy texture.  What can I say, I prefer crispy crunchy snacks...hihi! ;P

My ultimate favourite has to be this Small Fried Rice Crackers @ RM4.90.  One thing about Japanese products is that they're very good at packaging it nicely to entice you.

These rice crackers, laced with soy sauce and honey, are so crispy and addictive with its salty-sweet flavours.  They're da bomb....so goood...I can't get enough of them....and once you've tried them, you won't either! ^o^

Ya, these snacks may be more expensive than our local snacks and crackers, but I'd gladly pay the price for flavour, flavour, flavour! ;)

Perhaps, this year, you might want to get some of these Japanese Muji Snacks for a change (and there are lots to choose from), something different from the usual same old same old Chinese New Year goodies to snack on.....I know I do! ^_~

As some of us head out to our hometowns for our annual "CNY balik kampong" ritual tomorrow.....

May all your wishes for the Year of the Earth Dog be fulfilled.....and then some!


Cookie asks why there is no Year of the Cat!...meowww? :P