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| Note my special Rice Krispies bowl – not used for anything else! |
So what's different? The cereal itself has no taste – no flavor. The cereal pieces themselves are lighter in taste and in color. They look almost bleached. It's like they're no longer even baked or cooked, because they've lost that light brown color. The cereal even sogs up quicker.
Compare the color of the cereal in my photo (from this weekend) at the top of this post, with the cereal in this photo from a 1965 Rice Krispies Marshmallow Treats ad.
I'd write to Kellogg's to ask them what's going on, but they would probably ignore my letter like they did my last ones over the past few years. I kept finding hard bits of rice in my cereal – like gravel – and even collected samples from several boxes, packaged them in separated plastic bags labeled with lot, date, expiration, etc. and sent them to Kellogg's. I never heard back. ("Hey, it's another letter from that kook in Ohio!")
Anyways, judging from comments online, others have noticed it too. Someone who seemed knowledgeable said that Kellogg's is now using a different kind of rice. But all agree that the change is for the worse.
I guess Rice Krispies lovers are just up Battle Creek without a paddle.
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| "Gee, our cereal used to look golden brown and appetizing." |
I hear you! I sent a well worded e mail to Kraft about them making the pasta in the traditional Kraft Macaroni and cheese so small it falls through the sieve when draining! :)
ReplyDeleteLots of our childhood favorites have been "improved" to tastelessness. Frosted Flakes, for instance, they now make them thinner, less crunchy, and they also sog up in milk much faster. They used to be a favorite. Now, I don't bother. I'm sure it has something to do with cutting costs since everything does. Thing is, if they returned the products to the state we remember them, present-day kids wouldn't like them. And Kellogg's don't care about Old People like us anyways, pal, 'cause we're gonna be dead too soon to make much of a dent in their market.
ReplyDeleteNicely done, Dan! Love the headline.
ReplyDeleteThat thoroughly blows, Dan; as a kid, I looked forward to that onomatopoeic symphony coming from my cereal bowl when the milk hit.
ReplyDeleteThose three cats do look fried.
By the way, did you know that Special K makes a similar sound? At least, it used to.
Dan,if you still want the Rice Krispies experience but without the high Rice Krispies price tag try Walmarts "Rice Crisps".They are a knockoff version of Rice Krispies at around half the price.And they might actually taste more like the original version that your taste buds remember.Even if they don't,they cost less than Rice Krispies and the taste might be a little easier to swallow.Kelloggs might even be making them with the original formula for Walmart while they use the newer formula for themselves.Sort of like Original Coke vs New Coke.Stranger things have happened.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip! I'll pick up a box this weekend (and eat it out of my retro Rice Krispie bowl)!
DeletePlease let us know if the Krispies live up to the bowl!
DeleteOkay, I had a Bowl-Off this weekend. Gentlemen... start your cereal bowls!!
DeleteI picked up a mammoth box (it doesn't even fit in my pantry) of Walmart's Great Value™ Rice Crisps, as well as a box of Giant Eagle Crispy Rice. I poured a bowl of each plus a bowl of Kellogg's Rice Krispies and sampled them until I felt I had a good handle on how they compared.
The Rice Crisps did taste better than Rice Krispies; the shape of the cereal pieces were not unlike Post Pebbles cereal; that is, they were somewhat flattened. They had a good taste, although the box did not list malt in the ingredients, which gives Rice Krispies their distinct flavor. The Rice Crisps 'snap, crackle and pop' was similar to Rice Krispies (faint) and they didn't sog as quickly. But I would buy them over Rice Krispies, although the 24 oz box should last until the snow begins to fall. Good suggestion, Anonymous!
Giant Eagle's Crispy Rice was probably the best of the three. It was the most similar to the original Rice Krispies in taste and flavor. The Crispy Rice box did list barley malt as an ingredient so perhaps that made the difference. Appearance-wise, it had a nice brown color. Like Rice Crisps, it didn't sog as quickly as Rice Krispies. So I would buy them again (even though I didn't like the box graphics with a weirdly-rendered cartoon dragon).
Anyway, I hope Kellogg's becomes aware of the dissatisfaction with its iconic Rice Krispies product and goes back to the original recipe and original grains. Snap, Crackle and Pop deserve better!