Monday, October 17, 2011

Review: Kashi GOLEAN Crunch! Cereal


I've never had a lot of luck with Kashi products in the past.  I've always found that their products have an identity crisis as I can't figure out whether they are supposed to be granola or just something else that I can't really define.  Couple that identity crisis with their high prices and I've always stayed away.  Yet, I was in Kroger recently and saw a Manager's Special where they were selling a big box of Kashi GOLEAN Crunch! Cereal for $3.49 from the regular price of $6.99.  I love granola and since the price was steeply discounted, I figured I would give Kashi another chance since it had been quite a while since I'd had any of their cereals.  At 190 calories per serving, it's somewhere in between healthy cereal and junk cereal on the caloric chart.




Based on the cover of the box, I was expecting to see something that looked like granola when I opened the box and it certainly fit the bill.  It wasn't quite granola as they say that their clusters are made with seven whole grains and sesame, but based on looks alone, it passed the test.

After passing the looks test, I admit that I was kind of intrigued by this one and decided to put it to test by eating it dry.  Could this finally be the Kashi product that I liked?  After biting in and initially tasting the solid crunch, I was even more excited about this one.  As I kept chewing, it went all downhill from there.  The crunch quickly dissipated to a flavorless cluster of grains.  They say that these clusters have a mix of honey and cinnamon in them and maybe they do, but the taste is so faint that I could barely even detect it.

After the dry test, it was time for the "wet" test by submerging it in fluid.  I mixed it in with some yogurt to make a parfait and was expecting the crunch from the dry test to carry into the wet test as well.  The faint sweetness was long gone as well.  Granola usually stays hard and crunchy when in milk or yogurt, so I was expecting this Kashi to do the same and it did not.  When mixed with my yogurt, it lost its crunch and just turned into balls of grain mush.  Not exactly appetizing.  Frankly, it was like I was eating oatmeal at that point.  I love oatmeal, but I added it into my parfait because I wanted crunch.  Complete letdown.

Buy It or Fly By It?  Without question, definitely FLY BY IT.  This was an abysmal failure.  When you market yourself as a crunchy cereal, the consumer would expect that the crunch held up when mixed with fluid.  Is that too much to ask?  Apparently it is because Kashi couldn't deliver.  In my mind, these are no better than Rice Krispies.  Rice Krispies are at least fun since they snap, crackle and pop.  Kashi just sits there like a useless blob.  It makes me wonder if paying the Manager's Special price of $3.49 was even too much for this.

FLY BY IT!!
What makes this even worse is that I've still got the rest of a big box to finish.  Ugh, this one may take a while.  Oh well, at least I got it on sale.

2 comments:

  1. I don't agree with you. I find Kashi Go Lean Crunch stays crunchy for a long time after milk is added. In fact I let it sit in the milk for about 10 minutes before eating it so it won't be so darn hard. It also contains a lot of protein and fibre. Keeps me full and satisfied until at least noon. For me it's one of the best cereals on the market as far as satiety is concerned. As to the price, you don't need to eat as much of it at any given time to feel full. I eat barely a cup and add a little Bran Buds. So a box of it lasts quite a long time.

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  2. Go Lean Crunch is nothing but a fart producing product. I've busted more ass from Go Lean than all the beans that the Bush family could produce in a year! Don't get me wrong. Go Lean Crunch is delicious, but prepare for stomach cramps, diarrhea and intense air biscuit entertainment for about 18 hours after eating it!. No thanks.

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