I just ate Fruit Chew TXT MSG Candy.What the hell is that? These fruit-flavored gummy bites--imprinted with emoticons and text message phrases, such as l8r, lol, qt, btw, and : ) - are sort of like gummy conversation hearts. A large box of Fruit Chew TXT MSG Candy was included in a package I received from my friend, Christy.
As some of you know, Christy recently visited 1st Oriental Market, one of the largest Asian markets in Orlando, Florida. She shared highlights of her trip in a Facebook photo album entitled What Kate Mighta Ate. While the album's title seemed harmless, the description made Christy's intentions clear: She was on a quest to find food--bizarre food--for me to eat and write about here. An Orlando courier was dispatched a day after her outing, and Priority Mail from Florida soon arrived at my doorstep.
After viewing Christy's photos, I was a more than a little nervous about what she might send. She has a wonderful sense of humor, however, so I knew it would be something silly, maybe a bag of crackers with a goofy logo or some fish-flavored candy. I opened the 20-pound package and realized immediately that I had grossly underestimated Christy's dedication to this project. The box was packed with all kinds of crazy Asian food items: crispy wafer rolls, mixed bean crackers (with dried anchovies), a can of peanuts with soup, cashew nut crisp, rice candy, chewy taffy with a peanut butter center, duck-flavored noodles, a can of seasoned cockles (?), aloe vera dessert (?!), "Wee Glee Gum," and more. The print on many of the labels is in Chinese, so there's really no telling what's inside!
Why did I eat this? The picture on the Fruit Chew TXT MSG Candy box looked like something I might not hate and the ingredient list, printed in English, gave no indication that the candy would kill me. (I don't know what cockles are, but they definitely sound like a substance that could be toxic if cooked improperly.) Plus, Cassie and Ellie, lovers of all things gummy, were dying to try it. The candy was very fresh and soft when we opened the box. Ellie, our resident fruitarian, loved it; Cassie responded with a noncommittal shrug and admitted that she really only wanted to play with the text message phrases. I ate a few and thought they were okay, but I really don't care for gummy candy. It was difficult to discern any difference in the flavor of each color; it all had a vague citrus taste.
I've decided that the best way to conquer this box of peculiar food is to start with the most innocuous-looking items and work my way down. Much more food from Christy to come, but don't expect a seasoned cockles post anytime soon!
Satisfaction rating: 1
