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Reviewed 18th October 2005
Purchased from: LIDL Supermarket, Elche, Spain
tirita de jamón curado (it shivers of cured ham?)
On a recent Trip to Elche in Spain, I veered off the beaten track to investigate the supermarket chaos that is LIDL, and for a mere €1.49 you can get yourself a 100g tub of Montefrio Pork Rinds. These were the only things I could find, so I thought I'd give them a try.
These are Pork Rinds, not true scratchings, just the skin, super fried and made bubbly, not solid like a scratching. There is also no fat layer underneath, so possibly a little better for your health.
They come in a large punnet/tub like strawberries do, which gives a whole new way of eating. Gone is the chance of delving your salty fingers in to a small foil packet, only to discover a giant scratching that you can't get your teeth around. What you get with these is a visual choice of your next victim.
Montefrio Pork Rinds look like the harder, meatier, older brother of a cheesy quaver. From massive and slightly curly to little tightly curled examples. All seem to be of the same width, indicating they are put through a production line cutting device.
They have a plain porky smell, which seems a little stale, but then again I can't see a sell by date, so they might very well be. The plainness of the smell is reflected in the taste, like a ready salted crisp, just salt which is good, but unfortunately it's not an even coating. This leaves some parts with none, and the crevices with loads. A few hairs were spotted which is a good sign, a bit of character never goes a miss.
The biggest were very big, which means taking a few bites to finish them off. This being a little like eating a doughnut, and getting sugar on your lips, but this time its pork skin and salt! Seeing as these are not true pork scratchings, but pork rinds, they are rather crunchy, but I think my Nan could cope with them, so no real danger.
These are the sort of thing i can see being served at an avant garde dinner party, perhaps with a dip.
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5/10 
