Trader Joe's Flamin' Hot Cheetos Dupe Is Back Just When We Lost All Hope

While Trader Joe's customers love to rave about the best deals, they've also learned over time not to get too attached to them. TJ's always seems to discontinue favorite products, relegating gems like the pancake bread you can't buy anymore and all the frozen foods you might never eat again to the trash heap of discontinued commodities. But in a recent example of why folks shouldn't give up on hoping that those cherished items will be seen on shelves again one day, Trader Joe's just brought back its Spicy Cheese Crunchies, a once popular TJ's snack that is a not-so-subtle nod to Flamin' Hot Cheetos.

Customers first got a taste of Trader Joe's Spicy Cheese Crunchies back in 2018, and they quickly became a must-have munchie for many TJ's loyalists. But just when admirers of the blazing puffed corn snack thought they would be around for good, the retailer yanked them from the shelves in 2021 without an explanation or suggestion that they would ever make a comeback. Yet, out of the blue, Trader Joe's is giving folks a chance to get their fiery crunch on once again and for a slightly lower price than people can buy the Frito-Lay product at stores such as Walmart and Target.

Although Trader Joe's Spicy Cheese Crunchies bear a strong resemblance to Flamin' Hot Cheetos, their makeup couldn't be more different. They both utilize cornmeal and vegetable oil as a base, but when it comes to the seasoning, the road forks. Whereas the Frito-Lay snack contains a host of artificial colors that give the product its signature flaming shade, Trader Joe's version gets its color from a combination of turmeric, vegetable juice, and paprika. Chili pepper is primarily responsible for the heat in TJ's bagged munchies, which can't be found in Chester Cheetah's red-hot nosh of choice amongst the many hard-to-pronounce ingredients like disodium guanylate and sodium diacetate, just to name a couple.

As expected, fans of the snack are celebrating their triumphant return. On the subreddit r/traderjoes, one Redditor wrote, "Grabbed a bag today after I saw this post, and I will be going back for more tomorrow." There's also a nostalgia factor at play for some, with one person commenting, "OMG, my diet in college during finals was always giant iced black coffees and Spicy Cheese Crunchies!!" Still, that fiery heat is a double-edged sword, with one saying, "THESE ARE BACK?!?!? Omg ... my poor stomach." Trader Joe's Spicy Cheese Crunchies are officially back, but eat at your own peril.