A vampire hates to see Mikey V's coming. Mikey V's is the Texas-based brand behind the Instagram-famous deep-fried garlic, which the company refers to as "gator toes." If you're the type of person who sees a recipe calling for three cloves of garlic and doubles it, then this is the snack for you. After seeing these cloves go viral on social media, we did what any savvy food site worth its salt would do: order every flavor.
The brand sells their crunchy garlic bites in 11 different flavors, from dill pickle to jalapeño cheddar to Moroccan. These might sound like a healthier alternative to other crunchy snacks like chips or Cheetos, but be forewarned: The garlic flavor is strong (and we mean strong).
Delish's assistant social media editor Izabela Campos couldn't wait to get her hands on the snack, but she was underwhelmed. "Don't get me wrong, I'm a GARLIC GIRL, but were these worth the major garlic breath? Not really. However, I wouldn't pass up the opportunity to try a wacky, unique product like deep-fried garlic," she said.
After throwing back a clove myself, I couldn't fathom trying any more. To be clear, I am pro garlic, but these just totally overwhelmed my palate. While I can't envision snacking on these, I do love the creative ways you can use these to amp up an everyday meal.
The gator toes are certainly not for the faint of heart, but luckily, the brand provides suggestions for other ways to utilize this pungent little snack. Besides enjoying them on their own, you can crunch them up to use as breading on chicken or pork, toss into your next salad in lieu of croutons, or even crumble some atop your next batch of mac and cheese or mashed potatoes. And with so many different flavors to choose from, you can get really creative. Now this is more my speed.
Among the Delish staff's favorite flavors? The Dill Pickle, Garlic Parm, and Ranch won top accolades. "Some flavors were overpowered by the garlic itself so really didn't come through much," noted Campos. "Dill Pickle being my fave, I'd prob have it with an ice cold beer or something you'd usually like to pair with a salty snack. The Garlic Parm I could see using in a salad as croutons or even crushing up to crust some chicken."
While these might not be for everyone, there are definitely big fans out there. "They are so damn good I can't stop eating them," raved one fan in a Reddit forum. "Gator toes are seriously addicting," another said. For some, they might just be worth the flavor that lingers in your mouth (and seeps out of your pores) for hours afterwards. And hey, if you're looking to keep the vampires away, these'll certainly do the trick. Plus, I now have a foolproof method for keeping the bad dates at bay.
