Kiwis love their Mince and Cheese pies. It has been a staple of the New Zealand diet for decades. Whether you’re smashing it back for breakfast or wanting an easy dinner, they’re an instant winner.
But two New Zealand lolly companies have taken the classic food staple and completely tampered with it, turning it into something so polarising it could break up relationships.
Kiwi sweets brands Pik’nMix Lollies NZ and Candy Cutique have merged mince and cheese pies with cotton candy in a mash-up that’ll have your taste buds doing gymnastics.
The sweet and savoury blend was advertised on their social media pages on April Fools day, leading people to think it was a classic stitch-up.
But the joke was on its customers after the company revealed the product actually exists and they’re in stock.
Taking to Instagram, Pik’nMix Lollies NZ wrote: “Your fav NZ companies @piknmixnz & @candycutique have teamed up to bring you an iconic kiwi treat!”
While many doubted the news, the company decided to double down.
“You thought it was a joke? Think again! We take our Cotton Candy very seriously here. Our Mince and Cheese flavoured cotton candy is made with only the finest ingredients, including Wild Harvested Kombu Seaweed Leaves and Dairy Free Parmesan Alternative from @pacific_harvest and @angelfoodcheese.”
How did they come up with the idea? Pik’nMix owner Merritt Watson told the Herald they wanted a flavour that would seem to be an April Fools joke but had the potential to be successfully pulled off.
“We came up with the idea for a weird flavour of Cotton Candy specially for April Fools. Our Cotton Candy is made in collaboration with our friends at Candy Cutique in Wellington,” he said.
“We wanted to produce a flavour that people would immediately write off as being an April Fools joke but might also taste pretty good. Sweet and savoury usually works quite well.”
Customers and candy fans responded to the news of the latest Kiwi mashup, and many were divided about the concept.
“I’m dead!! I just bought some and I don’t know how to feel about it,” one wrote.
Another said: “It may not be a joke... but it should be.”
A third added: “Mince and cheese cotton candy? Just typing those words in that order makes me want to gag.”
“You are insane, I need this in my face hole right now!” a fourth demanded.
Watson also revealed mince and cheese wasn’t the only idea they had cooked up, and were close to going with some other classics.
“A few flavours were explored for April Fools. Cheese Burger was one option but we couldn’t match the acidity flavour produced by the gherkins in a burger. Tomato sauce was another option but it didn’t sound whacky enough to trigger the response.
“We even tried to create a fairly crude product photo example so people would think it had been produced on MS paint.
“We landed on a Mince n Cheese Pie flavour because it’s quintessentially Kiwi.”
So far the product has been popular with people curious to try it for themselves.
For those unsure whether they’re fans of the product, Pik’nMix has sent a note out to those who have purchased the product, throwing in an extra set of goodies.
“The Mince n Cheese Cotton Candy flavour isn’t for everyone! The flavour is very... Unique! Just in case you’re not a fan of the savoury/sweet combo we’ve added in these lollies as a palette cleanser. Enjoy!” the note read that has been sent to customers.
So how is the flavour created?
“To make the base cotton candy we have used organic cane sugar. The flavourings come from 3 ingredients. Chia Seeds, Wild Harvest Wakame Seaweed (from Pacific Harvest) created the salty umami base flavour.
“Dairy Free Parmesan Alternative (from Angel Food) was used for the savoury cheese flavour.”
The product is also vegan friendly, and has a shelf life of eight months.
For those who are brave enough, you can find the product here.