11 Best Asian-Inspired Snacks From Costco

Any Costco membership holder knows by now that the store is the place to go when you need to stock up on all things snack-tastic. The superstore has an abundance of sweet, salty, and savory snacks inspired by different cuisines, and since you can get them in bulk at a decent price, it's a great place to restock your pantry if you have a big family or are about to host a party. There's one Costco snack category that you may have hardly explored yet, though. In a sea of flavored nuts, crunchy chips, and chocolates galore, there are tons of Asian-inspired snack offerings that should not be overlooked.

Fans of Asian food who frequent Costco are likely well aware of the Asian snacks the store carries. They likely have a favorite or two that they can't help but pick up when they head in. Costco's Asian-inspired snacks range from sweet and savory potato chips and small, fruity cakes to beef jerky and spicy peanuts. Even if you've never tried Costco's selection of Asian-inspired snacks, I highly recommend you give them a go — you just may find a new favorite. I tried a selection of Asian-inspired snacks from Costco and considered the taste and texture of each one. I can confidently say that the following are among the best of them.

Never had pineapple cakes before? And I'm not talking about a pineapple upside-down cake. These small, pineapple-filled sweet cakes are a staple in Taiwanese culture. They're often given as a celebratory gift during the holidays.As someone who usually eschews pre-packaged baked products in favor of homemade ones, I had fairly low expectations for Isabelle's pineapple cakes. However, I was met with a pleasant surprise upon biting into one of them.

But before I dote on the flavor, it's only fair to mention the beautiful and convenient packaging the cakes are wrapped in. I don't love individually-packaged items in general because too much packaging can be wasteful, but it makes perfect sense here. The individually-wrapped Isabelle pineapple cakes make for a great gift bag addition or a grab-and-go party snack. They're small but quite dense, which isn't a bad thing. The buttery, somewhat-dry cake is filled with a thick pineapple-melon jelly. The pineapple comes through without being too strong, and though the cakes do have a pretty high sugar content, they don't taste too sweet. Each one is hearty enough to satisfy my craving, and I don't feel the urge to gorge myself on them. 

Fans of seaweed snacks should, without hesitation, sprint to Costco and buy Kirkland's version immediately. Given the booming seaweed snack market, the brand was bound to carry its own seaweed snack eventually. Its organic roasted seaweed snacks are a valued contribution to the scene. As a bonus, these seaweed sheets aren't just for snacking. Crush some and use them as a salty topping on your next Asian-inspired dinner, or tear up a couple sheets of seaweed for egg drop soup.

Kirkland's seaweed snacks are paper-thin, yet manage not to crumble at the slightest touch. The snacks were slightly sticky in texture, but realistically only stuck to my teeth a little bit. It wasn't unpleasant at all, and I liked that the snacks weren't too dry. As for the flavor, it tasted like very pure, unadulterated seaweed. It was very reminiscent of sushi and wasn't not too salty. The sesame added a slight nuttiness to the snacks. One pack comes with a ton of sushi snacks — definitely enough to satisfy a craving for the ocean-esque food. If you like seaweed snacks, give Costco's Kirkland brand a try. 

If I had to pick a personal favorite of Costco's Asian-inspired snacks, it very well might be this Golden Island Korean barbecue pork jerky. The smell that I got from opening the bag hinted that this would be an enjoyable snack; its sweet-umami smell was indeed reminiscent of Korean barbecue. The jerky also looked relatively thin, which was a welcomed departure from some of the thicker jerkies I'd tried in the past. 

If you open this bag expecting a completely dry jerky, you may be disappointed. This jerky is slightly wet and oily in texture, but once you try a bite, I bet you won't mind in the slightest. This jerky has a delightful sesame flavor and its brown sugar and soy sauce combination is very apparent without being overwhelming. Even better than its Korean barbecue flavors, though, is the jerky's texture. It's exceedingly tender and would be easy to incorporate into a Korean barbecue recipe. I could also see this being a great addition to other recipes. For example, you could add this jerky to an omelet for a Korean-inspired touch, or even chop some up to use as a topping for a savory salad.

Any rice cracker fans here? Whether you prefer a store-bought version or enjoy making your own rice crackers, there's no denying that the simple snack is great for picky kids and tasty enough for adults to enjoy too. Personally, I loved rice crackers as a kid, and was excited to try these since I hadn't had any in years. Though I'd never tried Bin Bin's organic rice crackers, I thought I knew what to expect. However, these crackers were still better than I anticipated.

The biggest thing that surprised me about Bin Bin's crackers was their density. They weren't hard to bite through, but they also weren't nearly as light as I expected. I ended up really enjoying that — it meant each package of two crackers felt filling enough to be an adequate snack. The eating experience was also pleasant, as the crackers almost melt in your mouth as you chew them. There's a light, sweet soy flavor to the crackers that is a nice departure from Americanized rice cracker recipes. I'd pick these up in a heartbeat if I needed individual snacks to hand out to kids at sport practice or something to pack in my child's lunchbox. 

If you've never had gup shup peanuts before, do yourself a favor and pick up a bag of this snack the next time you head to your local Costco. Those who are already intimately acquainted with the snack probably agree with me; these coated nuts are the spicy, savory, tangy snack you needed in your life yesterday. These peanuts were among the most flavorful snacks on this list.

These gup shup peanuts were, in a single word, delicious. I was obsessed with their texture — you bite through a crunchy, crispy coating to get to the soft peanut in the center. These contrasting textures made for a pleasurable snacking experience. The nuts were also just on the edge of being too spicy for me, but again, the peanut worked to mellow out the spice a bit. Flavors of chili, coriander, and cumin all come through strongly and the peanuts almost taste like lime, though there's no lime on the ingredients list. Fans of spicy, tangy snacks are sure to enjoy these peanuts; they have a depth of flavor that makes it hard to eat just one. Even those who are spice-averse may like these nuts. 

I have a sneaking suspicion this will be a divisive choice for the "best snacks" qualifier of this list, so I'll concede one point: These fried calamari snacks probably aren't for everyone. They taste very fishy (if you're looking for a subtle flavor, you won't find it here), and personally, I don't think they're super enjoyable straight out of the bag — you'll have to doctor them up a bit first. But for consumers who want a potent calamari snack and have an air fryer, then this is probably the pick for you. 

To be honest, eating these straight from the bag wasn't the greatest experience. The calamari was chewy and so hard to bite through that they almost didn't make this list. Fortunately, I saw that the back of the bag recommends heating the calamari up for a tastier experience. I popped a handful into my air fryer for about 4 minutes and they were instantly way better than they were out of the bag. I still wouldn't call these "light and crispy," but they are tasty and certainly fit the bill for a fried calamari snack. Heat them up in the air fryer, oven, or toaster oven, and choose your favorite dipping sauce before going to town.

Never heard of takoyaki before? The famed Japanese street food is a savory, fried seafood-based ball. Given the success of the street food, it's unsurprising that a takoyaki-inspired snack would come on the scene. Calbee's takoyaki balls are corn puffs flavored with Japanese-style barbecue sauce. One bite will transport you to the country, thanks to its unique flavor combination. If you're homesick for Japan, give these a try.

They look like cheese puffs, but don't let that fool you; these takoyaki balls aren't cheesy in the slightest. They boast a nice mixture of sweet and savory, with a mild seaweed flavor that's just apparent enough to remind you of the ocean. My single qualm is that the sweetness tasted ever so slightly artificial. Had that not been a factor, these would have scored a perfect 10 for me. The texture, however, is delightful. These corn puff snacks are light, airy, and crunchy (and in this way, the snacks are very reminiscent of cheese puffs). It's easy to lose yourself in even just a small bowl of them, so I don't suggest eating these from the bag, lest you get too carried away.

If you want a savory potato chip and are tired of the classic sour cream and onion or barbecue flavors, head over to Costco to grab a bag of Classic Night Market flavor potato chips. These chips, which are inspired by Taiwan's street food scene, are reminiscent of a stew/curry, though the flavor so distinct that I honestly couldn't put my finger on what they remind me of. I can see this also being a potentially divisive snack as it too boasts potent flavors. But, my hunch is that the average consumer will love these chips.

I only have one complaint about these chips, which is that they had slightly too much soy sauce flavor. Other than that, they were surprisingly delightful. Their tomato flavor was apparent and they were slightly herbal and sweet. I also thought they had strong peppery flavors. If I had to re-name these, I'd call them "sweet soy herbal vinegar tomato potato chips." I found myself wishing I had a warm curry to dip them in, or a bowl of tomato soup to crumble them into.

Shrimp chips are a light, fried snack made primarily with shrimp and palm oil (occasionally with other flavors in the mix). This bag of Happy Shrimp Chips from Costco was garlic butter-flavored, which I liked immensely, though I can't imagine not liking an unflavored version of the snack. A huge bag of these chips only set me back about $10 and could last a while in my house — that, plus their crazy snackable quality, made them an easy buy for me.

These shrimp chips are simply delightful. They're light and airy, with a very gentle shrimp flavor, a slight sweetness, and herby notes of garlic and rosemary. They almost melt in your mouth as you eat them and I'm guessing they'd make a good crunchy snack for someone with sensitive teeth. Don't expect to be hit over the head with flavor, but that's ultimately why I enjoyed these so much; it was easy to have a full bowl of chips and not feel overwhelmed by them. If your Costco carries the garlic butter flavor, opt for those. But if you're stuck with just an unflavored option, go ahead and give that a try as well.

Simply opening this bag of HTY sweet beef jerky for the first time sent me straight to Reddit, where I found that consumer opinions were divided. So, as with the aforementioned calamari snacks, I'll walk you through what to expect from these jerky pieces. Don't expect a dry, American jerky — this jerky is fairly wet, which, if you're not expecting it, can be off-putting when you open the bag. The smell was also pretty strong and not entirely pleasant, but don't let that stop you from giving these a try.

This wet jerky has a slightly fuzzy texture that can also be unsettling at first, but once you get used to it, it doesn't feel like a big deal. It isn't as tender as other jerky varieties I've had, but it's also not tough, per se. Though, I think that's just due to it being a wet jerky. The jerky is indeed sweet and I can see some consumers calling it overly so, but if you're in the market for a sweet jerky, don't hesitate to grab a bag of this stuff. Again, I don't think this is a universally lovable snack — however, it wouldn't surprise me to learn that sweet jerky lovers enjoy it immensely.

I'll admit that I'm a longtime consumer of Costco's organic crispy coconut rolls. One bag is huge and only costs me about $10, so they're a justifiable buy whenever I'm craving a crunchy snack that's not potato chips. One thing I love about this snack is its versatility. Its unique, hollow design opens up a world of possibilities — pipe a chocolate mousse into them, dip them in white chocolate and coat them in sprinkles, or finely dice some strawberries to stuff inside of the tubes. 

Though the coconut flavor is definitely apparent in these rolls, it's subtle enough not to turn off folks who don't love coconut. The tropical fruit essence certainly won't overpower whatever flavor you may pair the rolls with. The texture of these coconut rolls is what really does it for me; they're light, crispy, and are just fun to bite into. They're very reminiscent of a wafer, or even a light ice cream cone. The black sesame seeds are a nice touch and add some visual appeal without compromising the flavor of the rolls too much. It would be easy to get carried away and eat a whole bag of these at once, so I recommend portioning some out before you start going to town on them.

In order to make this best-of list, these snacks had to fit a few important criteria. First, they had to be bite-sized enough to snack on, while also being filling and satisfying; I needed to be able to have a few without feeling like I'd had too much. They also couldn't taste too artificially-flavored, which happens occasionally with sweetened snacks. Though some of the snacks did have a hint of artificial sweetness (the takoyaki balls, for example), the rest of their flavor profile was well-rounded enough to keep them on the list. 

Finally, each snack had to taste good to some consumers, even if I didn't particularly love it. This kept some snacks that weren't my personal favorites from being booted off the list, like the HTY sweet beef jerky and the Mama's Choice light & crispy calamari snacks. It had to be readily apparent that a certain consumer could love these, even though they weren't my thing.