Everyone loves Pringles; however, adopting a vegan or plant-based diet is game-changing. Are you wondering if Pringles are one of the things you have to give up if you’re switching to a vegan lifestyle? You’re lucky you found your way to this article because we have the answers to all the questions going through your mind.
Short Answer:
Some Pringles are vegan-friendly, and others are not. It’s also worth mentioning that the recipes change from time to time, so it’s best to check the ingredients yourself to stay on the safe side.
Here’s a small list of some popular Pringles flavours you can still eat if you decided to go vegan:
- Pringles Original.
- Pringles Lightly Salted Original.
- Pringles Paprika.
- Pringles Smokey Bacon Flavour.
- Pringles Sweet Chili.
- Satisfy your snack craving with the irresistible taste of original flavor potato crisps; uniquely shaped and salted from edge to edge for a perfectly flavored bite every time
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Which Pringles Are Vegan and Which Are Not?
In this part of the article, we won’t just list the different pringle flavours and tell you whether they’re vegan or not. Instead, we’ll take a closer look at the ingredients to help you pick the vegan Pringles, even if they’re not mentioned here.
Vegan Pringles Ingredients
Deciding which ingredients are vegan was a bit tricky. For instance, the bacon taste has nothing to do with actual bacon. In fact, it’s mainly a mixture of natural flavourings, including spices, onion, coffee, garlic, and others.
Furthermore, as emulsifiers are usually derived from animals, the ones used in making Pringles are plant-based. That said, the following list includes all the ingredients you should be happy to see if you’re switching to a vegan diet:
- Dried Potatoes: To remove moisture
- Wheat Starch: Wheat is vegan, so nothing to worry about
- Corn Flour: Sometimes referred to as maise flour
- Yeast Powder or Extract: Although yeast isn’t derived from plants, all edible fungi are vegan
- Corn or Sunflower Oil: Vegetable oils are vegan
- Maltodextrin: A starch derivative
- Emulsifiers: Usually, E471, which is derived from a plant source. Mono and diglycerides are used as well
- Salts
- Rice Starch
- Sugar
- Onion Powder
- Citric Acid
- Spices
- Colour (Annatto)
Non-Vegan Pringles Ingredients
Non-vegan Pringles flavours are even more surprising than vegan ones. For example, the “Salt & Vinegar” flavour contains lactose, which, as you may already know, is a type of sugar that’s found in milk.
Moreover, most vegans expect the BBQ flavours to be vegan. Unfortunately, they’re not; these flavours contain whey, which is a milk protein. Jalapeno Pringles contain whey protein too, so they’re not vegan.
Here’s a list of the ingredients you should stay away from:
- Milk: Pasteurized milk, non-fat milk, buttermilk, etc
- Whey: Whey solids, whey protein concentrate, and reduced lactose whey
- Cheese: Blue cheese, cheese cultures, etc
- Butter
- Lactose
- Cream
Vegan Pringles
For those who want a quick peek at vegan Pringles rather than getting into the details, check out this list:
- Pringles Original
- Pringles Lightly Salted Originals
- Pringles Wavy Classic Salted
- Pringles Sriracha Asian Chili Sauce
- Pringles Smokey Bacon
- Pringles Paprika
- Pringles Salsa de Chile Habanero
- Pringles Wasabi & Soy Sauce
Non-Vegan Pringles
We wish the non-vegan list were a shorter one, but sadly, the majority of Pringles aren’t suitable for vegans. Here’s the list:
- Pringles Rice Fusion: Pringles Rice Fusion Peking Duck With Hoisin Sauce, Indian Tandoori Chicken Masala, Malaysian Red Curry, and Pringles Rice Fusion Japanese BBQ Teriyaki
- Pringles Tortilla: Pringles Original Tortilla Chips, Pringles Nacho Cheese, Spicy Chili, and Pringles Sour Cream Tortilla Chips
- Pringles Xtra: Kickin Sour Cream & Onion, Cheesy Nacho Cheese, Saucy BBQ, and Pringles Spicy Chili Sauce
- Pringles Salt & Vinegar
- Pringles BBQ
- Pringles Pizza
- Pringles Ranch
- Pringles Buffalo Ranch
- Pringles Cheddar Cheese
- Pringles Sour Cream & Onion
- Pringles Honey Mustard
- Pringles French Onion Dip Potato Crisps
- Pringles Jalapeno
- Pringles Hot & Spicy
- Pringles Steak
Pringles Vegan Alternatives
In this section, we’ll talk about the most popular Pringles flavours, tell you why they’re vegan or non-vegan, and mention some worthy alternatives for the non-vegan ones.
Are BBQ Pringles Vegan?
The majority aren’t because, as mentioned earlier, they contain milk protein, aka whey. Nonetheless, the popular Pringles Texas BBQ Chips are, in fact, vegan, and if you check the ingredients list, you conclude the same.
Are Salt & Vinegar Pringles Vegan?
This flavour contains lactose, so it’s not vegan.
Alternative: Lay’s Salt & Vinger.
Are Original Pringles Vegan?
Yes! The Original Pringles Flavour is vegan. Here’s a list of the ingredients:
- Dried Potatoes
- Vegan Oil (corn, cottonseed, high oleic soybean, and sunflower oil)
- Degerminated yellow cornflour
- Cornstarch
- Rice flour
- Maltodextrin
- Mono-and diglycerides
- Salt
- Wheat starch
Are Sour Cream & Onion Pringles Vegan?
Unfortunately, they’re not vegan because they contain dairy. However, you can still have them if you’re a vegetarian.
Alternative: Made in Nature Organic Veggie Pops.
Are Prawn Cocktail Pringles Vegan?
Prawn Cocktail Pringles contain skimmed milk powder and milk proteins, so they’re not vegan.
Alternative: Walkers Prawn Cocktail Crisps.
Are Paprika Pringles Vegan?
Yes, Paprika Pringles are considered vegan-safe because they don’t contain any dairy products.
Are Pizza Pringles Vegan?
Pizza Pringles contain whey, cheese, and milk, so you can sort to another option if you like this flavour.
Alternative: Enjoy Life Pizza Lentil Chips and Marco Snacks Pizza Pie Flavour.
Are Smokey Bacon Pringles Vegan?
Surprisingly, Pringles Smokey “Bacon” flavour is considered vegan. The smokey taste comes from burning sawdust and chips and condensing the resulting particles into a liquid that’s added to the chips.
As for the bacon, Pringles has a special mix that includes torula yeast, onion and garlic powders, coffee, sugar, and other species and natural flavourings that give a bacon-like taste.
Conclusion
It’s crystal clear that we can’t just say that Pringles are or are not vegan! We had to break things down and check each flavour on its own. As we were saying at the beginning of the article, it’d be better to know which ingredients are vegan-safe and which are not.
This way, even if new flavours come out, you’ll always know if they’re vegan or not without even looking it up.
