Jack Link’s Sasquatch Original Angry Big Sticks Review

Jack Link’s Sasquatch Original Angry Big Sticks have appeared recently at my local Sheetz convenience store. I’ve sampled a few of these very long beef sticks since. These have slightly more meat than the monster-sized 1.94 ounce Slim Jims, I love the bigger, 2.2-ounce size, including this mild, original-flavored version. The Sasquatch line appears to be geared to compete with Slim Jim’s Monster series. While this flavor, like all the other Jack Links snacks is a highly processed, moderately seasoned beef stick, these flavorful treats nonetheless, completely stop hunger pangs during the work afternoon. Plus, the Jack Link Sasquatch-sized flavors are a great night-time snack to enjoy when it’s too early to go to bed but too late to eat anything really heavy. As this is milder than the Hot Furious flavor, eating this near bedtime shouldn’t pose as much of a threat of stomach upset, in my view. I detected little if any kick in this flavor. They keep the spices lower here. Sometimes, it’s better to have a less spicy snack, especially if you want to be able to fully taste anything else that you eat within several minutes after eating this snack. This weaker flavor will not at all bias the tastes of subsequent foods that you sample.

Benefits, Advantages, Pros, and Features

I’m glad Jack Link got into the beef stick snack business. Slim Jim needed some competition, the result of which has been excellent-tasting beef stick foods from both companies. While I perceive Jack Link’s products to be the underdogs in this battle for eminence, they nearly match Slim Jim, toe to toe, in terms of flavor, texture, availability, and price. So they may not be on top today. But if Jack Link keeps producing the high-quality products I’ve seen, they may well reach the top someday soon. Good luck Jack.
Kids love these snack treats, which is nice since they have far less added sugar than candy bars or other sweet confections. Plus, there’s so little heat in this treat that virtually no child will ever complain about this being “too hot.”
This product makes little mess of the child’s clothing and hands, although you may have to wipe off the oily juice that sometimes oozes from the really fresh beef sticks.
These big stick snacks are less chewy than beef jerky. While I enjoy jerky chew and strips occasionally, I also like the often more diverse and modern, abroad-tastes of Jack Link’s Sasquatch flavors without having to open and close my jaw so many times, just to swallow the beefy bit without it sticking in my throat.
Indeed, Jack Link sticks are way easier to chew up and swallow than beef jerky.
Stringy bits of this beef snack stick in the teeth far less often than those of beef jerky.
The smoked beef aroma represents well the actual smoked beef, mildly-spiced flavor. In fact, these sticks smell virtually identical to how they taste.
I can’t imagine ever becoming burned out on this Original Angry flavor. Returning to eating these after a spell always feels as enjoyable as the first time.
That spicy juice, though a bit irritating, is a delightful and flavorful feature of this stick snack, though it requires soap and water to completely get off of the fingers and lips. This stick may ooze more of that juice when bitten than the corresponding Slim Jim Monster sticks. But not offensively more.
They cellophane wrapping is indeed air-tight, keeping the aromas and flavors inside from getting out, and any odors and flavors outside from getting in.
Nonetheless, this wrapper easily peels off when you’re ready to dig in.

Disadvantages, Cons, Problems, and Concerns

Any flavor of this product is a highly processed food with a sizable list of undesirable (in my opinion) food additives, including dextrose, salt, corn syrup, and sodium nitrite.
Original Angry Jack Links are also rich in total sodium at 840 milligrams whole stick, and 300 calories to boot.
These numbers place this Jack Link’s snack at my house on the once-in-a-blue-moon treat list, though its satisfying beef and mildly spicy flavors can entice you to consume it way more frequently. It does this to me now and then, and then again.
26 fat grams per Sasquatch stick, and 10 of those is saturated fat. Indeed, the included Nutrition Facts label paints a pretty negative picture of this product as a healthful food. But it is however, an excellent-tasting food, and apparently still in high demand. I often see empty boxes of this product at the store (out of stock).

Ingredients

Beef, mechanically separated chicken, water, salt. Contains 2% or less of rice bran isolate or rice flour, corn syrup, dextrose, spices, flavoring, fructose, molasses powder (refinery syrup, cane molasses), hydrolyzed vegetable protein (corn, soy, wheat), paprika extractives, smoke flavor, lactic acid starter culture, sodium nitrite, soybean oil.

Nutrition Facts

Serving size: 1 ounce, 28 grams. Servings per container: About 2.
Amount per serving: Calories: 150. Calories from fat: 120.
Total fat: 13 grams, 20% DV.
Saturated fat: 5 grams, 25% DV.
Trans fat: 0 grams.
Cholesterol: 30 milligrams, 10% DV.
Sodium: 420 milligrams, 18% DV.
Total carbohydrate: 2 grams, 1% DV.
Dietary fiber: 0 grams, 0% DV.
Sugars: 0 grams.
Protein: 6 grams.
Vitamin A: 0% DV.
Calcium: 2% DV.
Vitamin C: 0% DV.
Iron: 6% DV.

Product Rating

I’d recommend this spicy prepared-meat snack, says my taste buds, though the high fat and sodium content reduces my rating a trifle. Thus, I’d award a 90 out of 100 rating.

Where To Buy Jack Link’s Sasquatch Original Angry Big Sticks

Look for this snack food at larger 24-hour convenience stores and bigger grocery outlets. They come in an orange and red wrapper with the white backing and black and white text.

References

Revision History

2015-02-05: Moved this post to the Tom’s Diet Quest blog, added whitespace, adjusted ad placement, and tweaked the content.
2012-05-09: Originally published.