You Might Not Know The Real Name Of Cheetos' Cheesy Dust

Cheetos are the unicorn of snack foods. Healthy or not healthy, it doesn't matter. They're magical. To paraphrase the words of Mike Meyer's character from So I Married an Axe Murderer, Frito-Lay puts an addictive chemical in those melt in your mouth Cheetos that makes ya crave them fortnightly. Once you start eating them, you can't stop unless you put the bag in the back of the freezer, and even then you might find yourself, moving around ice cream containers to find it. In a New York Times Magazine article, food scientist Steven Witherly called Cheetos "one of the most marvelously constructed foods on the planet, in terms of pure pleasure." And there has to be some truth to it because, in 2019, 5.44 million people in the United States ate 8 or more bags of Cheetos (via Statista).

But have you ever wondered what to call that red and orange residue that stains your fingers and hands as you chow down on your crunchy or puffy Cheetos? Many of us have affectionately termed it "Cheetos fingers" for lack of a better phrase, but guess what? We no longer have to make up phrases to describe this lick your fingers, salty, cheesiness. Cheetos added a new word to our vocabulary that not only describes the orange goodness but encapsulates the Cheetos fingers experience. Wonder what it is?

Wonder no more. Chester Cheetah tweeted the answer to the Twitterverse: "Cheetle is dust that sticks to your fingers when eating Cheetos. More magical than pixie dust." And he dared the world to show him their #Cheetle. But to give it even more clarity, as if it needed any, Frito-Lay is defining "Cheetle" as "that orange and red dust symbolic of true Cheetos fandom." And if you are unsure of how to appropriately use the word "Cheetle," they have you covered. Suggested uses include "My hands have Cheetle on them" and "Did you stain my shirt with Cheetle?" (via Fox News). 

We don't know what you think about this new term, but we think it's cheetle-tastic to finally have a new noun to use when we are inhaling our next bag of Cheetos. But Cheetle is more than just a new word. Per a Frito-Lay press release, Brandi Ray, senior director of marketing for the company noted that Cheetos lovers wear their "red- and orange-dusted fingers like a badge of honor," and we couldn't agree more.