Nearly Half Of People Surveyed Think This Popular Doritos Flavor Is The Best

Snacks we enjoyed during childhood just have a way of conjuring up the most incredible nostalgia. And perhaps one of the most dominant snacks is the humble chip. Found in nearly every child's lunch box and a variety of vending machines in schools and offices across the country, there's no denying the satisfaction that comes from the salty, crunchy snack. According to The Healthy, their dopamine-triggering salt creates a signal to the brain that just keeps you craving more.

In various recognizable names, chip brands actually landed in three different places on Eat This, Not That!'s list of the 25 most popular snack brands. And of those brands, Insider used Google Trends to identify the most popular chip brand in every state, with Doritos taking a sweeping win over all but five in the Southwest. So now that they've established the best of the best. Mashed has taken it one step further and surveyed 655 U.S. residents in order to find out which flavor of chip is the most popular when it comes to the most beloved brand: Doritos.

Just about 46% of the 655 respondents agree that Cool Ranch is by far the best flavor in the Doritos repertoire. While Cool Ranch contains some chemicals and preservatives common to any processed food, their flavor actually comes from a blend of vegetable powders (including onion, tomato, and garlic) that's mixed with buttermilk and cheddar cheese. 

Though perhaps not among those who were surveyed, celebrity chef Grant Achatz is a fan, too. Maxim reported that he even created his own version of the recipe for a course at Alinea, and noted that when the flavor came out in 1986, "Cool Ranch Doritos blew the collective minds of junk food addicts around the world," due to their creamy, yet spicy taste, and apparently they're still blowing people's minds to this day.

Other flavors that were in the running include Spicy Nacho, which earned 18.47% of the vote; Spicy Sweet Chili, which won over 14.66% of voters; and Flamin' Hot Limon, which gained 9.16% of the vote. Salsa Verde and Poppin' Jalapeño came in at last, with each getting 5.65% and 6.11% respectively. Seems like we owe our condolences to the other flavors; they never stood a chance!