As a reader of Jerking the Trigger, I suspect you probably pride yourself on your situational awareness. So, you are no doubt aware that Christmas is breathing down your neck. I also suspect that not all of you are done with your Christmas shopping yet. Stateside Man Goods can help.
Overview
I was recently contacted by Mike at Stateside Man Goods so he could tell me more about his business. Stateside Man Goods was started as service to provide truly premium care packages to those in the military. They still provide military care packages but have also expanded into a sort of one-stop-shop for premium gift baskets and care packages that any guy (and a lot of ladies) would love.
Stateside Man Goods stays true to their original purpose by donating care packages to troops and allowing others to donate money to go toward the purchase of those gift baskets. I was really impressed with Mike’s passion about his business, his product line, and his charity work so when he offered to send me a package of premium food items to review, I jumped at the chance. Sometimes it’s really hard to be me.
The package that I received included a smattering of some of Stateside Man Good’s most popular items including:
Yeah, This Stuff is Good…
Crocodile Crunch – This is the sort of nut mix that hits just about every craving all at once. It has a habanero/mango seasoning that is sweet, salty, and just a touch spicy at the same time. It isn’t as spicy as you would think from the habanero. I found it very mild. My wife thought it was pretty spicy. The honey roasted peanuts, salted cashews, pretzel balls, roasted pepper sesame sticks, goji berries and green peas were all great and there were plenty of each in the mix.
Teriyaki Beef Jerky by Mountain America Jerky – This is a pretty solid beef jerky. The teriyaki flavoring is pretty subtle and it tastes mostly like beef which is a good thing. It is the chewy type which I like better than the softer more tender stuff. It is hearty and would be great for taking on a hike.
Habanero Beef Jerky by Mountain America Jerky – The sticker on the package states “It’s Really Hot, Man!!” They aren’t kidding. This stuff will melt your face off and clear your sinuses. It has a bit of flavor and a lot of pain. I like spicy but this is more than I prefer. I let a few people who like very spicy things try it and they loved it. It is both very chewy and very moist which is nice. Normally, you get one or the other with jerky.
Perugina Milk Chocolate Bar – All chocolate is good. This is great. I like Hershey’s bars but this shames them. It tastes more like real cocoa and is creamier than what most people are used to when it comes to milk chocolate. My wife and daughters love this.
White Cheddar Popcorn from Deep River Snacks – If you like white cheddar popcorn, you’ll love this. The cheddar is pretty sharp and dry which I like. This is good stuff. My wife is less thrilled, but sharp, dry cheddar is man stuff. She still ate quite a bit of it. You know something is good when even someone who doesn’t like it can’t stop eating it.
Fisher’s Caramel Popcorn – This has nothing in common with the stuff that comes in a 55 gallon drum with a Santa painted on the side at your office’s white elephant gift exchange. That stuff is good because all caramel popcorn is good. This tastes more like actual caramel on actual popcorn. Real ingredients will do that.
Sour Cream & Onion from Dirty Chips – These are great chips. They don’t have the over powering fake onion taste of some similar chips. They were also very light and crispy. I could probably eat the whole bag without noticing.
Bold Bahama BBQ Kettle Cooked Potato Chips from Mike Sell’s – Best. BBQ. Chips. Ever. It is no secret that Mike Sell’s makes great kettle ships. They are extremely crispy and very light in spite of the fact that they are thicker than most chips. I love these chips (in moderation) but I had never tried the Bold Bahama BBQ flavor. It has a sort of sweet and spicy taste that has more bite than typical BBQ chips. They are excellent.
Original Paleo Stix – Everything that Steve’s Original makes is great, especially if you are a Paleo or Primal eater like me. These have a sort of smokey beef taste that will really remind you of a Slim Jim without the weird stringy beef. They remind me of the beef sticks that my favorite gun shop used to keep on the counter where I grew up. I should also point out that Stateside Man Goods has an
entire section dedicated to Paleo foods.
Tanka Bar – Cranberries and beef sounds like an unlikely combination, or at least it did to me. However, I can happily report that these things are awesome. They taste great and there are actual bits of cranberry in it which have a ton of tart and sweet flavor. Cranberries and beef – sounds weird, tastes great.
Cranberry Jalapeno Beef Jerky by Jeff’s Famous Jerky – This is my favorite thing in the package. It has just the slightest bit of heat. I didn’t think it was hot at all but my wife did. The little bit of spice offsets the sweetness of the cranberry and turns this jerky into something that I could eat by the handful. It is so good that it is almost like dessert. I don’t know who Jeff is but I can see why his jerky is famous.
Tanka Wild Buffalo Stick – You may be noticing a theme here. Beef (or bison) goes really well with cranberries. This has cranberries and grains of wild rice in it. It is like a Slim Jim for grownups. It tastes great and there is something really satisfying about the wild rice mixed throughout.
Wrap Up
I had an absolute blast trying all of these items. These are some truly premium, truly unique, and truly fun care packages. I can only imagine what something like this would mean to a deployed soldier. I know that when I was in college I would have loved to received something like this. You have to check out
Stateside Man Goods.
Thanks Matt, We appreciate your positive feedback regarding our Cranberry Jalapeno Jerky! Stateside Man Goods carries all of our 8 award-winning flavors on his website. We sure hope you and your readers will try them all!