When it comes to reviews of protein powders we always try to find supplements with a point of difference. Whether it be a unique formula or a creative flavor, the different proteins are always the most interesting. A couple of months ago we actually decided to grab a newly released, unique protein powder with Crik Nutrition’s Chocolate Crik Protein. As mentioned we’re always looking to try new things, which is exactly what Crik’s cricket sourced protein is.
Before we get into our flavor review, it’s definitely worth going over the contents of Crik’s one and only product. The reason it’s important is because Crik Protein isn’t just a cricket sourced protein formula. The supplement features quite the list of protein sources with cricket protein being joined by organic brown rice, pea, and hemp protein. The contents result in a somewhat normal nutrition label listing 20g of protein, 9g of carbohydrates with 5g of that fiber, 4g of fat, and 150 calories.
Strong chocolatey scent
Being the kind of protein powder it is, we were all a little hesitant to try Crik Protein as comfortable as we would a regular whey formula. Things started off with a sniff test, which didn’t turn out too bad. The powder alone smells just like you’d expect a chocolate protein to, giving us a bit more confidence to head right in and drink it.
Tastes like a poorly flavored plant protein
At first, Crik Protein actually tastes quite sweet, so much so that if that first taste is relatively short you’ll probably dive right in for another mouthful. Once however you taste a good amount of Crik’s unique protein competitor things turn ugly rather quickly. While we don’t feel we’re overly picky when it comes to protein powders, and have never come across a protein we’d rather throw out than finish. Crik Protein is unfortunately one of the worst tasting proteins we’ve ever come across and is one we don’t plan on emptying.
Earlier we mentioned that the product isn’t just made up of cricket protein, as it also features brown rice, pea, and hemp. The reason we’re bringing that up again is because Crik Protein tastes very much like a poorly flavored brown rice and/or pea protein. Once you get past its initial, short and sweet chocolate hit, you’ll be overcome by a difficult combination of grains and dirt. If you’ve ever had a bad or average plant protein there is a good chance you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about with the grains and dirt description.
How to make it somewhat bearable
The only way we found Crik Protein to be at all drinkable was by having as much as we could at once. That way you get its short chocolate hit for as long as you keep drinking, although when you stop you will get hit by its horrible core flavor, that also hangs around long after you’ve swallowed. While we didn’t purchase Crik Protein for any dietary reasons, if we did we’d definitely be looking for another solution.
Disappointing compared to all types of protein powder
Being a non-whey protein we did expect Crik Protein to be a little bit different compared to our usual protein powders. Even with that lower expectation none of us were willing to finish a full serving of the mostly cricket supplement. If it sounds like we’re being at all rough because it’s not your typical whey protein, we can assure you that’s not the case. We’ve experienced quite a few alternative type proteins over the years — mostly plant based — and even compared to the worst of those Crik Protein is a disappointment.
