The Case For Storing Your Sour Patch Kids In The Freezer

We've pretty much seen it all when it comes to candy innovation. There are giant gummy bears that are the size of your head, and candy slime marketed as Reindeer Snot. But if you're just an average person with regular candy at home and want to try something new, there are tons of people online taking the radical step of putting their gummy candy — specifically Sour Patch Kids — in the freezer.

There are several reasons why the freezer is a top-tier storage method for Sour Patch Kids. First, according to many, they simply taste better frozen. Now, this is a matter of personal opinion, but there is some consensus out there. Sour Patch Kids made our list of candies that taste better frozen, and some sweet treat lovers have even claimed that every candy tastes better cold.

The next reason some say that these iconic gummies are better in the freezer is because they take longer to eat. This may seem counterintuitive, but because they're tougher to chew, you don't need as many of them to satisfy your candy craving. This is great if you're trying to keep an eye on your candy consumption, or if you just want your bag to last longer. So, are Sour Patch Kids really better in the freezer? We put it to the test.

To test this hack, we tossed a bag of regular Sour Patch Kids and a bag of Sour Patch Kids Watermelon into the freezer. After a little less than 12 hours, the tasting began. You know when you get gummy bears as a topping for your ice cream and they become hard and tough to chew, like a delightful handful of little jaw exercises in the middle of your dessert? Yeah, that's not what happens to Sour Patch Kids in the freezer.

We tried the watermelon candies first, and they definitely do take longer to eat. The gummies were rock-hard at first, and we basically had to suck on them like hard candies. The cold sensation alongside the watermelon flavor was not unpleasant, but it didn't taste any better than the unfrozen variety. Once it thawed in our mouth, it did achieve that extra tough but satisfying chew that you would expect from a frozen gummy candy with a nice, chilly feel throughout. If you wanted to savor them even further, you could pair wine with Sour Patch Kids for an unexpectedly classy experience.

The problem is that, in between rock-hard and pleasantly chewy, the candy achieved a displeasing state that was reminiscent of undercooked pasta: soft and wet on the outside, and way too al dente in the middle. The only way to discover whether you were past that state or not was to be brave and take a bite. After about 20 minutes outside of the freezer, the watermelons reached the ideal texture while still nice and cold — but that's a long time to wait for an otherwise quick candy treat.

Because regular Sour Patch Kids are a little flatter and thinner, they were a bit easier and more enjoyable to eat right out of the freezer. They also seem slightly more sour than the watermelon option, and the cold and sour sensations together were delightfully playful in a more noticeable way.

However, there is a slight catch. While the watermelons got better when allowed to thaw for a few minutes, the opposite happened with the OG Kids. They got slightly crumbly and stale-tasting if they were eaten after about 15 minutes outside of the freezer. The verdict? It's all about the experience you want. Taste and texture-wise, our take is that regular Sour Patch Kids in the freezer are worth it, but the watermelons aren't ideal unless you have about 20 minutes to let them thaw.

Regardless of your pick, putting Sour Patch Kids in the freezer is a fun way to change up your chewy candy experience and add another layer of sensation to the mix. First it's cold, then it's sour, then it's sweet! It may be time to try this hack with other popular sour candies, as well.