Review: The Popeyes X Hot Ones Menu Collab Set Our Taste Buds Ablaze

Summer may be winding down, but that doesn't mean you can't still turn up the heat. Popeyes is doing just that with the spiciest show on the internet, as the Louisiana-style chicken franchise is teaming up with Hot Ones to raise the temp. Starting September 15, the collaboration brings the show's iconic hot sauces to Popeyes chicken in three unique offerings, ranging from mild to sweat-inducing. 

First up are the Sizzlin' Sriracha Dippers, pickled garlic sriracha-marinated tenders served with buttermilk ranch and some Hot Ones sriracha so you can adjust the heat to your own taste. If a protein-packed chicken sandwich is more your style, there's the Smokin' Rojo Sandwich, where a brioche bun is home to a crispy chicken fillet topped with Hot Ones' Los Calientes Rojo spread and tangy pickles. Don't worry, there's a wing option, too — the Darin' Dab Ghost Wings are available in both traditional and boneless varieties, feature a ghost pepper dry rub, and are served with a Hot Ones Last Dab Ranch. And if that's not enough to scorch your taste buds, you can also snag a packet of The Last Dab, the single spiciest sauce in the Hot Ones universe. 

The collab is officially underway and only available for a limited time at participating Popeyes locations, so I needed to act fast. Fortunately, I was able to try all of the new items as soon as they hit the menu. Read on to find out if this collab is hot or not.

The concept of Popeyes Chicken Dippers is sound — small, bite-sized chicken strips — but the results tend to be closer to equal parts chicken and breading. It's for that reason that the Sizzlin' Sriracha Dippers leave something to be desired. The good news is that the chicken is tender and the breading is crispy, but I want more chicken with my chicken.

As for the breading itself, the flavor is on the mild side of mild. I do get a hint of garlic, but in a blind taste test, I'm not sure I'd pick out the flavor alone. Thankfully, the Pickled Garlic Sriracha packet picks up the slack. The sauce is thin, but packed with a peppery, vinegar flavor that brings the dippers to life. I squeezed a little on each piece before sending it for a dip in the buttermilk ranch, and the creamy, lightly spicy bite was lovely.

On their own, the Sizzlin' Sriracha Dippers are not going to appeal to fans of spice. They simply lack any kind of kick, but paired with the sriracha packet, they make for a fun, if not particularly spicy, starter. If you want more heat, buckle up, because it's on the way.

Yes, yes, yes, and oh yes! That's four enthusiastic yesses for a sandwich with four elements, each of which knocks it out of the park. First, the crispy chicken filet is tender, super juicy, and packs a great crunch without being over-breaded. The brioche bun is soft and brings some welcome sweetness to the sandwich, while the pickles present a fresher element with a hit of vinegar. The star of the show, though, is the Hot Ones' Los Calientes Rojo spread.

Talk about a pleasant heat. The Los Calientes Rojo spread is laid on thick, and I want more. The spice level is excellent, and it's creamy, which is a slight departure from the original sauce. Flavored with smoked red jalapeños, habaneros, apricots, and citrus, the Los Calientes Rojo sauce is good, but on this sandwich, it's great. This sandwich is definitely the star of this collaboration.

While the Carolina Reaper is still the hottest, the ghost pepper might be the most famous of the super-hot peppers. Slotting in around 1,000,000 on the Scoville Scale, the ghost pepper is designed to make your lips tingle and your nose run. Popeyes employs the ghost pepper in a dry rub that's applied to their boneless or traditional wings — with mixed results.

On one hand, the rub does have good flavor. It's hot without completely frying your taste buds and has just enough saltiness to tempt you into licking your fingers after each bite. The downside is that it's not very evenly dispersed across individual wings, let alone a full order. Instead, you end up taking a hot, seasoned bite here, followed by a largely unseasoned one there. As long as you work your way through a full wing efficiently, it's not a major problem, but I would like to see a more even coating.

Complaints aside, Popeyes makes a good wing (no wonder it was Anthony Bourdain's favorite fast food chicken). The chicken is once again very tender and the breading has a great crunch. I found myself enjoying the ASMR of each bite through the crispy, but not overly thick, breading. The wings are good, the seasoning is good, it's just the ratio that comes up a little short, but these are still very enjoyable wings.

I already touched on the merits of the sriracha sauce that comes with the Sizzlin' Sriracha Dippers. The sauce would honestly work well with any of the new menu items, and by the end of my meal, I had mixed the last of my sauce with the remainder of the buttermilk ranch and was dipping fries into the concoction. If you're looking for a spicy ranch, though, The Last Dab Ranch is on a different level.

I don't think I was properly prepared, and I've tasted the Last Dab sauce before. Maybe it's the word "ranch" that had my mind in a cool, creamy place, but while creamy is accurate, there's nothing cool about this sauce. Sold alongside the Ghost Wings, the Last Dab Ranch is far and away the spiciest item I tried. However, you can still go hotter, as Popeyes is also offering packets of the pure Last Dab sauce for $1. Unfortunately, my order was missing this little inferno packet, but after sweating through a few bites of the Last Dab Ranch, I can comfortably say that I've found my spice ceiling.

It might seem a little cliche, but I think every fast food chain needs to team up with Hot Ones. I tried out the Firehouse Subs colab earlier this year and loved it. Seriously, what's the downside of adding a little (or in some cases, a lot) of heat? Aside from the fun flavor possibilities, there's the excitement of knowing this next bite could be the one sends you into a new spice universe. Combine that with the crunch and flavor of Popeyes fried chicken and I'd gladly sign up any day.

This Popeyes and Hot Ones tag-team was hit and miss, but the Smokin' Rojo Sandwich alone is worth placing an order. If you want to try out a full tasting of your own, you can get the entire Popeyes x Hot Ones challenge for $16.99 at participating locations.

Popeyes reached out to Food Republic to set up a tasting of these new items. My order was delivered, and before diving in, I snapped the pictures you see above. My evaluation was based on taste, texture, and overall spice levels. Neither Food Republic nor I was compensated by Popeyes for this review.