Chips Ahoy & Heinz made a spicy tomato cookie — and China can't stop raving

Chips Ahoy has teamed up with Heinz to launch a limited-time Sweet and Spicy Tomato Cookie, and the early word from China — the only place you can actually buy it — is surprisingly enthusiastic. The cookie brand, known as Quduoduo in China, describes the treat as "bizarre and edgy" on Weibo.

The cookie pairs a "rich, crispy texture" with bright red, spicy chocolate chips inspired by Heinz Tomato Chili Sauce. According to Quduoduo, the treat is meant to deliver sweet heat up front with a lingering spicy aftertaste.

It landed on shelves nationwide and shoppers wasted no time posting their verdicts on the Chinese platform RedNote. One user said the heat stays with you but the spice level stays friendly: "The spiciness should be acceptable to most people across the country. The tomato flavor is very pronounced, and the sweetness outweighs the spiciness."

A "harmonious" mess that works

Another reviewer admitted the cookie is "better and more harmonious than expected," comparing the tomato note to cherry tomatoes rather than bigger, savory varieties. The cocoa, they said, takes a backseat — the chips read as "mainly just tomato."

Whether the flavor ever crosses the Pacific is an open question. "Swicy" food — hot honey and its descendants — is already having a moment in the U.S., so a tomato-and-chili chocolate chip cookie feels less cursed than it sounds.