KitKat
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A KitKat is a confection manufactured by Nestlé. It consists of thin bars composed of several layers of chocolate-soaked wafer, covered in an outer layer of chocolate. Each finger is usually snapped from the bar to be consumed. Kit Kat bars available in the United States are manufactured by Hershey Foods Corporation.
The traditional bar had 4 fingers about 1 cm wide and 12 cm long; a snack variety of two fingers was later introduced. KitKat Chunky has one large finger approximately 2.5 cm wide.
This chocolate bar was originally launched in the UK as "Rowntree's Chocolate Crisp" in 1935, and renamed "KitKat" in 1937. The name is believed to have come from the Kit-Cat Club, an 18th Century Whig literary club whose meeting place had such low ceilings that paintings hung inside needed to have sections snapped off. Another explanation is that it is the sound made as one opens the packaging: "kit" as the foil snaps beneath one's thumb, and "kat" as a finger is broken off to be eaten.
The KitKat has been exported in a number of localised versions for overseas markets, such as the United States, Canada, Germany and Australia. Its availability and popularity varies between countries. In recent years, KitKats have become very popular in Japan, a phenomenon attributed to the coincidental similarity between the bar's name and the Japanese phrase kitto katsu, roughly translating as "I hope you win." This has reportedly led to parents and children buying them for school examination days as a sort of good luck charm. [1] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4230471.stm)
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KitKat varieties
Many varieties of KitKat have existed, either temporarily or permanently:
- Kit Kat Original — (different taste & texture in different countries)
- Kit Kat White Chocolate — US & UK, Germany
- Kit Kat Dark Chocolate — US, Canada, UK, Germany
- Kit Kat Orange — US limited edition, UK permanent edition
- Kit Kat Mint — US limited edition, UK permanent edition
- Kit Kat Chunky — UK, Canada, everywhere besides US
- Kit Kat Big Kat — (Hershey US)version of Chunky
- Kit Kat Kubes — Cube-shaped miniature snacks in UK
- Kit Kat Strawberry — Japan, Canada and UK
- Kit Kat Vanilla — Canada and UK
- Kit Kat Chunky White — hugely popular, limited edition UK, Australia and Canada
- Kit Kat Green Tea — Japan
- Kit Kat Inside Out — US — White Chocolate outside, chocolate creme filling and chocolate wafers
- Kit Kat Triple Chocolate — US — All three component made entirely out of chocolate.
- Kit Kat Peanut butter — Canada — A Kit Kat Chunky Bar with Peanut Butter Filling
- Kit Kat Chunky Caramel — Canada, Australia and UK
- Lemon Cheesecake Kit Kat — Germany and Japan
- Kit Kat Blood Orange
- Kit Kat Low Carb — UK
- Kit Kat Luscious Lime
- Kit Kat White Lemon and Yoghurt
- Kit Kat Apple (Japan)
- Kit Kat Passion fruit (Japan)
- Kit Kat White Winter (cinnamon zint - germany)
- Kit Kat Caramac — UK
- Kit Kat Hazelnut (aka KK Noisette, germany)
- Kit Kat Milky White (Germany)
- Kit Kat Fine Dark (Germany)
- Kit Kat Banana (Japan, limited edition)
- Kit Kat Pineapple (Japan ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Pineapple (South Africa)
- Kit Kat "Stick" Almond (Japan) STICK: individually wrapped long Kit Kats in boxes of 4
- Kit Kat "Stick" Half Bitter (Japan) STICK: individually wrapped long Kit Kats in boxes of 4
- Kit Kat Double Berry (Japan ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Cappuccino — Australia
- Kit Kat Yubari Melon (Japan) Melon Chocolate
- Kit Kat Melon (Japan) Milk Chocolate
- Kit Kat Gold (Japan) — has a fudge like covering with dusted cocoa powder on outside
- Kit Kat Christmas pudding (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Orange Chunky (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Cappuccino Kubes (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Mint Kubes (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Orange Kubes (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat White Hokkaido Milk (Japan ltd edition)
- Kit Kat Cafe Latte with Hokkaido Milk (Japan)
- Kit Kat Orange & Creme (US Sample)
- Kit Kat Mint (US Sample)
- Kit Kat Extra Creamy (US Sample)
- Kit Kat Coffee (US Sample)
- Kit Kat Yoghurt (Japan)
- Kit Kat Strawberries & Cream (UK ltd ed.)
- Kit Kat Editions Caramel
- Kit Kat Editions Orange
- Kit Kat Editions Red Berry
- Kit Kat Editions Passion Fruit and Mango
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US rights to the KitKat were licensed to Hershey's in 1970. The difference in size, ingredients and texture of bars manufactured by Hershey and Nestlé can be noticed when one from each company is put side by side.
Ingredients
Original KitKat ingredients, listed by decreasing weight: sugar, flour, cocoa butter, nonfat milk, chocolate, refined palm kernel oil, lactose, milk fat, soya lecithin and PGPR (emulsifiers), yeast, sodium bicarbonate, vanillin.
KitKat Trivia
One of the ingredients used in the production of KitKats is... KitKats! Part of the filling is made from KitKat bars which were damaged during the manufacturing process.
External links
- KitKat USA official site (http://hersheys.com/products/details/kitkat.asp)
- KitKat UK official site (http://www.kitkat.co.uk/)
- KitKat Australia official site (http://www.nestle.com.au/kitkat/body.asp)
- Pictures of various candy wrappers, including KitKats (http://snickers99.tripod.com/candymain.html)
- Extensive KitKat wrapper collection (http://www.mikesgarbage.com/wst_page2.php)
- Article about KitKat popularity in Japan (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4230471.stm)ja:キットカット