Hot Pockets
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hot Pockets are microwaveable turnovers usually containing cheese and meat. Hot Pockets are currently produced by Nestlé internationally.
There are over twenty varieties of Hot Pockets, including both breakfast and lunch/dinner varieties. Nestlé also offers Lean Pockets, Hot Pockets Croissant Crust (formerly called Croissant Pockets), Pot Pie Express, Hot Pocket Pizza Minis (originally called Hot Pockets Pizza-Snacks), Hot Pockets Subs, Hot Pockets Calzones, and Hot Pockets Breakfast items which include the meat, egg and cheese varieties, and the Fruit Pastries.
Hot Pockets were invented by Paul Merage and David Merage in the 1970s. They founded the company Chef America Inc. and began producing Hot Pockets for profit in 1983. In 2002, the Merages sold Chef America to Nestlé for $2.6 billion. Initially only available in the United States and Canada, they are now sold by Nestlé in France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom under the Maggi brand. Quote from Nestlé 2005 Full Year Financials: "In Europe, the roll-out of Hot Pockets, small microwaveable frozen meals, is gaining momentum in France, Germany, Spain and the UK."
Hot Pockets, which come frozen, are often known for a "sleeve" or "crisper" (technically, a susceptor), used to crisp food using a microwave. The sleeve converts microwave energy into heat in order to crisp the crust, which is usually penetrated by microwaves. The sleeves, branded "Qwik Crisp", are common in most Hot Pockets varieties. Recent Hot Pockets Subs brands have refrained from using such crispers, as some sandwiches are said to be soft-baked.
Recently, Hot Pockets began introducing whole grain crusts, following a trend of many convenience product purveyors offering lower carbohydrate choices. This new variety is part of their "Lean Pocket" line, under the heading "Lean Pocket Ultra".
[edit] Criticism
Comedian Jim Gaffigan has a routine dedicated to Hot Pockets, in which he talks extensively about their white trash ethos, the fact that their centers are either frozen or "boiling lava hot", their alleged tendency to give the eater diarrhea, the contents of Hot Pockets (from "nasty meat" to more Hot Pockets), the introduction of the Breakfast Hot Pockets ("Finally you can have a Hot Pocket for breakfast, a Hot Pocket for lunch, and be dead by dinner. Dead Pocket"), and the product's jingle, which he sings often in an odd falsetto voice.
Larry the Cable Guy has a similar routine in which he discusses the products alleged fecally related side effects. One other comedic reference to note can be heard on Ellen DeGeneres: Here and Now in which Ellen states, "I blame the microwave for most of our problems. Anything that gets that hot without fire, that's from the devil. You don't believe me? You put a hot pocket in there for three or four minutes, pop that thing in your mouth, if that's not hell, ladies and gentlemen, I don't know what is."
G4tv aired a parody commercial for the food on their "Attack of the Show" program[1]. The YouTube video criticizes the white trash leanings of the stereotypical Hot Pockets consumer by featuring a NASCAR fan abusing his pregnant wife when confronted about an empty box of Hot Pockets in the freezer.
