What is a Tim Tam in Australia? If you’re from Australia, you’ll know. But what exactly does it taste like? What ingredients are in Tim Tams?
The Tim Tam is an Australian icon and is the perfect snack for any time of day, with or without milk. In Australia, this sweet treat can be found everywhere, from schools to convenience stores and bakeries.
Credit: unsplash
The Tim Tam is a chocolate biscuit first created in 1954 by Arnott. It is the Australian version of the traditional American chocolate sandwich cookie.
Read on to find out more about this iconic Australian snack.
Tim Tam is a chocolate biscuit first created in 1954 by Arnott. It is the Australian version of the traditional American chocolate sandwich cookie.
A Tim Tam is two malted biscuits, separated by a light chocolate-cream filling and coated in a thin layer of textured chocolate.
Is Tim Tam Australian?
Yes, Tim Tam is an Australian icon. This delicious chocolate biscuit can be found in schools, convenience stores, and bakeries all over Australia.
Tim Tam Chocolate Biscuit. Credit: canva
History of Tim Tam
Ian Norris, the director of food technology at Arnott’s, created the Australian-based biscuit. In 1958, he took a world trip looking for inspiration for new products. While in Britain, he found the Penguin biscuit and decided to “make a better one.”
These biscuits were named by Ross Arnott, who attended the Kentucky Derby in 1958 and decided that the name of the race-winning horse, Tim Tam, was perfect for his planned new line of biscuits.
Pepperidge Farm, a sister company of Arnott’s, began importing the Tim Tam to the United States in 2008. The Tim Tams are still “Made in Australia,” and packaging in the US bears the slogan “Australia’s Favorite Cookie.”
In 2017, dark chocolate mint was produced and distributed only in America to add a new flavor for American consumers.
Tim Tam Slogan
The official slogan is “It’s not a cookie, it’s a Tim Tam!“
This Tim Tam slogan was created in 2006 as part of a $4 million advertising campaign. It was designed to encourage people to try new things and be daring.
The slogan was so successful that it is still used more than 10 years later.
Chocolate Biscuit. Credit: canva
Different Varieties of Tim Tam
Two types of varieties of Tim Tam in Australia include a total of 13 flavors.
Classic
Original
White
Original Family Pack
Double Coat
Dark Family Pack
Choc Mint
Chewy Caramel
Dark
Crafted Collection
Murray River Salted Caramel
Murray River Salted Double Choc
Dimbulah Mountain Estate Coffee & Choc
Kensington Pride Mango & Cream
Moreton Bay Raspberries & Dark Choc
What Does a Tim Tam Taste Like?
If you’re from Australia, then Tim Tam is a part of your childhood memories. You’ll also likely know how to answer this question because it was probably one of the snacks you grew up with!
The Australian Tim Tam tastes like an American chocolate sandwich cookie that meets classic biscuit and has a light cream filling inside. The outside is coated in textured chocolate.
The biscuits are malted, meaning they have been baked with malt flour, giving them an extra sweet taste and texture. It also makes the biscuit lighter and airier than other types of biscuits.
How Much Does Tim Tams Cost?
The standard price at Coles and Woolworths for a regular pack of Tim Tams is $3.65; Tim Tam Bites cost $4.40.
Nutritional Information
What is Tim Tams made of?
Tim Tam Ingredients:
Light Chocolate-Cream Filling – This cream filling is the lightest of all the ingredients. It’s made with pure cream and is so smooth that it can be spread like butter on bread.
Malted Biscuit – The malted biscuit in a Tim Tam is the key ingredient because it gives this cookie its unique taste and texture.
Textured Chocolate Coating – This thin chocolate coating is there to add a little something extra that isn’t seen in other traditional American chocolate sandwich cookies.
How long would it take to burn off 98 Calories of Arnott’s Tim Tam Original Biscuit?
8 minutes swimming
11 minutes jogging
15 minutes cycling
27 minutes walking
How to Do the Famous Tim Tam Slam?
The Tim Tam Slam (also known as the Tim Tam Shotgun, Tim Tam Bomb, Tim Tam Explosion, Tim Tam Bong, and Tim Tam Suck) is the practice of drinking a hot beverage through a Tim Tam.
How do you do it? Here are the steps:
Take a small bite out of both corners of the biscuit. To make a Tim Tam straw, you must nibble off two diagonally opposite corners of the Tim Tam, ensuring that you have enough of the chocolate filling visible.
Using the Tim Tam like a straw, suck your hot drink through it. Now that there is an opening at one end of your biscuit, suck it hard to draw the liquid through.
Slam the entire sodden biscuit into your mouth. When the Tim Tam turns into a gooey mess and starts melting, put it in your mouth quickly before you lose it in your drink.
Is Tim Tam Halal in Australia?
Is Tim Tams Halal?
Sadly, Arnott’s Tim Tam (Australia’s favorite snack) is not halal. This product contains alcohol-based flavorings, and this is present in all Arnott’s Tim Tams.
While the alcohol content is minute, they might also contain E120 (cochinea) extracted from bugs.
Tim Tam Indonesia vs. Australia
Alternatively, Tim Tams that are made in Indonesia are Halal Certified. The flavors available for Indonesian-made Tim Tam are Classic Chocolate, Vanilla, and Cheese Cake.
FAQs
Is Tim Tams available in the US?
Pepperidge Farm, a sister company of Arnott’s, began importing the Tim Tam to the United States in 2008.
Can you buy Tim Tams in Canada?
Tim Tam is not sold anywhere outside of Australia and Indonesia. Even though Arnott’s has a sister company based in the US, they only import it to that country.
Are Penguins and Tim Tams the same?
McVitie’s Penguin Original vs. Arnott’s Tim Tam Original
Tim Tams are identical in shape, size, and filling (chocolate-covered, cream-filled biscuits), but the British version is crunchier. This makes them a heavier proposition as they’re overloaded with sugar.
Why is Tim Tams bad?
Tim Tams are a classic biscuit with 10g sugar per biscuit, equivalent to 50g per 100g. Tim Tams don’t have much less sugar than many commonly eaten “health foods.”
Why is Tim Tams so addictive?
Many highly processed foods are overloaded with sugar, fat, and salt, making them “hyper-palatable” – an intense experience that it kicks the brain’s pleasure system into overdrive.
How many Tim Tams should I eat?
Salis believes two or three is an alternative to satisfying the craving and sitting down in a chair when you want or need to eat biscuits.
Do Tim Tams taste like penguins?
As the Tim Tam is thicker but softer and crumblier, it audibly cracks when it hits your teeth. And though some find them hard to distinguish in a blind tasting, Arnott’s Tim Tams can be identified by their chocolate cream filling and double-layered biscuit sandwich.
