SuffolkNews reviews Waitrose, Lidl, Aldi, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose and Co-op mince pie offerings
Mince pies: A Christmas staple.
While not necessarily for everyone, there can be no doubting a Christmas spread would not be complete without the sweet treat.
So, at SuffolkNews we took it upon ourselves (or perhaps you could say we treated ourselves) to sample mince pie offerings from major supermarkets to find the best bake.
I set a couple of rules when I was out purchasing the different goods – a max of £2 if possible and, where I could, I tried to snag a deal. And, importantly, we judged them without knowing whose product was whose.
My colleagues Camille, Russell, Mariam, Ash and Martyna joined me on this expedition. I asked each of them (and myself) to rate the pies out of 10 and share their opinions.
So without further ado, in ascending order…
7 – East of England Co-op, Shortcrust Mince Pies – £1.45 for four, 36.3 per pie
From what I could tell, Co-op’s mince pies were part of its bakery items, so it may be the case that they are delivered to the store each day.
Either way, unfortunately they did not go down well with us. Collectively, we decided it was more of a jam tart than a mince pie.
No punches pulled, Camille described Co-op’s offering as flat and uninteresting, while comparing it to a flying saucer. Mariam said the pastry was more like a shortbread, adding it ‘just collapsed’.
Perhap even more scathing was Martyna, who echoed Mariam’s shortbread sentiments, said it did not taste like a mince pie and, adding one word to finish – ‘avoid’.
Our rating – 3/10
6 – Sainsbury’s, Deep Mince Pies – £1.70 for six, 28.3p per pie
Intriguing story at Sainsbury’s. These were, from what I could tell, its standard option of pie, while its more expensive offering was £3. Maybe not the best value from here, but what did we think?
Alas, the major supermarket came in at sixth, a shock to most in the room. While putting on a stronger showing than Co-op, all of us were not so enamoured with its soggy bottom. What would Mary Berry say.
Camille said the filling was lacking and what was there was flavourless, while I thought it was more like mince soup than mincemeat.
Ash was slightly more complimentary – he said the pastry offered a decent flavour, but was not so pleased with the flavour of the mince, adding he could not really taste it.
Our rating – 3.5/10
5 – Tesco, Finest All Butter Pastry Mince Pies – £1.50 for six, 25p per pie (Clubcard price, £3 normally)
Ah, the fabled Clubcard price coming in clutch. The standard option was £1.25, so for 25p more and for the purpose of this, I figured it was best to put my trusty Clubcard to use.
But somehow, this felt an even bigger shock than Sainsbury’s. Mariam thought the filling was mushy and disappointing, while Camille repeated one word three times – ‘claggy’.
Ash said the pastry was very soft and relatively dry, but was pleased there was a generous helping of filling.
Russell and I were more complimentary. I said the pastry was cooked well throughout and the filling had a good flavour, while my colleague remarked on the whole it was a pleasant pie.
Our rating – 4.83/10
4 – Waitrose, Mince Pies – £1.95 for six, 32.p per pie
If any of the supermarkets was going to push my £2 max, it was going to be Waitrose. The store’s other options came in at £2.75 and £4, so the standard selection it was.
In the end, we ranked it middle of the pack, with fairly average scores all round. It was Camille’s second-favourite pie – she said the pastry was light and the filling was pleasant and moist.
Mariam echoed Camille’s feelings on the moist filling, adding the pastry had a nice texture, but she was not so enamoured by the flavour as a whole.
Ash agreed with Camille on the light feel of it, however he thought the pie was soggy which he did not enjoy, meanwhile Martyna also felt it was too soggy and that the pastry had a ‘horrible’ aftertaste.
Our rating – 5.08/10
3 – Aldi, Specially Selected All Butter Mince Pies – £1.49 for six, 24.8p per pie
Taking our bronze medal was Aldi’s offering, for which I waited in the horrendous Newmarket Road gas leak repairs queues, so I hoped they were worth it.
These were my personal favourite. I thought the gentle coating of icing sugar complimented its festive design, while both the pastry and the filling were well flavoured. Russell echoed my feelings on the pastry, while he was particularly fond of the generous amount of mincemeat in the pie.
Camille also particularly highlighted the design on them, saying it was something she would ‘be proud to offer at any gathering’.
However, Ash and Martyna were not so complimentary. The former said the pastry tasted too sugary and thought the mincemeat was flavourless, while the latter thought there was too much pastry and the filling was too sweet.
Our rating – 5.08/10
2 – Asda, Exceptional Luxury Mince Pies – £1.38 for six, 23p per pie (£1.37 off)
This was an absolute snag, with Asda’s regular mince pies being £1.25 for six.
And perhaps my keen eye has done the supermarket a favour as it came out as our runner up. I said the pie was well presented while the mincemeat was particularly flavoursome. Martyna enjoyed the blend of festive spices, adding she was ‘pleasantly surprised’ by the flavour.
Our silver medallist was not without its critics though. In particular, both Mariam and Martyna found it too sweet, while the latter also thought the pastry was slightly too thick.
Camille echoed Mariam’s feelings on the pastry, while adding she found the filling a bit dry.
Our rating – 5.75/10.
1 – Lidl, Deluxe All Butter Mince Pies – £1.49 for six, 24.8p per pie (Lidl Plus 50p off, £1.99 normally)
Our favourite mince pie goes to the German budget retailer. Good job I trekked to Stowmarket before taking these to the office.
A healthy dusting of icing sugar on top – which went down differently with different people (one person mentioned a certain Colombian drug lord) – but overall was seen as a strong point for this pie.
Ash highlighted its crumbly pastry and said the filling left a nice aftertaste which trailed off well. Mariam also praised the pastry – she said it was a good consistency – and was pleased with its subtle flavour.
On the other end of the spectrum, Camille thought the mincemeat was lacking in flavour, while Martyna went as far as to call it disappointing, adding it needed to be more rich.
Lidl does also have its Favorina brand mince pies, which were £2.45 for 12, but personally I do not normally buy 12 at once, so for the purpose of this piece and within the ranges, I thought the deluxe option was better.
Our rating – 6.25/10
