‘a Malevolent Festive Jammie Dodger’: The Best (and Worst) Supermarket Mince Pies, Tasted And Rated

According to an informal study of my nearest and occasionally dearest, galore younger Britons judge that they don’t for illustration mince pies. It’s a declare that I ever antagonistic annoyingly with: “No, you conscionable haven’t had a bully one”, earlier forcing a homemade version, each crumbly, buttery pastry and plump currants, successful their faces. To beryllium adjacent to them, though, mince pies are baked truthful firmly into our festive contented that immoderate retailers look to return income for granted, and ore connected value and support life alternatively than quality. (Which isn’t to opportunity I won’t unit down a adjacent fewer complete nan festive season.)

That, astatine least, is nan only excuse for nan pappy pastry and unpleasantly sour gloopy filling that has marred truthful galore Christmases past for me, but I travel into this sensation trial wished to spot nan positives, mostly because I don’t want my chap taster, nan deliciously upbeat professional baker Benjamina Ebuehi, to deliberation I’m a grinch.

We agree, arsenic we study nan field, that we’re looking for crisp, aureate pastry and a genuinely fruity filling, and that we’ll effort to springiness immoderate innovations a adjacent hearing. I deliberation I’m much fixated connected booze than Benjamina, and she’s fussier astir nan aesthetics, arsenic befits a stylist, but we consciousness for illustration rather a balanced pairing arsenic we return heavy breaths and dive in. Felicity Cloake

The champion supermarket mince pies

Best overall/best bargain:
Mr Kipling Signature each food mince pies

Benjamina Ebuehi Much wider and much shallow than you’d expect, but that’s not needfully a bad thing. After all, immoderate deeper and it mightiness beryllium excessively much. The pastry looks good baked, pinch 1 of nan astir appealing colours of each nan trial group. Overall, it’s rather enjoyable, pinch possibly conscionable a spot excessively overmuch pome for me. ★★★★☆

Felicity Cloake Attractive, pinch a bully colour, moreover connected nan base. The pastry’s not bad, either: crisp, if not very flavourful. The filling has a pleasant citrussy statement (marmalade?) without immoderate unpleasant acidity and a mildly boozy note. I for illustration nan chunky texture and nan chewy peel. Good ratio of pastry to filling, too. ★★★★☆

And nan remainder …

Sainsbury’s Taste nan Difference each food mince pies

BE Very beautiful to look at, but they’d beryllium moreover amended pinch a darker top. There is simply a pronounced buttery flavour, but I can’t thief but deliberation it tastes a spot artificial. The texture of nan filling isn’t my favourite, either – it’s a spot pasty. ★★★☆☆

FC Quite ray connected top, and nan pastry has immoderate crunch astir nan edges, but there’s an artificial food flavour that’s almost ghee-like. Only half-filled pinch a batch of jam and not overmuch successful nan measurement of plump full fruit, but nan flavour isn’t excessively bad: rather boozy and peppery pinch an orangey backnote. ★★★☆☆

Morrisons nan Best Signature Collection mince pies

BE These are truthful deep! Maybe excessively deep. And rather afloat on. I’m not a instrumentality of a sweetener dusting connected top, a characteristic of tons of nan different pies, too. Tastes arsenic if it could beryllium mixed pinch cornflour, perhaps. The pastry has a bully colour connected nan bottom, and I for illustration nan thickness. The filling is simply a spot connected nan gloopy side, which lets it down a little. This would activity really good arsenic a dessert, served lukewarm pinch custard, alternatively than consecutive retired of nan packet.★★★☆☆

FC Arrestingly, troublingly ample – this could spell either way, couldn’t it? Nice colour, rather homemade-looking, pinch very heavy pastry, which, pinch a large Bertha for illustration this, I suppose you’d person to person for reasons of structural integrity. The pastry’s a spot salty, which is good; and buttery, but successful an oddly artificial-tasting way. The filling is very jellied – much jelly than consequence – pinch an emphatically clove-y, almost mentholated apical note. Not bad, but you could provender a family of 4 connected 1 of these. Surely there’s nary measurement anyone could eat a full one? ★★★☆☆

M&S Collection each food mince pies

BE These are very beautiful to look at, and I emotion nan colour connected them, but they’re nan smallest of nan lot. You get immoderate brandy flavour coming done nicely, too, and they’re good filled, but I’d for illustration conscionable a spot much of those spices coming through. ★★★☆☆

FC Very pallid, but a bully cook connected nan bottom. The pastry has a crisp outer, but it’s very saccharine pinch a somewhat bicarby fizziness. Half-filled successful nan centre, though nan filling gets points for having discernible coagulated consequence and not being excessively wet; I for illustration nan spice, too, but it’s very acidic and sweet. Not nan worst. ★★☆☆☆

Tesco Finest each food mince pies

BE The pastry stands retired for being very bladed connected nan base, but tastes really floury and underbaked. These are a spot forgettable. I’d eat 1 if offered, but wouldn’t bargain them. ★★☆☆☆

FC I for illustration nan small snowy top, but nan guidelines pastry is simply a spot soggy and it’s very soft, albeit pinch a decent buttery flavour. The mincemeat has a bully texture, pinch tons of full consequence and immoderate mixed peel, and nan flavour isn’t bad, but it is truthful citrussy that it’s a spot for illustration nan extremity of an orangish Calippo. I tin spot nan spice, but nan flavour is rather subtle. Inoffensive. ★★★☆☆

Waitrose each food mince pies

BE The pastry tastes nan astir buttery of nan trial group, but nan filling lets it down – it’s really bland and has a spot of an artificial aftertaste. ★★★☆☆

FC Generic-looking, but pinch a bully colour, and, fixed nan pappy pastry, nan sweetener connected apical adds a invited constituent of crunch. The filling is very jammy and acidic, albeit pinch a fewer full chunks of consequence – I tin spot spice, but can’t really sensation it, and nan citric acerb is troubling nan backmost of my throat. Could do pinch a saccharine sherry to lavation it down. ★★☆☆☆

Asda Exceptional luxury mince pies

BE The slightest charismatic of them all. Normally, erstwhile nan filling bubbles up done nan sides, it adds immoderate rustic charm, but this is nan opposite. It looks nan astir underbaked, too. The citrus successful nan filling comes done strongly, and nan chunkiness of nan raisins and dried consequence is appreciated. ★☆☆☆☆

FC Someone sewage deed pinch nan disfigured stick: these look for illustration thing someone’s toddler brought location from nursery, and are overflowing pinch brownish gloop. Nice, chunky consequence pinch discernible pieces of peel, which I like, but that Valencian orangish lipid is doing immoderate difficult activity – it tastes for illustration an orangish consequence pastille – and I don’t get overmuch spice. ★★★☆☆

Co-op Irresistible each food mince pies

BE There’s an odd, dusty texture to nan pastry, and it’s drying my rima retired rather a bit. The filling isn’t arsenic citric acid-heavy arsenic immoderate of nan others, but it leans a spot excessively saccharine for me. ★★☆☆☆

FC Very pallid pastry that tastes overwhelmingly floury, for illustration eating earthy offcuts erstwhile you’re excessively lazy to chuck them successful nan bin. Nice large pieces of fruit, and a boozy apical statement (brandy, alternatively than rum, sadly), which somewhat counteracts nan acidity of nan fruit. ★★★☆☆

Aldi Specially Selected mince pies

BE These are chunky! And truthful weighty, I’m a spot worried. The pastry is very thick, which I often don’t mind, but present it’s truthful sandy and floury that it tastes very underbaked. I do for illustration nan crunch from nan demerara sweetener connected top, though. One constituent for that. The filling isn’t spiced very overmuch and is dense connected nan citric acid. ★☆☆☆☆

FC Quite chunky and rustic-looking, pinch a nice, solid, biscuity base, but nan pastry itself has a unusual earthy flavour and earthy flour texture. The mincemeat is overwhelmingly crisp and very gloopy – I deliberation I tin sensation alcohol, but not overmuch other – while nan texture is conscionable grape skins and biscuit. Like a malevolent festive Jammie Dodger. ★☆☆☆☆

Lidl Deluxe each food mince pies

BE These look for illustration your classical supermarket mince pies, and nan guidelines has a bully aureate colour. But there’s an overwhelmingly artificial sensation to it all. The filling is much of a heavy paste than chunky and fruity. Not bully astatine all. ☆☆☆☆☆

FC Nice colour, and I for illustration nan somewhat rococo pastry apical – for illustration a Jammie Dodger (but, visually astatine least, not a malevolent one). Again, nan guidelines has colour, but nan pastry is disappointingly soft fixed that colour, pinch a floury texture and a somewhat stale, cardboardy flavour. The filling has a bully chunky consistency, but a citrussy tang that borders connected nan aggressive, which goes correct nan measurement done nan fruit. Decent peppery spicing – is it allspice? ★★☆☆☆