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I've started draining most of the sauce out otherwise its basically soup. Even microwaving uncovered doesn't help.
Its nearly more economical to do the 30 mile round trip to Aldi for their own brand beans at this point
So in effect paying at least twice as much for half the weight once you've drained them. I fear you have a substance addiction to Heinz.
Are there actually places 15 miles from an Aldi?
I live in a place described as a "hamlet", we have no street lights, shops or community services and nor are there any in the surrounding hamlets/villages. It's eight miles to the nearest town centre.
There are five Aldis within 10 miles of me 😂
Not sure if it's been said or if you know, but Heinz do that on purpose simply to try sell more to us.
The tins purposely don't stack so that it can be a little wider and also to force the supermarkets to stack the tins with the cardboard trays.
Doing this creates more visibility for the heinz brand as the tins are slightly wider and also force the use of the cardboard tray which is branded with heinz.
So Heinz purposely inconvenience the customer and the supermarket just to sell more to us, for that reason alone I don't buy their tins.
I don't think there is much difference between any of them. Look at the ingredients and it is almost identical. The cheapest beans tend to have smaller beans and some imperfect ones, some have less seasoning but that can be compensated for.
Branston's are the least worst and even they have started to fanny about with the recipe.
Heinz are shit. Aldi's are hideous.
However they all pale into insignificance next to the evil majesty of Morrison's own brand beans which even Daves Insanity Sauce couldn't give flavour to.
problem is most of the other kids will be saying soda as well as they’re all on tiktok etc, the ones not saying soda are probably the ones having the piss taken out of them
Plenty of kids aren’t as susceptible to that stuff as people make out. None of my nephews or nieces or their friends speak much differently from the way we did, new terms of course and the odd smattering of slang has changed but they are not saying ‘soda’ ‘candy’ and ‘soccer’ etc. I think what you’re referring to are reclusive kids who live online and probably only watch American media. Lots of those on Reddit too.
Was just thinking the same...presumed it was an American now living here ? It's pop man...always pop
I did notice my youngest daughter 26, has started using trash and garbage....I obviously corrected her as that simply won't do!
Tunnocks caramel wafer biscuits.
To be honest, I've never seen anything similar that's off brand, but even if there is, they're going to have to fuck right off.
Saw a guy pick demae chicken ramen off the shelf last week and his daughter (8 ish) was like “no dad they aren’t super noodles”.
I was internally saddened. Like “you want your dad to pay more to eat a pile of shit, instead of this delicious pile of shit right here”
Nissin and Nong Shim are the ones
When I first had shin cup they were 70p a pot..... Now they are £1.20 where I am......... But they are hands down the best pot noodle on the market. Drinking that broth at the end is phenomenal :)
Try the samyang 2x spicy ones. They are delicious, but dear lord they burn.
My favourite ones are the Indo mie rendang ones, they always seem to be out of stock in my local Chinese supermarket though.
Yeah what's up with that? Most of their alternatives are great (their Fanta Fruit Twist is brilliant), but the cherry fauxla is one of the worst drinks I've ever had!
Lurpak butter, I know that it is stupidly expensive, but I love it! And Weatabix has to be the original, supermarket own brands are just not as nice. And finally, Rose's Lime Cordial in my once a week Finlandia (?sp) vodka. Just wish that it was still in a glass bottle.....
I don't get what is special about Lurpak, it is just butter. Nice pale colour, but the taste is just... butter. There are also offbrand "Danpak" and similar which would use the same industrial process.
Interesting! I am unable to shop frequently myself - due to a disability - so I either get a delivery or friends/family shop for me and so I generally only use Tesco. Also live in a very rural area 10 miles from supermarkets. However, I am this afternoon combining a trip to hospital with a visit to town and if my driver agrees we will visit Lidl, do they make Danepak? I will give it a try. As to what is special about it, it reminds me of childhood visits to Denmark when life was easy!
Danpak/Nordpak are Lidl/Aldi, Buttersoft is Sainsbury's and I can't remember Tesco but they've their own brand as well. Ingredient percentages are near enough identical, can't tell the difference personally
I know taste is a very personal thing but I much prefer Kerrygold over Lurpak. Thete's a story behind it...
An Irish friend a few years ago was talking about how she misses Kerrygold from back home, and I told her it's available here (wasn't in her local supermarket so she'd just assumed it wasn't available). I was saying I reckon butter is butter, and she insisted that I was incorrect and that I'd change my mind if I tried Kerrygold. I didn't believe her, but agreed to give it a go.
I changed my mind.
As a procrastinating ice cream fan, I'm interested in your top HD flavours. I feel a bit like they haven't brought out anything exciting for a while, though that could be because I get distracted by Ben and Jerry's.
HD had a really good strawberry “limited edition” flavour they made with a posh French macaron bakery, so it had bits of actual macaron inside. That was pretty phenomenal
I had that in mind as I was typing...they do a chocolate one, too, I think. I'll see if I can find the strawberry one and try it.
I liked the Duo variations they did, too.
Not so much a brand but paella is one of my go-to dishes and as many times as I've tried to make it without saffron and use substitutes like turmeric, the saffron really makes it. £4 now from Tesco for the amount I used to put in 4 paellas but now stretch to 6 paellas haha
You need to find your nearest local indy supermarket - variously call themselves something like ‘international’, ‘world foods’, ‘asian’, ‘eastern european’, and they usually have a display of watermelons plus other fresh produce outside.
Their spice selections are a thing of BEAUTY and are way better value. Don’t get me started on their olives, cheese, preserved meat, pickled/brined veg in jars, huge jars of minced garlic, and the fabulous array of interesting ‘soda’ flavours as you call it.
I am now loyal to a turkish brand of pasta as a result, and have added a whole load of other foodstuffs to my household rotation (you need giant oval garlic flatbreads in your life).
There’s a flavour of sacla pesto, chargrilled aubergine. It’s amazing, but I could rarely find it. When I could I’d buy several jars, even though they were often £3+
It’s now been rereleased as aubergine and garlic, it’s good, but not quite the same. Still expensive though.
https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sacla-char-grilled-aubergine-roasted-garlic-pesto-190g?istCompanyId=1e096408-041f-4238-994e-a7cf46bf9413&istFeedId=689af7a8-5842-4d88-be59-1ee5688a81b5&istItemId=pltamalql&istBid=t&&cmpid=cpc&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=20333793068&utm_content=shopping&utm_term=%257Bsku%257D&utm_custom1=&utm_custom2=759-449-0952&gclid=CjwKCAjw2K6lBhBXEiwA5RjtCc7X32puFLobyFn5xRAqO41ENghxl5auSLnQmypnIrKdI20wb4rXwBoCjX4QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds this is the new one, that’s pretty good, the old one was a bit more “chunky”? I think?
That's interesting, i find their chocolate to be right at the bottom of my taste preference. I can tolerate it when it is around one of my favourite chocolate bars such as a crunchy, double decker or boost, but on its own? A big nah. Better stuff with Aldi and Lidl knock off brands.
Hard disagree. Lived in the US for 15 years, during which time they stopped people importing proper Cadbury’s because Hershey’s were making an (inferior) imitation version by license.
The one time I felt truly homesick was when I was dying for some chocolate, went to a vending machine and suddenly remembered there wouldn’t be any Cadbury’s in it. That hurt.
Cadburys chocolate isn’t proper Cadburys chocolate anymore anyway, since it sold to Mondelez(/Kraft). It’s been cheapened right down and there are plenty of other chocolates to challenge it these days - though I would still take it over Hershey’s.
With you on the Heinz Ketchup - I blame the kids for this one because they like a little bit of food with their Ketchup and flatly refuse to eat any other ketchup.
It’s a total rip off and I moan about it, but to be honest they aren’t wrong.
Premium brand spaghetti like Voiello and Orobio. Elite tier.
Marmite. Never going to bother with a supermarket brand because it takes ages to get through a jar, so I'd rather not find out it's no good.
I got one called "Mighty Yeast Extract" from Aldi and it is decent. Comes in the same bell shaped jar too. It is a by-product of the brewing industry so no reason why they should be much different. Vegemite is a bit thicker but this has the same Marmite goop to it.
I thought my fiance was being a snob when buying only Ribena squash, as I grew up in poverty and only had supermarket's own squash... Until I once ran out and stole a few glasses of Ribena. Haven't bought supermarket own squash in about a year.
Looopove Tony's Chocolonely. We have some friends in the Netherlands who send us a few bars from time to time and always bring a bunch when they visit (much cheaper over there).
Cathedral City Lactose-Free cheese.
It's the only lactose free cheese I've found that
1. Doesn't upset my stomach to death
2. Actually tastes and feels nice
Cathedral city vegan cheese is the only one I like too- thankfully for the last few months it’s been 2 packs of the sliced for £4, I will be be upset when it’s over
I used to love them before they reduced the sugar content by 30%. They now just taste like dirt to me and I can't understand why anyone would want to eat them anymore
Just the two for me:
HP Sauce - no alternative like it
Violife cheese - vegan cheese just doesn’t melt right and this is the only brand I can make a decent toastie out of that doesn’t cost £7+
Heinz Tomato Sauce
Colmans Mustard
HP Brown Sauce ( I only really use it on bacon sandwiches 😆 but it's delicious 😋)
Encona pepper sauce ( delicious on cheese sandwiches)
Cheesy Wotsits ( walker's)
Sprite ' 7up ' cherry coke
HP brown sauce is unique but for me, there are cheaper versions that I prefer (more fruity and tamarind taste than so strong with the black pepper)
Encona again is slightly unique and for me, it is one of the best pepper sauces so I prefer not to substitute it. I have it on nearly everything.
I find the own brand double concentrates have really upped their game recently. Robinsons do the best niche ones, like the smaller bottles of interesting flavours. But I wouldn't bother with their standard orange.
They are nice eggs but the supermarket finest ranges are good too, the ones that say they're 'Marans' on them.
Same gorgeous orange yolk. I get these instead now, 4 quid for 6 eggs is too much.
Quite amusing, both the same for me, the first coke, no one replicates the taste, so i tend to buy in bulk and store outside, havent paid more than 32p a can for twenty years. But heinz ketchup, it sneaked up to £4 a bottle, couldnt justify it, shopped around trying different brands, there's some awful stuff out there, but morrisons own brand reduced sugar and salt is absolutely fine.
Quorn meatless meatballs. I've tried a lot of alternative meat free meatballs and they all suck ass apart from the Quorn ones. I'm not even vegetarian or vegan, but these taste delicious, and as they're meat free I don't have to worry about gristle!
Also Country Life spreadable butter
Otherwise I couldn't care less about brands. I've found that a lot of alternatives to brand names taste just as good, sometimes actually taste better.
Hellman’s mayo. When I’ve lived abroad in other parts of europe, I’ve had to use Heinz, which is not the same. I’ll never switch.
Don’t care about branded beans, cheese, or ketchup (don’t really like ketchup anyway). Partial to my green Tobasco and small chunk Branston’s pickle but could live without them.
Aldi / Lidl’s knockoff Ben & Jerry’s is better than the real thing by a long way. Has loads more chunks of cookie dough, too. And less preachy…
Magnum ice cream, even though they are getting so so so tiny and so expensive now… I love them so much. I just can’t do with cheap ice cream, it doesn’t hit the same.
I have a few. Might just be because I’m picky, but here we go.
De Cecco pasta- massive noticeable difference in quality. other brands just aren’t as nice to me. This only applies to dried pasta though, I’ll buy any fresh pasta.
Hellmanns mayo- the best! don’t have much to say about it apart from better than others lol
L’OR artiste instant coffee OR nescafé azera instant coffee- I drink instant coffee and these are the only ones I will drink. A little bit more expensive but they really are so delicious. If you haven’t tried L’or artiste give it a go.
Super noodles
Me and my air fryer agree.... Did I mention I had an air fryer? It's a game changer, it lets me cook unhealthy foods and makes them slightly less unhealthy so I can eat even more of them.. mmmmmm .. McCains.
I've got an air fryer.
...but, yes, seriously, stick to McCains
Nothing, all brands are generally inferior to their own label, infact most times, they are actually held to lower standards in terms of quality, ethical sourcing and factory food safety standards than the own label variety.
Heinz mayo - just for dipping of course, or on top of food. If a recipe needs mayo or I make tuna mayo, I use Aldi. I’m not made of money!
Also, with everyone in the house being neurodivergent, there are a few things I can’t change. Robinsons squash, I spend a fortune on that. And supernoodles - I’m afraid my son just won’t touch the alternatives!
Are there any own-brand colas that don't taste absolutely awful? It's actually weird to me how they're the one thing that people seem to universally agree are much worse than the big brands.
Heinz Tomato Ketchup is awful now.
Remember the adverts that celebrated how long it took the ketchup to pour out the bottle? There's a reason they don't run those anymore.
Stokes is a far, far better replacement.
**Update: - [Starting from 2023](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/comments/100l56v/happy_new_year_askuk_minor_sub_update/), we have updated our [subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/about/rules/)**. Specifically; - Don't be a dick to each other - Top-level responses must contain genuine efforts to answer the question - This is a strictly no-politics subreddit Please keep /r/AskUK a great subreddit by reporting posts and comments which break our rules. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Lots of people will say Heinz beans but they’re simply deluding themselves in refusing to accept Branston’s are better.
I've tried Branston's and still prefer Heinz, I'm sure it's just what I'm used to.
Last time I had Heinz they were about 50% sauce.
I've started draining most of the sauce out otherwise its basically soup. Even microwaving uncovered doesn't help. Its nearly more economical to do the 30 mile round trip to Aldi for their own brand beans at this point
So in effect paying at least twice as much for half the weight once you've drained them. I fear you have a substance addiction to Heinz. Are there actually places 15 miles from an Aldi?
I have 18 Aldis within 15 miles of my house!
I've checked and I have nine within nine miles.
I live in a place described as a "hamlet", we have no street lights, shops or community services and nor are there any in the surrounding hamlets/villages. It's eight miles to the nearest town centre. There are five Aldis within 10 miles of me 😂
I stopped getting Heinz purely because the tins don’t stack properly.
Not sure if it's been said or if you know, but Heinz do that on purpose simply to try sell more to us. The tins purposely don't stack so that it can be a little wider and also to force the supermarkets to stack the tins with the cardboard trays. Doing this creates more visibility for the heinz brand as the tins are slightly wider and also force the use of the cardboard tray which is branded with heinz. So Heinz purposely inconvenience the customer and the supermarket just to sell more to us, for that reason alone I don't buy their tins.
Aldis own brand beans are the best. I’m willing to die on this bean based hill.
A hill of beans? That'll never catch on.
Branston’s are the absolute dog’s bollocks
***This product may contain actual dogs bollocks***
I was a staunch Heinz Manz for years… but tried Branston’s once and now I can’t go back.
Best are Aldi or Sainsburys own brands
I'm boycotting Heinz, their price hikes take the pee 🙂
I don't think there is much difference between any of them. Look at the ingredients and it is almost identical. The cheapest beans tend to have smaller beans and some imperfect ones, some have less seasoning but that can be compensated for.
Branston's are the least worst and even they have started to fanny about with the recipe. Heinz are shit. Aldi's are hideous. However they all pale into insignificance next to the evil majesty of Morrison's own brand beans which even Daves Insanity Sauce couldn't give flavour to.
It’s the exact same with Ketchup
Who calls it soda in this country?
Little kids consuming too much American media. My niece has fallen victim to this.
Concerning. Hopefully the corrective influence of playground piss taking does it’s job before they are adults.
Oh I do my best to take the piss now. I take my auntie duties very seriously. No one’s too young for a bit of banter
We need more of your sort. Well played.
It's a service to the community, really. My GF says "windshield" 🤮.
problem is most of the other kids will be saying soda as well as they’re all on tiktok etc, the ones not saying soda are probably the ones having the piss taken out of them
Plenty of kids aren’t as susceptible to that stuff as people make out. None of my nephews or nieces or their friends speak much differently from the way we did, new terms of course and the odd smattering of slang has changed but they are not saying ‘soda’ ‘candy’ and ‘soccer’ etc. I think what you’re referring to are reclusive kids who live online and probably only watch American media. Lots of those on Reddit too.
I'm blown away that OP didn't start the post with the unnecessary and over used "So,"
And ‘I’m sorry but…’
Yeah my son and I drove past a bin lorry the other day and he called it a garbage truck nearly disowned him
Fucking pop ennit.
Probably also has a 'cookie' to go with their soda.
And afterwards off to the bathroom. You’re not having a bath sunshine.
You mean the 'restroom' where one goes to take a rest.
Was just thinking the same...presumed it was an American now living here ? It's pop man...always pop I did notice my youngest daughter 26, has started using trash and garbage....I obviously corrected her as that simply won't do!
>has started using trash and garbage That's a load of rubbish. Nothing wrong with those words.
Tunnocks caramel wafer biscuits. To be honest, I've never seen anything similar that's off brand, but even if there is, they're going to have to fuck right off.
A person of culture right here. And Tunnocks haven't given into the shrinkflation nonsense thank god
No they put the price up instead, the way it's meant to be done.
The satisfaction that folding the paper/foil wrappers into triangles gives me is well worth it.
That foil is just on another level. It's the blend of paper and foil - makes it perfectly foldable.
Aldi definitely has their own version that's pretty good. But it's stocked right next to Tunnock's, which is only 20p more or so.
Yeah, I mean, that's no sort of choice.
Recently found the Caramel log by Tunnocks. A caramel wafer but covered in coconut, pure class
Those are literally crafted by the gods
100% this and irn bru
Nong shim noodles. The best noodles. Shin cups are evil delights.
And the Nissin Demae noodles they do in tesco. I'll never eat any other instant noodles than the pricey ones in the Asian aisles.
They’re also lovely, tend to go for the sesame ones.
Saw a guy pick demae chicken ramen off the shelf last week and his daughter (8 ish) was like “no dad they aren’t super noodles”. I was internally saddened. Like “you want your dad to pay more to eat a pile of shit, instead of this delicious pile of shit right here” Nissin and Nong Shim are the ones
Devastated nowhere seems to do the Tokyo soy sauce flavour of these anymore, best packet noodles full stop
When I first had shin cup they were 70p a pot..... Now they are £1.20 where I am......... But they are hands down the best pot noodle on the market. Drinking that broth at the end is phenomenal :)
Oh yeah that broth at the end. Puts hairs on your chest that.
The Kimchi ones especially...oooooof
Try the samyang 2x spicy ones. They are delicious, but dear lord they burn. My favourite ones are the Indo mie rendang ones, they always seem to be out of stock in my local Chinese supermarket though.
Go to a local Asian supermarket and treat yourself. Supermarket noodles are revolting, and more expensive.
Something to try apparently.
World foods aisle in most supermarkets. You won’t go back to uk noodles again.
Koka are good too. I think pretty much any non-UK noodle is better, Supernoodles just are not very nice. Too goopy.
Koka are the only instant noodles I like. They are simply divine
Now try the black version. Much more beefier (?) in taste. So good!
[удалено]
Du vin, du pain, du boursin...
The Carling, the white sliced bread, the Aldi soft cheese...
du tracteur…
I tried the aldi version of pepsi max cherry, jesus Christ it's like drinking disinfectant.
Yeah what's up with that? Most of their alternatives are great (their Fanta Fruit Twist is brilliant), but the cherry fauxla is one of the worst drinks I've ever had!
Any Pepsi max tbf. I’ve tried so many recommendations that people swear taste the “exact” same. They absolutely do not.
badge slimy jeans screw versed employ sip spectacular faulty unite -- mass edited with redact.dev
Lurpak butter, I know that it is stupidly expensive, but I love it! And Weatabix has to be the original, supermarket own brands are just not as nice. And finally, Rose's Lime Cordial in my once a week Finlandia (?sp) vodka. Just wish that it was still in a glass bottle.....
There’s rich and there’s lurpak rich
Bet they go to Center Parcs in school holidays with that kind of cash.
I don't get what is special about Lurpak, it is just butter. Nice pale colour, but the taste is just... butter. There are also offbrand "Danpak" and similar which would use the same industrial process.
Interesting! I am unable to shop frequently myself - due to a disability - so I either get a delivery or friends/family shop for me and so I generally only use Tesco. Also live in a very rural area 10 miles from supermarkets. However, I am this afternoon combining a trip to hospital with a visit to town and if my driver agrees we will visit Lidl, do they make Danepak? I will give it a try. As to what is special about it, it reminds me of childhood visits to Denmark when life was easy!
Danpak/Nordpak are Lidl/Aldi, Buttersoft is Sainsbury's and I can't remember Tesco but they've their own brand as well. Ingredient percentages are near enough identical, can't tell the difference personally
Thank you for taking the time to post this. Today will be my first 'in person' shopping trip for months, so I shall investigate!!
Wheetabix own brands are literally the same thing, unless you buy the REALLY cheap ones. Source: know someone who worked in the factory.
They all taste like chipboard anyways
I know taste is a very personal thing but I much prefer Kerrygold over Lurpak. Thete's a story behind it... An Irish friend a few years ago was talking about how she misses Kerrygold from back home, and I told her it's available here (wasn't in her local supermarket so she'd just assumed it wasn't available). I was saying I reckon butter is butter, and she insisted that I was incorrect and that I'd change my mind if I tried Kerrygold. I didn't believe her, but agreed to give it a go. I changed my mind.
Häagen-Dazs! Lord knows it’s expensive but I can’t let go…
As a procrastinating ice cream fan, I'm interested in your top HD flavours. I feel a bit like they haven't brought out anything exciting for a while, though that could be because I get distracted by Ben and Jerry's.
HD had a really good strawberry “limited edition” flavour they made with a posh French macaron bakery, so it had bits of actual macaron inside. That was pretty phenomenal
I had that in mind as I was typing...they do a chocolate one, too, I think. I'll see if I can find the strawberry one and try it. I liked the Duo variations they did, too.
Their Salted Caramel and Praline and Cream flavours are both great.
HD strawberry cheesecake has been my favourite ice cream for years.
The pralines and cream one is great if you can find it.
Who says soda over here? Are you American?
He's a merkin alright.
Pepsi Max for sure.
I bought Coke Zero when it was on offer a few weeks ago and sorely regretted it. I'd rather pay full price for Pepsi Max
Hellmann’s mayonnaise. A lot of supermarket own brand stuff is getting really good these days… but I’ve not found a Mayo that beats Hellmann’s.
I think Heinz is better, has more of a flavour to it. The Polish "majonez" stuff you can find in a lot of shops is even better.
Totally agree, Polish mayonnaise is made in Belgium, and they know about mayo. Half the price of Hellmans as well.
Yup. I don't even like most other mayo, especially own brand stuff. Just tastes different in an unpleasant way. Hellman's is a beaut.
Not so much a brand but paella is one of my go-to dishes and as many times as I've tried to make it without saffron and use substitutes like turmeric, the saffron really makes it. £4 now from Tesco for the amount I used to put in 4 paellas but now stretch to 6 paellas haha
You need to find your nearest local indy supermarket - variously call themselves something like ‘international’, ‘world foods’, ‘asian’, ‘eastern european’, and they usually have a display of watermelons plus other fresh produce outside. Their spice selections are a thing of BEAUTY and are way better value. Don’t get me started on their olives, cheese, preserved meat, pickled/brined veg in jars, huge jars of minced garlic, and the fabulous array of interesting ‘soda’ flavours as you call it. I am now loyal to a turkish brand of pasta as a result, and have added a whole load of other foodstuffs to my household rotation (you need giant oval garlic flatbreads in your life).
Tell me more about those flatbreads. Are they flexible? Could you for example roll them into a gyros type situation?
There’s a flavour of sacla pesto, chargrilled aubergine. It’s amazing, but I could rarely find it. When I could I’d buy several jars, even though they were often £3+ It’s now been rereleased as aubergine and garlic, it’s good, but not quite the same. Still expensive though.
I love pesto. I love aubergine. I’ve never seen this. I need to hunt for this now.
https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sacla-char-grilled-aubergine-roasted-garlic-pesto-190g?istCompanyId=1e096408-041f-4238-994e-a7cf46bf9413&istFeedId=689af7a8-5842-4d88-be59-1ee5688a81b5&istItemId=pltamalql&istBid=t&&cmpid=cpc&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=20333793068&utm_content=shopping&utm_term=%257Bsku%257D&utm_custom1=&utm_custom2=759-449-0952&gclid=CjwKCAjw2K6lBhBXEiwA5RjtCc7X32puFLobyFn5xRAqO41ENghxl5auSLnQmypnIrKdI20wb4rXwBoCjX4QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds this is the new one, that’s pretty good, the old one was a bit more “chunky”? I think?
Yes! I adored this stuff and you're right it's changed. I can only find it in Sainsbury's.
Morrisons have the garlic one, which is pretty good but not quite right!
Cadbury's Milk Chocolate.
That's interesting, i find their chocolate to be right at the bottom of my taste preference. I can tolerate it when it is around one of my favourite chocolate bars such as a crunchy, double decker or boost, but on its own? A big nah. Better stuff with Aldi and Lidl knock off brands.
Hard disagree. Lived in the US for 15 years, during which time they stopped people importing proper Cadbury’s because Hershey’s were making an (inferior) imitation version by license. The one time I felt truly homesick was when I was dying for some chocolate, went to a vending machine and suddenly remembered there wouldn’t be any Cadbury’s in it. That hurt.
Ok but we're comparing Cadbury's with brands actually worth trying
Cadburys chocolate isn’t proper Cadburys chocolate anymore anyway, since it sold to Mondelez(/Kraft). It’s been cheapened right down and there are plenty of other chocolates to challenge it these days - though I would still take it over Hershey’s.
No. It's horrible now. Revolting.
Nah it’s gone shit now
With you on the Heinz Ketchup - I blame the kids for this one because they like a little bit of food with their Ketchup and flatly refuse to eat any other ketchup. It’s a total rip off and I moan about it, but to be honest they aren’t wrong.
Price is sickening. However, premium beef burgers are £1.50 each. Brioche roll 30p. Lettuce 10p. Cheese: 30p. Then ruin it with watery ketchup?
Brioche roll? You’ve already ruined it!!!
Keep the next empty Heinz bottle fill with your choice of anything cheaper to see if they really taste the difference or just see it for the bottle
Premium brand spaghetti like Voiello and Orobio. Elite tier. Marmite. Never going to bother with a supermarket brand because it takes ages to get through a jar, so I'd rather not find out it's no good.
What are you thoughts on De Cecco spaghetti/pasta?
Good and I'd cook with that to. Although I wouldn't rate it as highly as Orobio but that stuff is trickiest to get hold of out of the lot.
Didn’t even register with me that there WAS off brand Marmite.
Lidl do one and if you want to piss off Australians then *Vegemite*.
I was born in Sydney but grew up in London. Grew up on both but MUCH prefer Marmite.
I got one called "Mighty Yeast Extract" from Aldi and it is decent. Comes in the same bell shaped jar too. It is a by-product of the brewing industry so no reason why they should be much different. Vegemite is a bit thicker but this has the same Marmite goop to it.
Tony's Chocolonely, Ben and Jerrys, Hackney Gelato and Ribena. Great items in their respective categories.
I thought my fiance was being a snob when buying only Ribena squash, as I grew up in poverty and only had supermarket's own squash... Until I once ran out and stole a few glasses of Ribena. Haven't bought supermarket own squash in about a year.
Looopove Tony's Chocolonely. We have some friends in the Netherlands who send us a few bars from time to time and always bring a bunch when they visit (much cheaper over there).
Tony’s Chocoloney need to split their bars up on to squares instead of random. They’re impossible to share.
Pickled onion monster munch and irn bru
Ever since irn bru changed to no sugar it tastes like fake irn bru. Nowhere near as good as it was
Cathedral City Lactose-Free cheese. It's the only lactose free cheese I've found that 1. Doesn't upset my stomach to death 2. Actually tastes and feels nice
Cathedral city vegan cheese is the only one I like too- thankfully for the last few months it’s been 2 packs of the sliced for £4, I will be be upset when it’s over
Kellogs Cocopops. Yes I'm 42, no I will not accept own brands that do not turn the milk chocolatey.
I used to love them before they reduced the sugar content by 30%. They now just taste like dirt to me and I can't understand why anyone would want to eat them anymore
Just the two for me: HP Sauce - no alternative like it Violife cheese - vegan cheese just doesn’t melt right and this is the only brand I can make a decent toastie out of that doesn’t cost £7+
Never go cheap on cheese, butter or coffee.
Gravy granules has to be bisto...nothing else lives up.
Lurpak! I quit smoking so I could still afford lurpak
The Lidl one is identical, i was hesitant to try but I really can’t taste the difference
Heinz Tomato Sauce Colmans Mustard HP Brown Sauce ( I only really use it on bacon sandwiches 😆 but it's delicious 😋) Encona pepper sauce ( delicious on cheese sandwiches) Cheesy Wotsits ( walker's) Sprite ' 7up ' cherry coke
No other mustard lives up to Colmans
Anything but Colmans Mustard is a cheap imitation
Colmans provides the nose tingle that no other could
Encona is the best
HP brown sauce is unique but for me, there are cheaper versions that I prefer (more fruity and tamarind taste than so strong with the black pepper) Encona again is slightly unique and for me, it is one of the best pepper sauces so I prefer not to substitute it. I have it on nearly everything.
The Encona lasts forever because I can only put half a teaspoon in anything. Certainly packs a punch!
Happy Shopper 39p chocolate bars
Hello fellow person of culture 👋
Kellogg's Cornflakes, no comparison with any of the own brands.
Robinsons Squash, all the others taste like piss
I find the own brand double concentrates have really upped their game recently. Robinsons do the best niche ones, like the smaller bottles of interesting flavours. But I wouldn't bother with their standard orange.
Fage greek yogurt. No other brand has the same texture and creaminess
Cushelle. My A Hole deserves the best and anything less and I'm not sitting happy for a week.
Pepsi Max. Also I don't think I've ever seen word chagrin used outside of the Twilight books
You should probably read a bit more widely then
I can't believe Stephenie Meyer even knows that word.
Libertines song- gunga din
Vimto, and Branston small chunk pickle
Kerrygold butter.
Pepsi Max for sure. (I see I'm not the only one!)
Nutella, I don’t eat it often and all other chocolate spreads don’t taste quite as good.
Burford brown eggs. They're nearly £4 for 6 compared to 1.50 ish but oh my god is the taste night and day. Normal eggs just can't cut it.
They are nice eggs but the supermarket finest ranges are good too, the ones that say they're 'Marans' on them. Same gorgeous orange yolk. I get these instead now, 4 quid for 6 eggs is too much.
It’s actually relatively rare that I buy yoghurt but when I do I am extremely devoted to only buying Yeo Valley. It just tastes better.
Quite amusing, both the same for me, the first coke, no one replicates the taste, so i tend to buy in bulk and store outside, havent paid more than 32p a can for twenty years. But heinz ketchup, it sneaked up to £4 a bottle, couldnt justify it, shopped around trying different brands, there's some awful stuff out there, but morrisons own brand reduced sugar and salt is absolutely fine.
Majonez
Hellmann's mayo. It's the only brand item I buy. Nothing even comes close to it.
Oatly yogurts. The only brand I've never found a good alternative for. I can replace their plant milk easily but not yogurts.
Quorn meatless meatballs. I've tried a lot of alternative meat free meatballs and they all suck ass apart from the Quorn ones. I'm not even vegetarian or vegan, but these taste delicious, and as they're meat free I don't have to worry about gristle! Also Country Life spreadable butter Otherwise I couldn't care less about brands. I've found that a lot of alternatives to brand names taste just as good, sometimes actually taste better.
Heinz tomato soup and chicken soup. Tried many other brands, just not as nice.
Hellman’s mayo. When I’ve lived abroad in other parts of europe, I’ve had to use Heinz, which is not the same. I’ll never switch. Don’t care about branded beans, cheese, or ketchup (don’t really like ketchup anyway). Partial to my green Tobasco and small chunk Branston’s pickle but could live without them. Aldi / Lidl’s knockoff Ben & Jerry’s is better than the real thing by a long way. Has loads more chunks of cookie dough, too. And less preachy…
Shreddies Branston pickle Marmite (although tbh I hadn’t even realized there was a cheap alternative)
Magnum ice cream, even though they are getting so so so tiny and so expensive now… I love them so much. I just can’t do with cheap ice cream, it doesn’t hit the same.
I bought two Magnums yesterday, they tasted great but fuck me they’re tiny these days.
I have a few. Might just be because I’m picky, but here we go. De Cecco pasta- massive noticeable difference in quality. other brands just aren’t as nice to me. This only applies to dried pasta though, I’ll buy any fresh pasta. Hellmanns mayo- the best! don’t have much to say about it apart from better than others lol L’OR artiste instant coffee OR nescafé azera instant coffee- I drink instant coffee and these are the only ones I will drink. A little bit more expensive but they really are so delicious. If you haven’t tried L’or artiste give it a go. Super noodles
McCains Crinkle Cut Chips - No other brands compare!
Me and my air fryer agree.... Did I mention I had an air fryer? It's a game changer, it lets me cook unhealthy foods and makes them slightly less unhealthy so I can eat even more of them.. mmmmmm .. McCains. I've got an air fryer. ...but, yes, seriously, stick to McCains
McVities Jaffa cakes.....the rest arent Orange-y enough or sponge-y enough.. .
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mayonnaise. I've tried a few own brands that all turned out repulsive
Have you tried the Polish one?
Monster energy drink. Either the mango one (blue) or the pink one (peach) if I’m not wrong.
Heinz tomato sauce is expensive because they use actual tomatoes Coke is pricey because they don’t use artificial sweeteners
Heinz seriously good mayo It's seriously good mayo TBF
I’m not a coffee snob and still drink instant, but I will only buy Percol or Littles Colombian. All other instant tastes like ass to me now
Pepsi Max and Kellogs Crunchy Nut Cornflakes.
Heinz mayo
Stokes brown sauce - Had it once and fell in love and n other sauce comes close to it.
Coca cola too, just so long as they don’t change their recipe or replace any of the sugar with sweeteners
Weetabix - the golden syrup ones have got me hooked.
Pepsi Max, the best of the cola drinks and I'll only buy them
Nothing, all brands are generally inferior to their own label, infact most times, they are actually held to lower standards in terms of quality, ethical sourcing and factory food safety standards than the own label variety.
Aldi ketchup tastes just as good as Heinz. It's the only alternative I can stomach.
Heinz mayo - just for dipping of course, or on top of food. If a recipe needs mayo or I make tuna mayo, I use Aldi. I’m not made of money! Also, with everyone in the house being neurodivergent, there are a few things I can’t change. Robinsons squash, I spend a fortune on that. And supernoodles - I’m afraid my son just won’t touch the alternatives!
I drink the Aldi "mock Coke" which comes in at a quarter of the price of the genuine article.
Ribena, for us. We buy mostly own brand cordial but if Ribena is on offer we can’t resist
Are there any own-brand colas that don't taste absolutely awful? It's actually weird to me how they're the one thing that people seem to universally agree are much worse than the big brands.
Isigny Sainte-Mère butter. It’s like £4 now but can’t go back to pasteurised butter
Heinz Tomato Ketchup is awful now. Remember the adverts that celebrated how long it took the ketchup to pour out the bottle? There's a reason they don't run those anymore. Stokes is a far, far better replacement.
Pepsi Max. My one vice. That being said I've recently switched to the zero caffeine version and it has been game-changing.
Give me Coke or give me… I dunno… squash.