BAGELS are a popular snack for breakfast or lunch and loved around the world.
They can be enjoyed with just jam and butter, or eggs and bacon in the mornings.
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While beef or salmon bagels are enjoyable alternatives to the same old sandwich on any lunch break.
But with the cost of living still a struggle for households, fans of the dough-based bread will be looking for ways to save where possible.
So The Sun put six own-brand bagels to the test to see how they fared in terms of flavour and price against the top brand New York Bagel Company.
We toasted and spread butter on each one to see how they tasted – but was the price point that distinguished the bagels most.
Read more in Taste Tests
If you were to swap the branded bagels for the winner in your weekly grocery shop, you’d slash £20 off your grocery bill.
Here’s how the supermarket’s compared…
Morrisons
- 95p
- Price per bagel – 19p
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The Morrisons bagels toasted well and didn’t break up too much on the plate.
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There was also a good crunch to the outside while they stayed soft inside.
But, overall the flavour did taste a bit like cardboard and was a tad disappointing.
- Taste and texture: 6/10
- Price: 7/10
- Overall: 13/20
Aldi
- 85p
- Price per bagel – 17p
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Aldi own-brand products usually hold up well in taste tests and these Village Bakery bagels were no different.
They were nice and crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside.
The overall flavour was smooth and creamy too.
- Taste and texture: 7/10
- Price: 8/10
- Overall: 15/20
Lidl
- 85p
- Price per bagel – 17p
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The Lidl Rowan Hill bagels were rich and velvety with no sign of a bitter aftertaste.
That said, they were a touch brittle, with bits of dough breaking off in my hands.
- Taste and texture: 6/10
- Price: 8/10
- Overall: 14/20
Asda
- 95p
- Price per bagel – 19p
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The Asda bagels’ texture was a surprise to me as I wasn’t expecting there to be much difference between the supermarkets’ own-brands.
But the retailer’s version came out joint top due to its super soft and chewy interior and delicate crunch on the outside.
There was a nice salty flavour to them too.
- Taste and texture: 8/10
- Price: 7/10
- Overall: 15/20
New York Bakery
- £1.25 (Asda)
- Price per bagel – 25p
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The New York Bakery five-pack fared well in terms of texture – they were crusty on the outside and chewy in the middle.
In terms of flavour, they were creamy with a good level of tang.
- Taste and texture: 7/10
- Price: 5/10
- Overall: 12/20
Sainsbury’s – Winner
- 85p
- Price per bagel – 17p
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The Sainsbury’s bagels were lovely and crunchy on the outside and dense but gooey in the middle.
Their flavour was velvety smooth with a nice buttery taste too – overall they came out top of the test when combining taste and texture and price.
Sainsbury’s came out on top overall for taste, texture and price.
Up against the New York Bagel Company’s for £1.25, Sainsbury’s was 40p cheaper.
Swapping the branded pack for this own-brand would save £20.80 a year, based on buying one pack a week.
- Taste and texture: 8/10
- Price: 8/10
- Overall: 16/20
Tesco
- 95p
- Price per bagel – 19p
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These ones came out a bit crumbly in texture while the inside was grainy and sandy.
There was a nice balance of tart and creamy flavours though.
- Taste and texture: 6/10
- Price: 7/10
- Overall: 13/20
In other news, we tested own-brand vegetable soups against Heinz to see which came out on top.
Plus, we tried Caramac dupes after Nestle announced it was discontinuing them – and found a bar that tastes even better.
You can also join our new Sun Money Facebook group to share stories and tips and engage with the consumer team and other group members.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
