CRANBERRY SAUCE
M&S Cranberry and Port
€4.49 for 400g, €11.22 per kg
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This is streets ahead of the competition when it comes to texture, taste and uniqueness. It is made with 25 per cent cranberries and 8 per cent port, and you can really taste both. The cranberries are whole and resemble real fruit, while the syrupy sauce has a discernible port flavour and a hint of cloves that is as lovely as it is unexpected. It can be served cold or you can whack it in the microwave for 60 seconds and turn it into a particularly festive gravy-like accompaniment to your Christmas dinner.
Verdict: High-end, high-quality.
Star rating: *****
Ocean Spray (Iceland)
€1.45 for 250g, €5.80 per kg
These people are the cranberry kings of New England, so we figured they would make a decent jar of sauce. And they do. It’s fine but it is by no means amazing. It is a little too sweet for our tastes, and the gelatinous texture is smoother and more jam-like than we would like. There are 30 per cent cranberries in the jar, which is on the low end of the scale, and the fruit in the mix has been processed beyond all recognition. Having said that, it isn’t awful and is the most widely available of the options reviewed.
Verdict: A little disappointing.
Star rating: **
Specially Select (Aldi)
€1.49 for 200g, €7.45 per kg
This has been “enriched by port” and “selected by our experts”, the front of the jar tells us. The back tells us that we can expect to find 43 per cent cranberries and 5 per cent port in the jar.
The cranberries have a lovely texture and there are loads of them, while it has a tartness that is quite wonderful. This will be good on Christmas Day and throughout the rest of the holiday season.If you are partial to cranberry sauce, you might want to buy more than one jar because they are on the small side.
Verdict: Lovely.
Star rating: ****
Deluxe (Lidl)
€1.99 for 200g, €9.95 per kg
The only thing separating this cranberry sauce from the Aldi cranberry sauce is the fact that port has not enriched this one: it has merely been added to the jar. Like the Aldi version, it has been made with 43 per cent cranberries and 5 per cent port, and all the other ingredients are exactly the same and appear in the same order, almost as if it has been made by the same company. It also tastes virtually identical and costs the same too, which means it has to get exactly the same rating.
Verdict: Um, lovely too.
Star rating: ****
SMOKED SALMON
Tesco Finest
€9 for 100g, €90 per kg
This has a subtle smokiness that allows the salmon flavour to shine. It is comparatively lacking in saltiness, which lets the fishy flavours come through. While some people will like that, others might be turned off by the strong salmon flavour, such as those not as enamoured with fish. We know salmon is an oily fish, but this is slightly more oily than we like and it leans ever so slightly to the greasy side of things. As a stand-alone product it is not the finest, but is very fine indeed when served with pasta.
Verdict: Average.
Star rating: **
Deluxe Cold (Lidl)
€6.99 for 320g, €21.84 per kg
There is a strong oakiness and a stronger smokiness to this salmon. It is also very salty.
Our first impression isn’t entirely favourable – initially the flavours initially seem overpowering and artificial – but the more we eat, the more we like it, and we end up eating much more of this salmon than is necessary for review purposes, strictly speaking. It is competitively priced too. In terms of texture it is okay, but a long way from melt-in-your-mouth.
Verdict: Surprisingly moreish.
Star rating: ***
M&S Whisky Gold Scottish
€8.86 for 200g, €44.30 per kg
When it comes to party food, M&S is pretty high-end, but we are still surprised to see that its fancy smoked salmon now comes dusted with gold – actual gold – or at least so that front packaging implies. The edges of each slice are indeed “gold”, although when we investigate further we see no mention of gold among the ingredients. This is still a good product. The balance of smokiness, saltiness and sweetness is spot-on, and it lacks the greasiness found elsewhere. The texture comes close to melt-in-the-mouth.
Verdict: Very posh.
Star rating: ****
Duncannon Smokehouse
€45 for 454g, €99 per kg
This salmon from a small Wexford producer – duncannonsmokehouse.ie – trumps the better-known, more easily accessible brands in several key areas. Firstly, it is Irish, and we do smoked salmon very well. It is also wild, which means it deserves to be treated with more respect than the competition. And it lacks the oiliness commonly found in mass-produced products. It is not cheap but it is very high-quality. The smoky flavours are gorgeous and the texture beautiful. A special Christmas treat.
Verdict: Excellent – and locally produced.
Star rating: *****
CHEESE
M&S Classic Selection
€13.95 for 485g, €28.76 per kg
This cheese board comes with an actual wooden board. M&S bills this as its “classic cheese selection”, and indeed some classics are present: Camembert, Cheddar, white and blue Stilton, and Leicester. We would have left out either the cheddar or the Leicester and gone with only one Stilton. But maybe we’re Brie-ing picky (sorry). The cheeses are fine but the blocks are small and they would not stretch very far. It is also very dear.
Verdict: Okay but not great.
Star rating: ***
Wicklow Farmhouse Hamper
€14.99 for 810g, €23.06 per kg *
This is a good example of how far Aldi has come. This hamper is very high-end, featuring crackers from Sheridans, relish from Ballymaloe and four really good Irish cheeses. The Brie is excellent, as are the Cheddars (there are three types of Cheddar included). We can't fault this in terms of quality or presentation, although we would like a little more variety, and maybe a little less straw. * The per kg weight is just for the cheese, which amounts to 650g of the total weight.
Verdict: Very fine cheeses.
Star rating: ****
Cheese variety from Lidl
€21.27 for 1.1kg, €19.34 per kg
Rather than going with a preordained selection we decide to pick and choose our own cheeses from Lidl. It has some really excellent options, including many fine cheeses from Ireland. We like the (Irish) Brie and the (French) Crémeux de Normandie. The (Irish) Cheddars were lovely too and the (Italian) Parmesan is surprisingly high-end for the price. Strip off the packaging, whack these cheeses on a board and away you go. No need for straw, boards or any other messing.
Verdict: Great variety and value.
Star rating: *****
Tesco Finest Cheese board
€8 for 480g, €16.66 per kg
This is comparatively cheap. Admittedly you don’t get the straw or the wooden board, but as we discovered when buying our Lidl cheese selection, you really don’t need it. We love the mix of cheeses here: there is Cornish Brie, Wensleydale with cranberry and blueberry, Cheddar, Manchego and Bleu d’Auvergne. The quality of the individual pieces is top-notch. It is a lazy way to get a cheese board together, but it is very good value for money and very high quality.
Verdict: Praise be to cheeses.
Star rating: *****
STUFFING
Tesco Sage and Onion
€2.95 for 250g, €11.80 per kg
This stuffing can be microwaved in just three minutes, which is handy, although we’re not sure microwaving stuffing is in keeping with the spirit of Christmas. It’s very breadcrumb-heavy and the onions are excessively soft, while the sage lacks oomph. It’s not bad but, ultimately, it’s about convenience. You could knock up a home-made alternative that tastes better at less than half the price with just a bit of effort.
Verdict: Bland and pointless.
Star rating: **
Connell Bakery (Lidl)
€1.99 for 300g, €6.63 per kg
This is similar to the Tesco option, but the texture of the onion is crunchier and the herbs easier to detect. It also seems saltier, which is fine by us, if not our heart. As simple stuffings go, it is fine but, as with the Tesco option, we reckon that, given a few breadcrumbs and a sprinkling of herbs, even a novice cook could knock up a better-value alternative.
Verdict: Not too bad.
Star rating: ***
Iceland Pork Stuffing Balls
€2.50 for 350g, €7.14 per kg
These little balls of porky goodness produce a worrying amount of grease. An abundance of pig fat is not necessarily bad (tastewise, at least) but we’re not convinced this stuffing is worth it. It doesn’t taste good enough to warrant the calories or the artery-clogging. It has a pleasant meaty texture, but ultimately it is let down by the absence of any real flavour, although that might not matter so much when it’s swimming in gravy on a Christmas plate.
Verdict: Dull and greasy.
Star rating: **
Marks & Spencer
€4.19 for 350g, €11.97 per kg
This stuffing, on the other hand, tastes great. It’s as greasy as the Iceland option, and a small square – which M&S describes as an “adult man’s portion” – will add more than 100 calories to your dinner, but it tastes great. The sausage meat is lovely and there is a wonderfully herby saltiness present. These will add something to any festive meal and they taste even better when served cold in sandwiches after the big event. The big problem is they taste too good, so a single portion is not going to be enough for any right-thinking person.
Verdict: Gorgeous and greasy.
Star rating: *****
PARTY FOOD
Iceland Buffet Platter and King Prawn selection
€14 for 140 pieces
When it comes to getting a lot of party food for a little cash, it is hard to beat Iceland. For this price you get 140 different pieces, including king prawns, beef pasties, sausage rolls, and cheese and onion pies. It is not posh but if you want to feed the masses without spending big, you’ll not go far wrong here. The prawns are perfectly pleasant, as are the cheese and onion pies. The sausage rolls aren’t so impressive.
Verdict: A little money goes a long way.
Star rating: ***
Let’s Party (Lidl)
€4.99 for 60 pieces
The Let’s Party range from Lidl doesn’t just have Indian food, fare from all over the world will be found in the distinctive red boxes. This box has 60 pieces, including wontons, chilli money bags and vegetable spring rolls. These will go down just fine when served at a party where the booze is flowing, but don’t expect anyone to pass any comment on them one way or another.
Verdict: They get the job done.
Star rating: ***
Marks & Spencer
€29.37 for 34 pieces
For this price you get some of the fanciest party food we have ever come across outside of high-priced restaurants. There’s mini lobster and langoustine thermidor, sticky Asian-style chicken lollipops and Indian lamb and chicken open samosas. These are sure to be talked about. They don’t come cheap, however.
Verdict: You’d really want to love your friends.
Star rating: ****
Tesco Finest
€18 for 32 pieces
Some of the options available under the Tesco Finest umbrella are excellent. The Tempura king prawns we reviewed are very good indeed and we loved the caramelised red onion and herb Camembert sharing bread while the spring rolls were the best we have come across for a long time. These are not the cheapest option around by a long shot but it might be a price worth paying.
Verdict: Top dog.
Star rating: *****
