Iceland’s £26 frozen turkey beats bird worth £86 in Good Housekeeping Christmas food taste test
The frozen food grocery chain came top for its £26 4.6kg Easy Carve Turkey with Streaky Bacon
ICELAND has beaten M&S to be named the best supermarket to buy a turkey from this Christmas - even though the bird is frozen.
The frozen food grocery chain came top for its £26 4.6kg Easy Carve Turkey with Streaky Bacon in Good Housekeeping magazine's annual blind taste test.
It knocked M&S into second place with its British Tukey Crown with Pork, Sage and Onion Turkey Stuffing with Bacon Lattice, which is cheaper at £21.60 - but you only get 1.68kg of meat.
Iceland also came top in the stilton category with its £2 200g Luxury British Blue Stilton, which knocked Booths' pricey £10 300g Potted Blue Stilton into second place.
Meanwhile Morrisons scooped its second top prize of the season for its £2 The Best Deep Filled Mince Pies, which also were named the best in BBC Good Food magazine's annual Christmas food taste test earlier this month.
Its £2 Free From Mince Pies’ also scored the best in the gluten free mince pies category.
And Morrisons won again for its £12 The Best Poinsettia Fully Iced Christmas Cake which came joint top with Sainsbury's £15 Taste the Difference Falling Leaves Iced Rich Fruit cake in the Christmas cake category.
Surprisingly, the best mulled wine this year comes in a box, according to Good Housekeeping.
It named Asda's Mulled Wine in a Box - which costs £8 for 2.25 litres - the best in the mulled wine category.
As predicted, M&S was commended for five products in Good Housekeeping's eight festive food categories.
But budget supermarket Aldi had the largest number of highest scoring products, with 10 items in the top five across all categories.
It won for its £14.99 Specially Selected Bone in Rib of Beef Joint with Salt and Pepper, which beat The Ginger Pig's pricey £54.50 Cote de Boeuf into second place.
The food and drink were scored by a panel of Good Housekeeping experts as well as consumers who blind taste tested 401 Christmas food and drink products.
The most expensive product tested was Eversfield's £95 6kg Organic Bronze Turkey, which was named as one of the "best of the rest" in the frozen turkeys and crowns category.
Good Housekeeping Christmas taste test winners - the full line up
WE reveal the winners of Good Housekeeping's blind Christmas taste test:
CHAMPAGNE UNDER £40
Winner: Herbert Beaufort Grand Cru NV, M&S, £35 (84/100)
Runners up: Les Pionnies 2012, Co-op, £26.99 (82/100)
Comte de Senneval Brut NV, Lidl, £10.99 (82/100)
Best of the Rest: Tesco Finest Premier Cru NV, £19 (81/100)
Asda Extra Special Louis Bernard NV, £18 (81/100)
Laytone Brut Reserve, Jerobams, £22.95 (81/100)
SPARKLING WINES UNDER £15
Winner: Laborie Methode Cap Classique Blanc de Blancs Brut 2010, Amazon, £14.95 (82/100)
Runners up: Morrisons The Best Prosecco £8 (81/100)
Best of the Rest: Campo Viejo Cava Brut Reserva, Tesco, £12 (79/100)
Cabalié Sparkling 2016, Laithwaites, £12.99 (79/100)
L’Extra par Langlois Brut NV Crémant de Loire, Majestic, £13.99 (78/100)
MULLED WINE
Winner: Asda Mulled Wine in a Box, £8 for 2.25l (82/100)
Runners up: M&S Red Mulled Wine, £6.50 for 75cl (81/100)
Best of the Rest: Belgars Mulled Wine, Ocado, £3.99 for 75cl (80/100)
ALDI Mulled Wine, £3.49 for 75cl (80/100)
Harvey Nichols Mulled Wine, £15 for 75cl (74/100)
STILTON
Winner: Iceland Luxury British Blue Stilton, £2 for 200g (81/100)
Runners up: Booths Potted Blue Stilton, £10 for 300g (80/100)
Co-op Potted Stilton, £4.50 for 225g (80/100)
Whole Foods Market Colston Bassett Stilton, £2.99 for 100g (80/100)
Paxton and Whitfield Stilton, £6.75 for 250g (80/100)
MINCE PIES
Winner: Morrisons The Best Deep Filled Mince Pies, £2 for 6 (83/100)
Runners up: Pret’s Mince Pie, £1.45 for each (79/100)
M&S The Collection Mince Pies, £2.50 for 6 (79/100)
ALDI Specially Selected Mince Pies, £1.35 for 6 (79/100)
Best of the Rest: Iceland Luxury Mince Pies, £1.89 for 6 (78/100)
GLUTEN FREE MINCE PIES
Winner: Morrisons Free From Mince Pies, £2 for 4 (78/100)
Runners up: Cottage Delight Gluten Free Luxury Mince Pies, £3.95 for 4 (75/100)
Best of the Rest: Mr. Kipling Free From Mince Pies, £2.50 for 4, Tesco (73/100)
CRANBERRY SAUCE
Winner: Waitrose & Partners Chilled Cranberry sauce, £2.19 for 300g (84/100)
Runners up: ALDI Specially Selected Cranberry and Port Sauce, 99p for 230g (78/100)
Best of the Rest: Asda Extra Special Cranberry Sauce with Port, £1 for 230g (77/100)
PIGS IN BLANKETS
Winner: Co-op Mini Chorizo Wrapped in Pancetta, £3 for 170g (78/100)
Runners up: ALDI Specially Selected Three Little Pigs £2.99 for 288g (74/100)
Best of the Rest: Asda 10 Extra Special Pigs in Blankets, £2.98 for 210g (70/100)
ALDI Specially Selected Pigs in Blankets, £2.69 for 250g (70/100)
BEEF ROASTING JOINTS
Winner: ALDI Specially Selected Bone in Rib of Beef Joint with Salt and Pepper, £14.99 for 1.2 – 2.7kg (85/100)
Runners up: The Ginger Pig Cote de Boeuf, £54.40 for 1.6kg (82/100)
M&S The Collection Dry Aged Rib of Beef, £28 per kg for 1.3 – 1.75kg (82/100)
Best of the Rest: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Boneless Beef Rib Topped with Sticky Honey, Mustard and Horseradish Glaze, with Spicy Mustard Seed and Herb Crumb, £35 for 1.7kg (81/100)
Eversfield Organic Beef Rib Joint on the Bone, £60 for 2.4kg (78/100)
SAUSAGE MEAT STUFFING
Winner: Lidl Deluxe Apricot & White Stilton Stuffing, £2.39 for 300g (82/100)
Runners up: ALDI Specially Selected Stuffing Croquettes, £2.99 for 300g (81/100)
Best of the Rest: Asda Extra Special British Pork and Caramelised Onion stuffing with Bacon Wraps, £3 for 300g (79/100)
Heston from Waitrose Christmas Stuffing Bundt, £9.99 for 475g (78/100)
FROZEN TURKEYS AND CROWNS
Winner: Iceland Easy Carve Turkey with Streaky Bacon, £26 for 4.2kg (88/100)
Runners up: M&S British Tukey Crown with Pork, Sage and Onion Turkey Stuffing with Bacon Lattice, £21.60 for 1.68kg (85/100)
Best of the Rest: Loué Free-Range Bronze Turkey, £69 for 5kg, Donald Russell (84/100)
Eversfield Organic Bronze Turkey, £95.70 for 6kg (84/100)
Sainsbury’s Whole Basted Turkey, £25 for 5-6.49kg (83/100)
COOK Stuffed Crown of Turkey, £45 for 2.1kg (83/100)
CHRISTMAS PUDDING
Winner: M&S The Collection 12 Month Matured Vintage Christmas Pudding, £14 for 800g (84/100)
Runners up: Heston from Waitrose Golden Delicious Pudding, £14 for 800g (79/100)
Best of the Rest: Cole’s Black Forest, £6.99 for 454g (77/100)
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference 18 Month Matured Christmas Pudding, £9 for 900g (76/100)
Daylesford Organic Christmas Pudding, £20 for 900g (74/100)
BRANDY BUTTER
Winner: Co-op Brandy Butter, £2 for 200g (84/100)
Runners up: ALDI Brandy Butter with Courvoisier Cognac, £1.59 for 200g (82/100)
Best of the Rest: Morrisons The Best French Brandy Butter, £2.50 for 200g (81/100)
Iceland Luxury Brandy Butter, £1.79 for 200g (80/100)
Lidl Courvoisier Brandy Butter, £1.49 for 200g (79/100)
CHRISTMAS CAKE
Joint Winner: Morrisons The Best Poinsettia Fully Iced Christmas Cake, £12 for 1.5kg (83/100)
Sainsbury’s Taste The Difference Falling Leaves Iced Rich Fruit Cake, £15 for 1.3kg (83/100)
Runners up: Waitrose &Partners 1 Rich Fruit, £16 for 1.3kg (81/100)
Best of the Rest: Morrisons The Best Hand Finished Star Christmas Cake, 900g for £10 (80/100)
M&S 6 Month Matured Golden Shimmer Tree CAKE, £20 for 1.4kg (80/100)
Daylesford Organic Fruit & Nut in Tin Christmas Cake, £20 for 800g (80/100)
YULE LOG
Winner: ALDI Specially Selected Belgian Chocolate Yule Log, £5.99 for 749g (83/100)
Runners up: Lidl Deluxe Chocolate Yule Log, £3.49 for 476g (77/100)
Best of the Rest: Daylesford Chocolate &; Orange Yule Log, £18 for 750g (75/100)
Asda Extra Special Yule Log, £3.50 for 475g (74/100)
M&S The Collection Santa’s Rooftop Chocolate & Caramel Yule Log, £18 for 860g (74/100)
MEAT-FREE MAINS
Winner: COOK Portobello Mushroom Wellington, £10 for 360g (89/100)
Runners up: Booths Roasted Beetroot, Feta & Pine Nut Tart, £7.50 for 400g (85/100)
Best of the Rest: Morrisons The Best Mushroom, Spinach & Madeira En Croute, £5 for 465g (83/100)
ALDI Roasted Butternut Squash Roast, £2.99 for 400g (81/100)
Co-op Butternut, Goats Cheese and Red Onion Rosti, £3 for 321g (78/100)
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Festive Jewelled Squash & Pistachio Pilaf, £7 for 750g (78/100)
SMOKED SALMON
Winner: St James Smokehouse Scotch Reserve Gin & Tonic Scottish Smoked Salmon, £5.69 for 100g (83/100)
Runners up: Tesco Ready to Eat Smoked Salmon Slices, £6.25 for 240g (82/100)
ALDI Specially Selected Whiskey Smoked Salmon, £3.79 for 100g (82/100)
Best of the Rest: The Pished Fish The Sozzled Santa Smoked Salmon, £7.45 for 100g (81/100)
Asda Extra Special Heather Honey & Black Pepper Smoked Salmon, £3.99 for 120g (81/100)
More on Money
In other Christmas food news, Greggs has revealed the day that the much-loved Festive Bake returns to shops - and we can't wait.
M&S has launched milk and cookies granola, which is like a posh version of Nestle's Cookie Crisp.
Meanwhile Asda has launched unusual plum and sloe gin cocktail sausages.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team? Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 78 24516. Don't forget to join the for the latest bargains and money-saving advice.
Get extra savings with The Sun Vouchers including discounts and voucher codes for Iceland and many more Food & Drink retailers.