One of the biggest debates of our time is whether or not supermarket's own-branded food can compete with the original brands.
Lets face it; some of us can be quite snobbish when it comes to our weekly grocery shop and will usually stick to some staple branded products as we think they are better quality.
That's not always case, though, as more and more supermarkets are beginning to offer their own 'knock off' versions of quite a few iconic items that we all know and love.
The good thing about own-branded items is they are usually much cheaper than the original versions, meaning you can save yourself some pennies while picking up some of your favourites.
On the other hand, they don't always live up to the hype that they are setting and it can sometimes feel like you have been deceived when you tuck into some own-branded crisps and chocolates etc.
That's why a reporter from The Manchester Evening News set out to find out if some supermarkets own-branded items could really live up to the originals.
Reporter Adam Maidment picked up some popular branded items from Tesco and compared them with the 'knock-off' versions from budget retailer Aldi.
Here is how he got on.
Nutella vs Nutoka
Nutella is one of those brands that are hugely popular among shoppers everywhere, which is a good thing that fans will rarely be able to tell the difference from the pot itself.
However, looks aside, do the two items actually taste different? Well, according to Adam, they do actually taste a little bit different and Aldi's version puts up a good fight.
He said that both Nutella (£2.90 at Tesco) and Nutoka (£1.09 at Aldi) claim to contain 13 pc of hazelnuts in their ingredients, but that it was more obvious in Aldi's.
He wrote: "Aldi’s take on the hazelnut chocolate spread definitely smells and tastes more nutty in flavour, whereas Nutella has a far richer chocolate taste to it."
"Both are enjoyable and pretty much do the same thing, but I guess it really comes down to whether you want more hazelnut or chocolate flavours on your morning slice of toast?"
Despite putting up a good fight against the OG, Aldi's version was pipped to the top spot by Nutella, according to Adam's comparison.
Winner: Nutella
Pot Noodle vs Snack Noodles
First things first; Adam admits that Pot Noodles are not usually his snack of choice, but admitted he was a "team player and committed."
Opening the Snack Noodles (priced at 42p from Aldi), I get an underwhelming cardboard-esque smell of dry noodles. It’s not really appetising but it’s exactly what I kind of expected.
Despite the less than appealing response to Snack Noodles, he was pleasantly surprised by by the smell of chip shop curry he got from the Pot Noodle (80p) itself.
As both noodle pots had the same instructions, he flipped on the kettle and got to work.
After waiting four minutes for the noodles to be cooked he tucked in and, to ensure a fair battle, he tried both versions with and without the curry sauce sachet.
He admitted that the Snack Noodles "retained their dry dry noodle consistency, as did the peas" and that he "wasn’t getting much of a curry flavour either."
After tasting the Pot Noodle version, he found that the original version packed a much better flavour and tasted like they actually contained curry powder.
He said: "I’m not sure if mango chutney and chip shop curry is a thing but both came with a sachet of the sauce so I then whacked it in and noticed that it actually made both taste a lot better.
Either way, the Pot Noodles packed the most punch in terms of flavour. Neither were spicy, and I’m doubtful I’ll be buying either ever again but it was the OG that won this one."
Winner: Pot Noodle
Penguin vs Seal
If your school packed lunch did not contain a Penguin biscuit, were you even a proper British child?
To be fair to this simple biscuit the best thing about them was making your friends 'laugh' with the incredibly simple jokes that you used to think were the best banter.
With how iconic the chocolate biscuit is among the British public Adam was incredibly disappointed to find that Aldi's Seal (8 for 79p) was nothing like the popular biscuit, but had ZERO JOKE!
He said: "They’ve not even bothered to replicate the same joke over and over again.
And, I'm sorry, ladies and gentlemen, but I’m not even going to compare the biscuits now as that’s enough to warrant an instant disqualification in my book.
The Penguin wins. The seal should be ashamed of itself.
Winner: Penguin
Lotus Biscoff spread vs Biscuit Spread
Biscoff has become somewhat of a cultural trend in the recent years, which is why Adam decided to try out the popular Biscoff spread next.
Despite the popularity, Adam does admit that this was his first time trying the biscuit spread and that he "never really understood the appeal" but knew that it existed.
Picking up an OG version from Tesco (£2.50) and Aldi’s creatively-named Biscuit Spread (£1.79), the reporter tucked into the spreads for the first time.
"What surprised me here is just how similar they both tasted. Both had a dark sugary smell to them, and tasted exactly like a biscuit in spread format", he commented on both versions.
Adam did come to the conclusion that both versions were rather 'indulgent' and that they may get a little sickly over time, especially if you eat to much.
As for his overall thoughts, he commented: "Honestly, it’s rather difficult to pick a winner here but, on price point alone, I’m going to give it to Aldi."
Winner: Aldi Biscuit Spread
Jammy Dodgers vs Jammy Wheels: Mini Edition
"When does a dodger become a wheel? When it comes to the battle of a jam-centred biscuit, of course.
At this point, I’m very much starting to lose the will to live - I'm crashing from a sugar coma and I don’t want to eat anything ever again, but I agree to plod on with the experiment for The Greater Good", he said on his next comparison.
Up next were the Mini Jammy Dodgers (£1 at Tesco) versus the Mini Jammy Wheels from Aldi (85p).
On his taste test, he found that the Jammy Dodger still has that "ever-remembered taste of soft biscuit and sweet raspberry jam", and that they were still pleasant as ever.
While he did find that the Mini Jammy Wheels were quite similar to the OG, they just couldn't manage to replicate the same taste and texture of the iconic British biscuit.
He wrote: "While I applaud Aldi for opting for stars instead of love hearts in their biscuit design, it’s no-contest for me - especially when it comes to a 15p difference.
The winner is the Mini Jammy Dodgers."
Winner: Mini Jammy Dodgers
McCoys vs Ridged : Salt and Malt Vinegar Edition
After all the sugar that he tried and tested, it was time to put something a bit more savoury on the menu and what is better than a packet of crisps?
"Salt and Vinegar was the first bag I picked out of the McCoys multipack (£1.70) so the flavour decision was made for me.
In terms of packaging, these two were probably the least alike to each other but ultimately, we all still know what’s going on here and what’s trying to be achieved", he said.
Salt and Vinegar can be a difficult flavour to replicate and that is what Adam found with Aldi's Ridged Crisps (75p), which he said were a "shower of salt and vinegar."
He said: "Ultimately, it was far too much flavour for me. It wasn’t enjoyable and it was far too overwhelming. It might be a winning factor for some people but, for me, it was too much.
"The McCoys were much more subtle in flavour, while still being able to distinguish the salt and vinegar taste. However, half my packet seemed to be missing actual crisps.... I'm going to sadly presume that wasn't a production error."
McCoys also stood tall when it came to the crunch factor, something they are quite well known for.
Winner: McCoys
Mini Cheddars Vs Mini Cheese Bakes
Adam admitted that this next one took him a "bit by surprise" and described Mini Cheddar's as "a bit off an oddity."
On the crisps, he said: "I was going into this battle expecting the Mini Cheddars to win hands down but I was ultimately surprised.
Tucking into my 25g bag (available as a pack of six for £1.50 at Tesco), I was left with an overwhelming dryness and blandness. I was expecting a punch of cheesy flavour, and it was nowhere to be seen."
He found that Aldi's The Mini Cheese Bakes, sold as a pack of seven at Aldi for 73p, beat out the OG's for the crown in this battle as they had a "nice salty aftertaste that ended with a lasting cheesy aftertaste."
Adam said: "Besides the dryness, there wasn’t really much to differentiate the two and I’m pretty confident you could quite easily get away with claiming one was the other - if that was something you fancied doing with your friends one evening."
Winner: Mini Cheese Bakes
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