There aren't many of us who don't love a good blob of ketchup on our food - from chips to a bacon sandwich.
But which one is best - and is Heinz the king?
To find out once and for all, the Mirror put three supermarket own-brand versions to the test.
The results may well surprise you - with Heinz topped, in our reviewer's opinion at least - by two of the supermarket alternatives.
For the tasting, the Mirror's Deputy Features Editor Rosaleen Fenton went for a classic choice - a plate of chips - when organising the test.
All the brands sampled were standard ketchup, but there was a lot of difference between them.
Some were sweet, while others were vinegary. Textures ranged from a smooth emulsified sauce to one with little chunks of tomato in it.
Each participant in my test was asked to focus on aroma, texture, taste and appearance.
Heinz tomato ketchup - 7/10
★★★★★★★
£2.50 for 650g
Very sweet but balanced well by the level of vinegar. Lovely and smooth with a nice mouth-feel, has a bit of a zing to it.
Tesco tomato ketchup - 3/10
★★★
65p for 555g
It’s got an odd texture and feels like it’s been watered-down. I don’t like it, not tomatoey at all. Tastes like wet socks and is extremely runny.
Lidl tomato ketchup - 8/10
★★★★★★★★
45p for 500g
It has a classic ketchup flavour, with a bit of a salsa vibe. Lovely texture and actually tastes like tomatoes. Feels fresh. Velvety smooth, perfect for dunking, and look at the price difference when compared with Heinz.
Once again, the cut-price supermarket has proven it can perform extremely well.
Sainsbury’s tomato ketchup - 4/10
★★★★
60p for 460g
Very vinegary but also somehow very bland. No sweetness. Has a bitter aftertaste. The ketchup tastes like I left it in the cupboard for ten years and then decided to put it on my chips.
The final verdict
Lidl has won the day on both flavour and price. This is the ketchup you want.
This taste test shows it's worth shopping around and trying the cheaper alternatives.
Surprisingly, the Mirror's unscientific findings are backed up by previous research - with a survey in 2011 reporting Heinz coming second to last in a league table of 13 tomato sauces.
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