ONE in five families now enjoys waffles at home – leading to a surge of own-brand offerings in store.
A whopping 50million packs were sold in the year to February 2024, with high sales prompting leading bakery Warburtons to launch its own range.
Traditionally a waffle is a batter or dough mix, cooked between two plates to give it a characteristic size, shape and surface – and they are eaten the world over, particularly in Belgium.
Although traditionally a breakfast food, they are now sold as desserts or brunch.
Here, Lynsey Hope rates a selection out of five for taste and value.
McVitie’s Toasting
£1.50 for 8, ocado.com – 1/5
I POPPED these in my toaster and they burned, so make sure you follow the packet instructions and don’t wait for them to spring up.
Rectangular and thin, there’s not much to them really.
They tasted like cardboard with no flavour.
If you load them up with toppings, they’re passable, and cheap as chips, but that’s it.
Wafflemeister Belgian
£2.25 for 5, waitrose.com 4/5
NOT the cheapest option but less pricey than Tesco’s range and tasty, too.
They’re also not quite as sweet, with fewer calories, and less fat and sugar, than most of the other own-brands.
You can eat at room temperature or warm them up.
Darker in colour, they looked like an authentic Belgian waffle.
Delicious.
Tesco Finest Belgian
£1.95 for 4, tesco.com – 4/5
QUITE a chunky waffle with just the right amount of sugar pearls and a lovely crunch as you bite in.
I enjoyed these both hot and cold, but there are no instructions on how to cook them.
I found they tasted ok whether warmed in a toaster, air fryer or microwave.
Quite pricey for four, but taste-wise they were top notch.
Warburton’s Choc Chip
£1.15 for 1, tesco.com – 3/5
REALLY tasty waffles and the choc chips are a nice addition.
They had just the right amount of sugar and a milky, soft batter and nice crunch.
Perfect on their own, or with fruit or ice cream as a pud.
You can buy in packs of four or individually.
The only downside is the price.
Costing £1.15 each, their score took a hit.
Yummy though.
Rowan Hill Bakery
£1.59 for 7, lidl.co.uk – 3/5
DESPITE the high sugar content of each waffle, these didn’t appear to have enough sugar on them.
I would have preferred a bit more “crunch”.
It is a big pack of seven, which is great value for families, working out at less than 23p per treat.
They were a good depth and size, too, with a nice firm texture.
Aldi’s Bon Appetit
£1.25 for 5, aldi.co.uk – 5/5
SMALLER than I’d expected, but with a lovely sugary taste.
You simply microwave these for 20 seconds so they are very easy to prepare before you add your favourite toppings.
They come individually wrapped which was helpful for keeping them fresh.
Working out at just 25p a time, they are excellent value.
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