Who has the best "value/basics" ranges - Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys or Morrisons?

[smartshopper]

I have resolved to buy more stuff from the cheap ranges - e.g. Sainsburys "basics" in the orange & white packaging, in bid to cut the weekly shop. I have heard they are just as good as the branded / other own brand equivalents and much cheaper. But which supermarket does the best quality stuff? DH & DS are unconvinced and I am planning to some "behind the scenes" swaps to see if they notice the difference.

Waitrose doesn't count as their essentials range is like the standard stuff in other supermarkets and usually just as expensive!

Sainsbury's is pretty good.

Depends entirely. I would never buy things like meat and eggs from value ranges. From sainsburys I get orange juice and baked beans from the value range and my dc can't taste any difference. Rich teas too, and their chocolate is v good for cooking.

i think they all have their better products and not such good products

IMO asda value kitchen towel is better than tesco value
I honestly think many of the value products are IDEBTICAL regardless of weather asda / tesco / sainsburys.

also IMO Value fresh fruit / veg is normally fine, just might be odd shapes etc

Sainsos by far. Their basics are pretty good.

Don't write off the waitrose essentials - they do some brilliant offers and it is often the same price as Sainsbos (especially on meat).

get thee onto ocado delivery - great quality and they price match tesco!

there are some good ones -

Tescos -
value porridge (52p)
ketchup (26p)
chocolate (28p)
noodles (chicken flavour only) 9p
fish fingers (47 p)
big bag spuds (99p for smaller £1....59.for large..dunno, but it's a good buy..)
value wholemeal bread - 50p
value raspberry sponge - 46p (not bad)
bog roll (£1.27 for 9 rolls i think but i'd have to check..)

Sainsburys - have a slightly less wide range of value goodies, but still..

noodles (chicken curry flavour as well as chicken) 9p
chocolate (28p)
ketchup..(26p again)
value capiscum peppers (1.27-1.47 varies a bit)
value wholemeal bread 50p
they do value hummous which i find funny!

Asda - have some really good standard ranges eg £1 Asda High bran...

fish fingers 47p..
noodles (prawn flavour) 9p..
chocolate 28p
they do non-value cut salad at 50p which is nice if you just want a little bit and works out much cheaper than buyingthe stuff separate.
don't know about their bread as our local Asda is v. small.

I think overall Tesco's have the best range for value stuff, but this is affected by our Tesco's being huge, and our sainsburys being smaller, and Asda even smaller...

Morrisons do some good cheap free range eggs, they are a pack of 10 and look like they are the caged ones because of the packaging but they are not, they are a bargain compared to the non value branded ones, they just do not state a size on them. They are good for veg/fruit etc with their offers, in our Tesco at least the quality can be pretty poor.

if you are used to good quality fish fingers, the value will be noticed...

the chocolate is good, especially the dark, and veg - well veg are veg. a value carrot is indistinguishable from a catchweight one once its been chopped up and cooked.

Ah yes, the fishfingers I tried were terrible. I would also avoid bread, all the value ones I've tried are very dry. I just buy a niceish one and freeze straight away so I can defrost one at a time when needed

value cooking ingredients are pretty good (flour, butter etc).
value honey is OK (brews a reasonable mead)

value tortillas are actually suprisingly good (three ingredients maize, oil, salt!)

value juice both fresh and in cartons is ok. though to go truly value, you don't need juice, buying eg value citrus (which is ok) fulfills the fruit part of dietary requirement.

vile & not worth buying: value tea. just not worth it. Sainbos have a decent offer on red-label at the mo.

Tesco pitta bread 19p. always have some in my freezer, plus have bought their soft cheese (25p) and white rolls (36p for 12) when we're really skint.

Oh and bananas too, and even the toilet roll seems to last quite a long time- lots of smaller, less compact rolls compared to standard.

Do not touch Sainsbury's value tinned tuna. It tastes like licking rusty metal, and has an unpleasantly gritty texture. Their baked beans and bananas and little punnets of strawberries are excellent, though.

Tesco value brands (is it Oak Lane?) strawberry jam is honestly as good as Bonne Maman and about a third of the price. I thoroughly recommend it.

Sainsbury's value range is pretty good. We regularly buy:

apple juice
tinned tomatoes
pitta bread
lasagne sheets
apples
sanitary pads
onions
carrots
brie (seriously!)
cheddar cheese
chocolate mousse

Sainsbury's basic flour, butter (for cooking), chopped tinned (or tetrapacked) tomatoes, kidney beans, sweetcorn, and pitta bread are all fine.

Basic cream cheese has a scary list of ingredients.

I haven't tried as many Tesco value things but the tinned toms were not as good as Sainsburys (watery) and the value rice krispies were foul, even for cooking.

The fruit and veg in Sainsbury's you have to check prices on carefully as the basics pre-packed is sometimes more expensive than standard loose stuff.

Do not touch Sainsbury's value tinned tuna. It tastes like licking rusty metal, and has an unpleasantly gritty texture.

as tuna tins don't go ot of date in yers...stock up whenever on offer on eg 4 cans for £2..(there have een many ups and downs in inned tuna recently..don't bother when its expensive.).much nicer and worth buying.

cheese from the counters can work out cheaper than basic cheese, though tend to be strongly flavoured ones...

Dh has just bought a brick that tastes of Old Gym Kit.

I've only tried Asda and Tesco but the only thing I haven't liked are the cornflakes, very thin and turn to mush almost immediately.
Saying that they are fine for cornflake cakes, just not to eat as cereal with milk.

The tuna isn't great, I agree but not that bad for a cheap pasta bake or similar, though I wouldn't put it in a sandwich or on a salad when you can taste it a bit more.

Value juice is the only kind I buy and then rarely so DD has nothing to compare it to!

I have tested extensively (in the name of research) value brand biscuits and found both asdas and morrisons value biscuits (jaffacakes, digestives, custard creams, etc) to be absolutely fine.

Sainsbury's Basics hoummous is lovely.

I buy Tesco value for things like flour, butter, fruit\veg, tinned tomatoes and basic biscuits and they are all fine.

sains basic butter is exactly the same as their own brand butter. Agree about the basic brie- its good

and they do unsalted basics butter. with my PFB first child she had that only and her precious palate was never sullied with marg (oddly Ds is still alive despite getting 'butterlicious' and the like)

I think the value tinned tomatoes are great from Sainsburys and Asda.

Value pitta bread is not so good - thin and difficult to chop without ripping.

Oh yeah, value rich teas taste nicer in my opinion.

I shop at Sainsbugs and Waitrose.

The sainsburys frozen white fish is brill for fish pies. Their fresh fruit is also good but sometimes you have to check the sizes as the packaging makes you think your getting a deal but sometimes its only a few pennies.

Tinned toms are not brill as there is def a difference between premuim and cheap.

Fish fingers a no no, awful and nasty. I still buy the "taste the difference" lovely.

I agree that value has a place but most of the time its no substite for quality. I like to know where my food comes from and its cheap for a reason....not worth thinking about.