'I tried Lurpak dupes from Aldi, Lidl and Tesco, the winner was half the price'

29 December 2023 , 11:20

723     0

Sanjeeta Bains does the supermarket butter taste test

Many of us will have used plenty of butter to prepare our Christmas feasts this week and may be running low on our favourite butter. But, it's no secret that the spreadable goodness isn't cheap.

Getting your hands on a tub of popular Lurpak is now harder than ever - but is it really the best? As the rising cost of living crisis continues to affect households and prices of supermarket products, tubs of the golden spread soared to £7.25 in some supermarkets.

Earlier this year, Lurpak reduced the size of its block of butter by 20 percent, changing its unsalted block from 250g to 200g, even though prices have shot up by around 15 percent over the last year. Although Aldi is now selling a 500g tub for a cheaper price of £3.99, the store has resorted to protecting them from theft with security netting, according to one shopper.

It's not the only product on the rise, either. The Grocer found around 500 Heinz products shot up in price during the first two weeks of the year, including tomato ketchup - with one supermarket now displaying half-empty bottles to defer shoplifters.

As prices remain eye-wateringly high, it might be time to try some more affordable brands that won't break the bank. But can we opt for cheaper versions of butter without losing out on flavour?

Asda praised over inclusive kids clothing range with holes for feeding tubes

We blind-taste-tested some of the more purse-friendly alternatives on the shelves to find out how they compare to the original - with a dupe "tasting like the real thing" to one that scored a miserable 0/5.

Read on to find out how supermarket butters compare to Lurpak.

Sanjeeta tested out a range of supermarket butters to see which is the best (Mirror Online)

1) I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, 450g, £1.50, Tesco

I can't believe anyone thinks this tastes anything like butter. An artificial tasting margarine. I needed plenty of gulps of tea to get rid of the taste it left in my mouth.

Rating: 1/5

2) Daisy, 500g, £1.75, Lidl

New from Lidl. Daisy has a rich taste which I quite enjoyed, but I couldn't quite manage more than a couple of bites – a surprise at this early stage of the taste test.

Rating: 3/5

3) Danpak spreadable, 500g, £2.19, Lidl

It was creamy and spread very easily. And the buttery smell was fantastic. Dead cert as Lurpak original, I initially thought.

Aldi, Lidl and Morrisons shoppers shocked by cost of Lurpak butter and its dupes

Rating: 4/5

4) Nordpak, 500g, £2.09, Aldi

Aldi 's Lurpak version tastes light and creamy, with an instant salt hit coming straight through. I was convinced this was the real thing. Aldi edged Lidl's version and even the real thing in my book.

Rating: 5/5

5) Beautifully Buttery, 500g, 95p, Aldi

Spread beautifully on my toast, but the taste was incredibly unpleasant - flavourless and fatty. I could feel my arteries clogging up with one bite. This had me reaching for my mug of tea to wash out the taste.

Rating: 0/5

6) Lurpak spreadable, 500g, £5, Sainsbury's

Very smooth, glided easily on toast, a good amount of buttery flavour yet tasted relatively light - a definite savoury quality, but I enjoyed the more strong salty Aldi version.

Rating: 4/5

7) Greenvale Valley, 500g, £2.09, Aldi

Nicely creamy, but I would have preferred a bit more saltiness coming through. However still much much preferable to Aldi’s Beautifully Buttery — and worth the extra cost.

Rating: 3/5

8) Tesco Salted spreadable, 500g, £2.19, Tesco

Very good spreadability. It is blended with butter but tasted too margariney for my liking.

Rating: 2/5

9) Tesco Butterpak, 500g, £2.09, Tesco

Although more expensive than the Lidl and Aldi versions, it tasted the worst to me. It lacked the savoury flavour of the others. It is preferable to Tesco margarine — despite costing the same.

Rating: 3/5

10. Clover, 500g, £1.69, Lidl

This had more margarine rather than butter taste but was nice and did not have the obviously artificial flavour. Well priced.

Rating: 3/5

The verdict

If you're looking for the closest to Lurpak, then Aldi's version wins hands down. However, if you are considering switching to affordable margarine, then Clover - 60p cheaper than Aldi's version - is good value in these tough times.

The Mirror has approached Aldi for a comment.

Share your thoughts on your favourite butter brands in the comments below.

Sanjeeta Bains