Morrisons has emerged as the surprise hit in this year’s Good Food Christmas Supermarket Taste Test Awards – second only to M&S.
While M&S scooped six of the 17 awards, Morrisons secured second place with three gongs, including the coveted award for best mince pies.
It’s a real boost for the ailing grocer, which lost almost £600 million last year, and this week announced the closure of 103 stores, cafes, florists, and pharmacies before the end of 2025.
The judges blind taste tested a total of 185 Christmas products from 13 supermarkets, across 17 categories, including pigs-in-blankets, Turkeys, Christmas puddings, canapés, and more.
To the delight of die-hard M&S fans, the retailer ranked as the top supermarket brand for products including best gammon, best vegetarian main, best Christmas cake, and best Christmas pudding.
Budget supermarkets like Aldi shared its spoils with other brands as it was named joint winner for best smoked salmon and best hot canapé, while Lidl scored top marks for its sherry trifle.
The award for best Turkey Crown was jointly given to M&S and Sainsbury’s, while ‘Waitrose of the North’ Booths pipped the other retailers to the top spot for best alternative Christmas main and best alternative Christmas cake.
In bad news for Waitrose, the posh supermarket lost out on nearly every single category except for best gluten-free and best vegan mince pies.
Sainsbury’s Turkey Crown (pictured) was branded a ‘showstopper’ for its ‘golden, glossy glaze and crispy bacon’
Lulu Grimes, Managing Editor of Good Food, said: ‘This year’s Christmas Supermarket Taste Test shows you can have a brilliant festive spread without breaking the bank.
‘The supermarkets offer showstopping mains and nostalgic puddings, saving time in the kitchen so you can focus on adding flair to your family favourite Christmas recipes and creating your own precious food memories.’
Head of Food, Cassie Best, added: ‘Our Christmas starts in August when we taste all the hundreds of products submitted, and from then, anticipation builds as to who will make the winners list.
‘There was serious competition this year between the 13 supermarkets who entered as they all feature a fabulous range of festive food.
‘We’re confident that our final list of winners showcases the best that the supermarkets have to offer this season.
‘Combining supermarket buys with home-made dishes from our Good Food thoroughly tested Christmas recipes means everyone can enjoy a spectacular and affordable Christmas feast.’
The full results are in the Good Food Christmas issue, which is on sale today, Thursday, October 23.
The winners of the Good Food Christmas Supermarket Taste Test Awards are…
Best smoked salmon
Aldi’sSpecially Selected The Ultimate Salt-Aged Himalayan Smoked Salmon was crowned the winner and only costs £3.99
Joint winner: Aldi Specially Selected The Ultimate Salt-Aged Himalayan Smoked Salmon, £3.99
Joint winner: M&S Collection Cherry and Chestnut Wood Smoked Salmon, £16
The judges said that Aldi’s smoked salmon was ‘buttery and smooth’, and praised M&S’s offering as having a ‘creamy, soft and smooth texture, rich flavour and attractive darker colour from the cherry and chestnut wood smoke’.
Best hotcanapé
Joint winner: Aldi Specially Selected Mini Barber’s Cheese and Ham Scones, £4.99
Joint winner: Tesco Finest Scallop and Prawn Toast, £5.50
Thesecanapé winners might not be available just yet, but when they do hit the shelves, expect them to sell fast.
Judges were impressed by Aldi’s mini scones, which they said had a ‘good buttery flavour, a salty tang from the ham and a melty cheese filling’.
Mini scones as acanapé might be an unusual idea, but Aldi’s cheese and ham scones scored top marks
Meanwhile, Tesco’s prawn toasts were cooked to perfection and generous with the filling that was ‘spiced with spring onions, garlic and ginger for subtle heat’.
Sainsbury’s Turkey Crown was branded a ‘showstopper’ for its ‘golden, glossy glaze and crispy bacon’.
Judges loved the ‘juicy’ meat, which was ‘complemented by a fruity apricot and cranberry stuffing’.
M&S’s offering was beloved for bringing lots of ‘extra flavour’ to the table as the judges loved the ‘sticky, peppery hot maple glaze and stuffing packed with fruit’.
Best alternative Christmas main
Meanwhile, Tesco’s prawn toasts were cooked to perfection and generous with the filling that was ‘spiced with spring onions, garlic and ginger for subtle heat’.
Best Turkey Crown
Joint winner: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference British free-range bronze Turkey Crown with pork, apricot, pear, cranberry & candied ginger stuffing, £22.75 per kg
Joint winner: M&S Oakham hot maple-glazed Turkey Crown, £50
Sainsbury’s Turkey Crown was branded a ‘showstopper’ for its ‘golden, glossy glaze and crispy bacon’.
Judges loved the ‘juicy’ meat which was ‘complemented by a fruity apricot and cranberry stuffing’.
M&S’s offering was beloved for bringing lots of ‘extra flavour’ to the table as the judges loved the ‘sticky, peppery hot maple glaze and stuffing packed with fruit’.
Best alternative Christmas main
Booths British porchetta is an ‘eye-catching masterpiece’ with a ‘moreish, salty, crunchy crackling’ that everybody will love
Winner: Booths British porchetta, £21
For those who aren’t big fans of turkey, there are plenty of alternative mains that are just as show-stopping.
Good Food judges crowned Booths’ British porchetta as the winner of the best alternative category, describing it as an ‘eye-catching masterpiece’ that features a ‘moreish, salty, crunchy crackling’, ‘tender’ meat and a herby filling.
The runner-up in this category was Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Discovery 35-day dry-aged Aberdeen Angus rump joint with a velvety tarragon & pepper cream sauce (£25).
This joint was easy to cook and carve, and ‘stayed tender and juicy in the centre once cooked’.
Best vegetarian main
Winner: M&S Collection mushroom, Barber’s cheddar and leek en croute, £12.50
Who says meat eaters get to have all the fun? Vegetarians will celebrate this centrepiece from M&S, which has a ‘beautifully burnished, crisp pastry’.
Vegetarians can celebrate over this mushroomy centrepiece from M&S, which includes a creamy filling and crisp pastry
The judges also enjoyed the filling, which has ‘big chunks of mushroom, a creamy sauce and good seasoning’.
Best gammon
Winner: M&S slow-cooked bone-in Heritage Gold pork gammon, £36
M&S is at the top of its gammon game, with this bone-in joint named the Good Food winner.
After cooking, judges said the gammon had an appealing ‘deeply golden brown’ colour and the meat ‘pulls apart easily’.
They added that it had ‘well-balanced levels of sweetness and smokiness, without being overpowering’.
Best Christmas cake
Winner: M&S perfectly matured iced fruit cake, £24
Love it or hate it, M&S Christmas cake is a clear winner because of how ‘special and luxurious’ it looks and tastes
Christmas cake is a little bit like Marmite – people either love it or hate it. But for those who really love it, M&S’s perfectly matured iced fruit cake is the one to beat this Christmas.
Good Food judges said they ‘loved’ how pretty the cake looks, thanks to the ‘layered floral design on the icing’ that ‘makes it feel special and luxurious’.
‘The cake is also a generous size, with lots of sultanas and nicely balanced spice, plus good almond flavour in the layer of marzipan,’ they added.
Best pigs in blankets
Winner: Tesco Finest 10 pork and caramelised onion pigs in blankets, £3.25
Crowd-pleasing pigs in blankets are a staple at Christmas. Look no further than Tesco, as judges said its pigs in blankets feature ‘crispy bacon, flavourful sausage with visible herbs, plus a glaze for extra sweetness’.
They heaped on the praise, adding: ‘This has everything we’re looking for when it comes to this classic side.’
In second place were Lidl’s Deluxe pigs in blankets, which are great for anyone who likes a ‘chunky sausage’.
Fruit cake haters, look no further than Booths’ chocolate cake that wouldn’t look out of place on a Christmas dinner table
Best alternative Christmas cake
Winner: Booths enchanted forest cake, £28
For those who hate Christmas cake, don’t fret – there’s a perfect dessert for you waiting in Booths.
The retailer’s chocolate cake features a ‘very cute festive design with a pretty snowy scene’ that would look stunning on the table.
Judges also enjoyed the icing, which they described as ‘light and sweet’ to complement the ‘fudgy and chocolatey’ cake.
Best Christmas pudding
Winner: M&S Collection 12-month matured Christmas pudding with pecans and panettone, £16
Christmas isn’t Christmas without a flaming pudding to light up festive spirits, and M&S’s takes the cake – we mean, pudding.
The iconic Christmas pudding, which brightens up a dark December evening with its flames, is best bought from M&S, according to Good Food
The ‘tall, rounded’ pudding has a ‘glossy appearance and firm texture’, and judges declared it is ‘delicious’.
‘There’s plenty of fruit and large chunks of nuts within, so it really delivers the flavour, including citrus and a hint of alcohol.’
Best showstopper dessert
Winner: Morrisons Signature Collection Belgian chocolate and praline star, £15
Good Food judges are betting on this striking chocolate star by Morrisons to make diners gasp in wonder.
It is filled with a rich chocolate ganache, and the praline ‘adds crunch and a pronounced hazelnut flavour’, a combination that can simply do no wrong.
Best trifle
Winner: Lidl Deluxe Amontillado sherry trifle, £4.99
This striking chocolate and praline star from Morrisons would look stunning on your Christmas table at the end of a meal
The joy a trifle can bring to the Christmas table is unmatched, and this traditional trifle by Lidl is sure to please.
It is made with a premium sherry and has a ‘generous layer of jellied fruit, a hit of booze and thick custard’ that balances out the cream on top.
The judges also named Aldi Specially Selected irresistible tiramisu trifle (£4.99) as the runner-up, as it is a ‘great alternative to traditional flavours’, especially for those who enjoy tiramisu or coffee-flavoured puddings.
Best classic mince pies
Winner: Morrisons The Best Signature Collection mince pies, £2
Mince pies are a must-have at Christmas, so this is a highly coveted category among supermarkets – and Morrisons has pipped them all to the top.
Judges said they loved the deep-filled mince pies that have ‘soft buttery pastry and a pretty festive star design’.
The mincemeat filling is satisfyingly ‘juicy and citrussy, with strong orange flavour’.
There’s nothing like a really good mince pie, and Morrisons have outdone themselves this year
Morrisons clinched the top spot again in the flavoured mince pies category with its cherry bakewell mince pies
In second place were Booths six all butter mince pies, which feature a ‘pleasingly crumbly’ pastry and ‘sweet, jammy mincemeat’.
Best flavoured mince pies
Winner: Morrisons The Best cherry bakewell mince pies, £3.50
Once again, Morrisons has clinched the top spot with its cherry bakewell mince pies.
Good Food’s Christmas issue goes on sale on Thursday October 23 and features a spectacular gingerbread house on the cover
The frangipane topping, which is ‘soft with good almond flavour that’s not too sweet’, was particularly praiseworthy, as was the flaked almonds that added some texture to the pies.
Best gluten-free mince pies and best vegan mince pies
Winners: Waitrose freefrom mince pies, £3, and Waitrose six mince pies, £2.25
Waitrose nailed their gluten-free and vegan mince pies this year, with judges praising the pastry in both variations as well as the plump, juicy fruits in the mincemeat.
In second place for best vegan mince pies was Asda OMV! mince pies. These pretty festive pies featured ‘crimped edges and a festive star’ with ‘crumbly pastry and mincemeat that was ‘soft and smooth’.
Good Food’s Christmas issue goes on sale on Thursday, October 23 and features a spectacular gingerbread house cover star.
