I tested all the supermarket hot cross buns to see which tastes the best – the winner beats M&S
THE Easter BUN-ny is here, with Hot Cross Buns filling the supermarket shelves with lots of flavours to choose from.
But for many, an original raisin filled toasted bun, dripping in butter is still the ultimate choice – as long as it’s packed with a high concentration of currants and not stingy on the sultanas.
Laura Stott tested eight of these supermarket current buns for your favourite Current Bun and rated them out of five on how hot cross-yum they tasted, alongside checking their currant-cy.
Hot Cross Buns (pack of six)
£1.15 tesco.com
Price per bun: 19p, Raisin Count: 16
RATHER flat Easter offerings which although golden, with lots of currants visible, looked a bit bland and sad in the packet with little in the way of aroma either.
Most of the raisins were clustered into the top and sides of the bun with not as many inside the dough.
Once toasted they gave off a better waft of spice, and although I found these tricky to slice evenly, half the side fell off one bun as I split it, for the money you get a good amount of mixed peel and dried fruits.
A bit oily with an odd bitter note and consistency on chewing.
Rating: 2
Hot Cross Buns (pack of four)
£1.90 Marks & Spencer (in stores).
Price per bun: 47.5p, Raisin Count: 21
LUXURY, fruited buns were quite pale and didn’t look especially premium in the packet but they surpassed themselves on flavour.
Very traditional and perfectly symmetrical with neat crosses and a compact shape and texture, they smelt delicious and were very easy to cut smoothly without too much crumbling which made them a doddle to toast evenly.
Initially I thought they were rather small considering the cost, but these buns contain butter and the resulting rich flavour rendered the size – for me – more than satisfying.
Lots of fruit peel and currants too. Pricey but a nice treat.
Extremely indulgent.
Rating: 4
Hot Cross Buns (pack of four)
£1.29 Aldi (in stores).
Price per bun: 32p, Raisin Count: 22
GREAT price for a premium baked product, just as you’d expect from a discounter supermarket.
They looked just as fancy and inviting as other, higher priced, lavish offerings.
Big bouncy buns with a nice springy textured dough and a good size, perfect for big appetites as you won’t feel short changed.
Very golden, with dark coloured crosses and packed with visible fruit.
Jam-packed with sultanas and very tasty plump currants – and plenty of them – alongside fruity peel.
Delicious toasted, although keep the temperature low to prevent burning, and enjoyed with a cuppa.
Rating: 5
Hot Cross Buns (pack of six)
£1.10 sainsburys.co.uk.
Price per bun: 18p, Raisin Count: 16
GOOD value baked buns with a price you certainly won’t be cross about.
These looked quite pale and soft before toasting and reminded me more of a burger bun with some fruit inside.
But the lighter, bread style texture made them easy to tear, slice and warm up easily without waste.
Good amount of currants although not very much fruit peel in the mix.
Quite dry, a bit bland and not much of an Easter treat.
Rating: 2
Hot Cross Buns (pack of six)
0.99p Lidl (in stores).
Price per bun: 16p, Raisin Count: 19
The best value buns I tried, discounter’s Lidl delivered an impressive Hot Cross for not much cash.
Big and squidgy, there’s no sense of being short changed on taste or ingredients.
Lots of aromatic spices and chock full of currants, sultanas and raisins alongside fruity peels.
On the sweeter side, the tops of these buns were sticky with sugar with quite a strong citrus flavour and the dough is rather tight but once heated and buttered they went down a treat.
There’s very little not to like, especially at this price.
Rating: 5
Hot Cross Buns (pack of four)
£1.60 asda.com.
Price per bun: 40p, Raisin Count: 20
Very pleasing on the eye with a perfect golden colour, classic traditional wide, symmetrical crosses and a good amount of visible fruit.
These seemed to contain more orange and lemon peel than a few other offerings which gave them a sweet flavour and added more chew to the taste.
A decent amount of big, juicy sultanas and currants and also contains butter making them nice and moist to tuck into too.
Less sweet than some others which I enjoyed.
Tasty enough to scoff untoasted.
Rating: 4
Hot Cross Buns (pack of four)
£1.00 Co-op (in stores) 3/5.
Price per bun: 25p, Raisin Count: 13
Well priced Easter treats that aren’t the most decadent or exciting hot-cross offering on the shelves but deliver a perfectly decent taste for the cost.
Nice and golden and not overly sweet, I enjoyed eating these even if they were a bit stingy on size compared to others at similar prices.
Contained the fewest number of raisins and sultanas, but what was there was very good quality.
Rating: 3
Hot Cross Buns (pack of four)
£1.59 morrisons.com
Price per bun: 39p, Raisin Count: 20
Another great price for a luxury style toasted treat which also contains indulgent butter for a richer taste.
Described as extra fruity and they were certainly packed full of morsels with sultanas, raisins, and currants as well as fruit zesty pieces and decent spicing.
Plenty to enjoy when toasted and buttered with a lovely Easter-essence aroma although the fruit distribution was patchy.
A couple of buns had some big clusters of currants lumped together while other areas contained very few in a mouthful.
Watch you don’t burn them if toasting as they coloured fast.
A pack for those who like a sweeter bun.
Rating: 3