If you can't be bothered cooking up the official Coronation quiche to celebrate all things royal this weekend, you may be heading to the supermarket instead for your quick quiche fix. The traditional egg flan has been named as one of the dishes on the official Coronation Big Lunch menu to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III.
The Coronation quiche recipe features spinach, broad beans and fresh tarragon. But if you're not planning on making your own, there's plenty of quiche on supermarket shelves ready for the bank holiday weekend.
While none of the major supermarkets seem to be serving up their own version of the Coronation quiche itself, there are plenty of other varieties to try. To give each supermarket a fair chance to shine in our taste test, we decided to buy a classic quiche lorraine from five different retailers to see who takes the quiche crown.
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All of the quiches we purchased are pre-cooked, so can be eaten cold or reheated. As there was a LOT of quiche to try, I roped in my family, and gave them all a try of both hot and cold quiche to see if it changed or improved the particular taste in each case.
Here's how we got on.
Tesco - £2.50
This one looked pleasant enough, with curly edges to the pastry shell and a very smooth finish on top. But one bite revealed you should not judge a book by its cover.
It tasted just so very claggy and bland. I thought it might improve heated up but it didn’t, the ham was like plastic lumps, the egg tasted of nothing and the pastry was limp.
It was seriously grim. And, yes I hate food waste as much as you do, but there were no arguments from the family when I said the remainder after we'd all tried it would be heading straight into the bin.
Rating: 1/10
Aldi - Extra Special £2.69
Aldi's regular quiche lorraine had sold out in my local Aldi store, so I went for their "posh" version instead, the "Extra Speical Smoked bacon and cheddar" quiche. But I'm afraid there was nothing extra special about this one at all.
It looked pleasant enough, with very visible poppy seeds in the pastry shell and strips of bacon on top. But when I started eating, the onions and herbs were overpowering, with the poppy seeds adding a really unpleasant and unnecessary crunch to the whole thing.
It was no better when cooked either. Won't be trying this one again.
Rating: 2/10
Asda - £2
Now, I admit I accidentally bought the crustless version at Asda of the quiche lorraine, but I'm really glad I did. It looked very appealing out of the package, like a light and fluffy omelette on top with huge flakes of ham.
It still had a crust at the bottom, but none of the traditional pastry around the edges. But it tasted great, it didn't really need the crust at all and felt like a really tasty and light alternative.
It was filling, and came in at significantly less calories and fat per portion than all of the others tested here, if you're catering for anyone looking for lighter options it's perfect.
Rating: 8/10
Morrisons - £2.49
The crinkly edges made this one look instantly like a proper home made quiche with chunky lumps of ham on top and a slightly crispy cheese.
It made for a delicious mouthful of quiche, with a rich hit of cheese and ham, while the pastry tasted delightfuly crisp even when cold.
It tasted just as good served hot, the pastry gaining a richness in the cooking, in fact this was probably my favourite pastry of the lot.
Rating: 9/10
M&S - £3.50
You can always rely on M&S to just... get it right. This was probably the most elegant of all the quiches, delivering a measured hit of smoky maple cured bacon on its smooth eggy surface.
It had a really fabulous flavour, with the egg, ham and cheese all holding their own within a light, crumbly pastry casing. This one tasted just as delicious served hot and cold.
Rating: 9/10
The Verdict
There were two very clear winners here, and that was the Morrison's and Marks and Spencer quiche. Both we rated as 9/10 on flavour - tasting just as nice hot or cold.
The Morrison's quiche is particularly good if you like a cheesier-tasting quiche, while the M&S was a lighter all-rounder with a flavourful punch. Although it did work out as £1 more expensive than its rivals.
Asda's crustless quiche comes in a very close third though - we were really impressed with the lightness and flavour of this one and it was the cheapest price at £2.
Tesco and Aldi's quiches were the biggest disappointment and I won't personally be choosing to ever eat those again.
All of the quiches tested, bar Tesco's, said on the packaging that they are suitable for freezing so none of the other leftovers went to waste here. Indeed some will be resurfacing over my own bank holiday weekend.
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