I tested supermarket steak pies – and budget buy for just £2.99 is as good as any pub’s
WHEN it comes to comfort food, it is no wonder that 91 per cent of us say in pies we crust.
And with more wind and rain forecast this week, piping pastry and meat is the surest fix to a miserable night.
We have upped the steaks by putting supermarket brands to the test.
Sun man James Liveris rates them out of five.
TESCO BEEF STROGANOFF PIES – £6.50, 271 calories per 100g
TALL and sturdy creation gets top marks for pie to hand ratio.
However, take to it with a knife and fork and a nightmare begins to unfold as you try to get a slice of the action and the whole thing disintegrates.
The puff pastry unfortunately dominates the pie and crumbles everywhere – but what is left of it is delicious.
A light, creamy sauce made up of white wine, cognac and mushrooms is a great combo with the slow-cooked beef.
Rating: 3.5
MARKS & SPENCER OUR BEST EVER STEAK PIE – £9, 269 calories per 100g
MARKS & Spencer wasn’t wrong when it labelled it “Our Best Ever Steak Pie”.
Cutting into this masterpiece, you get an immediate waft of slow-cooked, tender British beef with smoked bacon and gorgeous gravy.
In terms of flavour, this is hard to beat.
The crust tastes like buttery shortbread and the savoury juices are as good as a vintage French wine.
The steak is stringy though, so be careful it doesn’t get stuck in your teeth.
Amid this cost-of-living crisis I will have to deduct a point for its eye-watering price tag.
Rating: 4
CO-OP STEAK PIE – £2.50, 283 calories per 100g
THE golden glaze with browned edges sets Co-op’s creation apart from the rest instantly.
And as the steam billows out of the puff pastry lid, perfectly diced up steak awaits beneath.
I did, however, find the gravy to be rather weak.
The crust was definitely its saviour, bringing all three elements together nicely.
This is basically an oversized party pie, which isn’t a bad thing, but it is certainly no show-stopper.
Rating: 3
LIDL STEAK AND GRAVY FAMILY PIE – £2.99, 288 calories per 100g
THROW a bit of veg on the side and this meal will be putting Sunday pub lunches out of business.
Lidl has nailed the classic steak pie, in my opinion.
It has nice bits of beef inside and the gravy is onion heavy.
The shortcrust shell has a beautiful chalky texture and is easy to cut into.
In terms of value for money, this family-sized pie would turn any frown upside down.
Rating: 4.5
WAITROSE STEAK AND ALE PIE TOPPED WITH FLAKY PUFF PASTRY – £3, 241 calories per 100g
POSH supermarket has gone outside the box with this luxury invention.
It boasts tender chuck steak that is braised in rich Cornish ale gravy, which was admittedly delightful.
The colour of the pastry was inviting and the strips of beef inside tasty.
The flavour is unique, though, and you would probably only want it in small doses.
This pie would be the category’s hipster alternative – stylish on the outside but it’s annoy- ing on the in- side.
Rating: 3
ALDI DEEP FILLED PUFF PASTRY TOPPED STEAK PIE – £1.69, 273 calories per 100g
EVER had that sense of guilt after polishing off a petrol station meat pie?
You might feel the same after tucking into this.
Filled with gamey meat, it is pretty bog standard.
While Aldi nearly topped the charts when we tested chicken pies last month, the chef has clearly lost motivation with the beef.
As I bit in, the lid popped off and forced me to pull off one of the greatest wicket-keeper catches of all time, which was undesirable.
The base is decent but not enough to resurrect it from the bottom of the ladder.
Rating: 2.5
SAINSBURY’S STEAK AND ALE PUFF PASTRY PIE – £4, 273 calories per 100g
PICTURE a classic, humble pie and this is probably it.
If you can imagine walking into a home after a rainy day and the oven is going with a lovely aroma filling the kitchen, this would be the pie inside.
Sainsbury’s version is pretty much textbook.
The rich, dark ale perfectly complements the steak and the puff pastry lid is a buttery delight.
The only let down was the base, which required some sawing action to get through.