The apple pie test of the supermarket

Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: the supermarket apple pie test.

The tastiest apple pie is of course baked by your mother or your grandmother (or grandfather), but if they are not around, you don't have time to bake a pie yourself, and the guests are already on their way, then you quickly grab such a pie from the supermarket. Easy and really tasty, right? That turns out to be quite disappointing, as our supermarket apple pie test shows. ‘It looks like my dog has vomited in that mold, yuck.’

We took the supermarket apple pie test seriously. Six apple pies from six different supermarkets, all from the bakery section and not from the freezer. Four motivated culinary writers from FavorFlav and an enthusiastic home baker, Rik, stood with a fork in hand and had their taste buds on high alert. An empty office – because, well, corona – so we could fully concentrate on the pie without distractions.

Super cheap
All the pies are incredibly cheap, that stands out. The most expensive pies are from Jumbo and Albert Heijn, costing 4.39 euros. You can easily cut out six to eight slices. A dollop of whipped cream on top and you're done. The largest pie is from Dirk. The cheapest apple pie comes from Lidl, and they are the individual pies that editor-in-chief Sharon can't stop talking about.

Sick dog
First, let's take a look at those pies. They all have a grid pattern on top, except for the pie from Dirk, which is open on top, and some pieces are a little dark in color – just like a pie from your own oven when you went to watch Netflix and didn't hear the timer. The pie from Albert Heijn is a bit pale, but if you don't like that, you can pop it in a hot oven for a few more minutes.

The pie from Vomar is very light in color, is it fully baked? And the filling is brown-gray and that raises quite a few questions. ‘Yuck, that looks disgusting,’ says Rik, ‘as if my dog has vomited in that mold.’ And when he sticks his fork into the pie, his judgment doesn't get any milder. ‘No structure, a soggy mess. No, this pie is really not good.’

Empty plate
The Vomar pie comes out as the worst in the test. No one likes it. ‘If I get this pie when I'm visiting somewhere, I won't finish my plate,‘ says Lauretta. ’It's soggy, it's floury, it's nothing at all,‘ says Bo. So, that's what Vomar has to deal with. On the other hand: the apple pie from Jumbo is a hit. ’Looks homemade,‘ says Sharon. ’If you get this pie in a café, you would think they baked it themselves.‘ Everyone thinks this is the tastiest pie, except Rik.

He falls head over heels for the pie from Plus. ‘Nice chewy crust, with a bit of salt in it. The pie is sweet, but I actually like that. The winning pie, really,’ and he puts another piece in his mouth. So, Rik has spoken.

Raisins out
Conclusion: supermarket apple pie can be quite tasty, especially if you buy it at Jumbo. The ones from Plus, Albert Heijn, and Dirk are also quite good: tasty pieces of apple in Dirk's pie, nice crispy crust at Albert Heijn, and that chewy crust from Plus. Don't like raisins? Then buy the pie at Appie. And the mini pies from Lidl? Class apart, according to Sharon. Tasty pie, according to the rest. And incredibly cheap, too.