olive Christmas supermarket awards 2022

All products have been chosen and reviewed independently by our editorial team. This page contains affiliate links and we may receive a small commission for purchases made, but this comes at no extra cost to you and helps us to continue providing top quality content for our loyal readers.

Best smoked salmon

WINNER: Booths Triple Smoked Salmon Side (£45), 1kg

This whole side is perfect for effortless entertaining. The flavour is mild with balanced sweet and smokiness and rich meaty mouthfeel.

RUNNER UP: Morrisons the Best Cold Smoked Salmon (300g), £4.00
This classic all-rounder would be just as good with scrambled eggs for breakfast as it would be on a canape. The smoke is light, with a clear fish flavour and good seasoning.

RUNNER UP: LIDL Premium Rope Hung Smoked Salmon (200g)
This has an attractive deep colour, and sheen, with a soft and yielding texture and good level of smoke.

Best panettone

WINNER: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Cherry & Almond Panettone (750g), £10
A winning all-rounder, this has a deep golden crust, plenty of tart juicy cherries to balance sweetness and perfect soft texture with slight bounce.

RUNNER-UP: ASDA Extra Special Classic Panettone (750g), £7.50
This simple classic option could be eaten any time for breakfast, tea, or dessert (try a panettone bread and butter pudding). It is light and buttery with a great texture.

Best vegetarian main

WINNER: M&S Rustic Potato, Caramelised Onion and Brie Pie (500g), £8.00

Melting cheese, sweet onions and crisp buttery pastry – you can’t go wrong. This is a rich winter warmer.

Best classic mince pie

WINNER: M&S 6 Collection Mince Pies (334g), £3.00

These have a clear orange hit to the sweet, juicy mincemeat filled with plump raisins. The pastry is buttery and tender.

Best flavoured mince pie

WINNER: Waitrose Heston Pear & Fig Mince Pies in Triple Cheese Pastry (pack of 6), £3.50
A twist on the classic, these had crisp flaky pastry and sweet fruity mincemeat. Would be great warm with brandy cream.

Best yule log

WINNER: Sainsbury’s Taste The Difference Belgian Chocolate & Clementine Yule Log (700g), £10
Chocolate orange fans will love this – the attractive dense cake hides an orange curd for a hit of sharpness.

RUNNER UP: M&S Collection Crackling Chocolate Logs (1.33kg), £20.00
For a showstopping take on a Yule log, you can’t beat this indulgent stack my M&S. Three yule logs in one, this impressive cake is matched by a crisp chocolate coating, lots of creamy ganache and cake with good chocolate flavour

Best stollen

WINNER: M&S Collections Stollen Loaf, £7.00
Marzipan is swirled throughout this loaf for a taste in every bite. The bread had good texture, crunch from almonds and juicy fruit.

Best vegan main

WINNER: ASDA Extra Special Vegan Wellington (460g), £5
A good meat alternative, this has a herby sausage-like flavour to the filling and buttery pastry – like a festive sausage roll!

Best vegan dessert

WINNER: Morrisons Vegan Chocolate Dessert (375g), £6.00
Our winner had a good crumbly base, soft vanilla cheesecake-style filling with a hint of butterscotch and a rich thick ganache chocolate top.

Best pigs in blankets

WINNER: Co-op Extra Posh Pigs in Blankets (220G), £3.25
A strong herby sausage, these chipolatas will stand out on your Christmas plate.

RUNNER-UP: Waitrose No1 Chipolatas (pack of 6), £4.25
These had good level of salt, herb and savoury flavours. The sage leaf was a nice extra touch and the meat has a good texture.

Best hot canapé

WINNER: M&S 10 Mini Steak Sandwiches, £7.00
An easy mouthful to pass round at a Christmas party, these crostini had plenty going on with crisp toast, sweet onion jam, well-seasoned meat and creamy topping.

RUNNER UP: BOOTHS Festive Sausage Roll Wreath with Camembert, £7
An undeniably rich Christmas combination, judges couldn’t help but enjoy this guilty pleasure. The sausage meat was well-seasoned with an onion crumb on top and the Camembert had good flavour. A Camembert does firm up quite quickly so this would be best suited to small groups to share before a dinner party main course, not passing round as a canapé.

Best Christmas cake

WINNER: M&S Collections Jewelled Fruit & Nut Cake (755g), £20.00
If you don’t like royal icing, this luxurious alternative is for you, decorated with plenty of nuts and juicy cherries. The cake is moist, citrussy and has more whole nuts. It comes in a tin to make it great for gifting too.

Best turkey

WINNER: M&S Collections British Oakham Slow Cooked Turkey Crown with Bacon & Stuffing (2.5kg), £25.00
A classic turkey crown, the bacon adds good saltiness and judges enjoyed the intensely savoury stuffing filled with herbs.

RUNNER UP: Morrisons Turkey Breast Joint with Stuffing Balls and Pigs in Blankets (1.4kg), £20.00
This comes complete with stuffing and pigs in blankets, for an easy all-in-one option. The turkey breast joint is not large (but very easy to cook) so it’s a great option if you’re having Christmas dinner for two.

Best Christmas pudding

WINNER: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Caramelised Biscuit Christmas Pudding (700g), £12
A twist on the classic Christmas pudding, judges enjoyed the sweet butterscotch sauce and pretty design.

Best Christmas ham

WINNER Lidl Deluxe Sugar Baked Gammon Joint
A small, firm ham, this had good levels of smoke, a balanced cure and strong depth of flavour.

RUNNER UP Waitrose Cider cured ham with apple and bay (1.1kg), £30
Judges enjoyed the attractive apple decoration to this traditional ham, great for bringing out for Boxing Day. The apple rings also added sweetness whilst the meat was juicy and had good flavour.

Best festive liqueur

WINNER Tesco Finest Gingerbread Latte Irish Cream Liqueur, £12.60
This has the right level of sweetness to alcohol, with warmth from the gentle gingerbread flavour – a good twist on a classic.

Best port

WINNER Morrisons The Best Aged Tawny Port (75cl), £12.00
This was smooth and easily sippable. It was well balanced between sweetness and alcoholic warmth.

Best cold canapé

WINNER: ALDI Specially Selected Hog Roast Bites with Bramley Apple & Kentish Cider Sauce (340g), £3.90
Good hot or cold, these herby hog roast bites are very moreish and judges enjoyed the apple sauce addition.

Best seafood centrepiece

WINNER Waitrose No. 1 Cherrywood Whole Side of Smoked Salmon (800g), £45
Although not a main course, this would be great as part of a blini board or drinks party centrepiece. The whole side looks dramatic and the salmon had great strong smoky flavour.

Best Christmas wellington

WINNER: Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference British Beef Wellington (1kg), £42

Tender well-seasoned meat, good flaky pastry and a pleasing mouthfeel to the mushroom duxelle made this stand out. Judges felt it could almost be homemade.

RUNNER UP: Booths Beef Wellington (1.2kg), £52

The meat in this wellington felt high quality, tender and stayed pink in the middle when cooked according to instructions. The mushroom layer is creamy and pastry was flaky.

Stuffing

WINNER: TESCO Finest Pork & Apricot Stuffing Parcels wrapped with a ribbon of Streaky Bacon (284g)

Judges enjoyed the presentation of these neat parcels, which were almost like pigs in blankets. Crispy bacon keeps the fruity stuffing moist.

RUNNER UP: M&S British Outdoor Bred Pork & Figgie Festive Stuffing (360g), £7.00

An unusual presentation like a Christmas pudding, this was a super fruity and spiced stuffing. The texture is fairly soft and crumbly, but the figs are a nice addition.