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Tesco Value Cheese & Tomato Pizza
by m_illie
It wasn't until recently that I discovered a love of pizza particularly brought about by having to budget a lot more and it usually being fairly reasonably priced when store bought. I don't like many of the flavours on offer, particularly ones like anchoves or pineapple, that you can usually get at Pizza Restaurants or from a takeaway. ... My favourite flavour is plain ol' cheese and tomato and for that reason I often buy from stores instead as it seems a waste to spend £20 on something I could get for much cheaper.
As I mentioned, I'm on a tight budget so I often buy cheaper options or from the value range. I've been buying this particular pizza for well over a year now and am still in love with the taste. When bought chilled the price of the pizza is only around 60-70p whereas if you buy the 480g frozen its around £1. Depending on when I'm planning on cooking the pizza is when I'll pick either option but usually I'll go for the frozen one particularly if I'm buying it in my weekly shop.
The box I buy is made of cardboard and the pizza is stored inside in a celophane wrapper. Its easy to cut this open and all you have to do is plonk the pizza in the oven. I tend to cook mine on a pizza 'net' which is a black circle dotted with holes that in my opinion makes the pizza a lot more well cooked throughout, and is something I would definitely recommend looking into if you're a big pizza lover. Before cooking I also like to add a bit more grated cheese on to the base as sometimes it can be spread a little sporadic or have lots on one side and hardly any on the other. This means that I get a really cheesy pizza which is just what I like.
When cooked the pizza is nice and crispy if you leave it long enough but the base stil has a chewiness to it that I like. It comes apart easily when you bite, but isn't so bad that its falling apart in your hands. When I add extra cheese its really nice when you take a slice and the cheese stretches and is nice and gooey, however I have found that if I don't add this extra amount the pizza is very simplistic and is a base with only a small sprinkling of cheese meaning you don't get this effect. The pizza takes only around 11-13 minutes to cook so is a great alternative to a takeaway taking even less time than it would to order and wait for the delivery.
They do make for good pizza bases, although personally when I feel like making up a pizza I do just buy a plain base and put some pasta sauce on top. I like to do this (mostly because I can pretend I'm a chef rather than my real lazy self) and I remember doing it with my Mum when I was younger because we weren't apt enough at making the bases from scratch. If this is what you want from the pizza I'd recommend buying the bases themselves, which costs around £1.20 for two bases. Although this may end up being a little bit more expensive if you're planning on putting more than just cheese on your pizza, its a good way to use up all your extra ingredients, which I like to do when I've got a little bit of cheese and meat cuts left over so it really doesn't cost me much.
What you get with this pizza is the great taste of some takeaways but without the extras. It is exactly what you expect. The taste is pleasant enough but I do think without the extra sprinkling of cheese it can be quite plain and you can see the tomato puree underneath highlighting the gaps. Obviously it isn't as nice or high quality as you might get from a pizza in a restaurant but it definitely isn't low quality either. You get a nice tasting, simple pizza that you have the option to add any ingredients you want to (but obviously this will increase the cooking time) and can eat quickly after just popping into the oven. I like that it gives me that versatility especially if I'm feeling a bit lazy when I come in.
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Iceland Curly Fries
by Chippytarka
I personally dont visit Iceland that often.Not because I dont want to, but purely due to distance and location. Not a walk I would like to take with two young children in tow.When I do get a chance to visit, I normally pick up a bag of these fries. The picture above isnt up to date with how these fries currently look, so packaging is ... different.But also they are named slightly differently now, ' American Style Curly Fries '.
What are they?
These are Icelands own curly fries. Twisted, curled potatoes coated in a savoury seasoning. A nice alternative to normal fries/chips.
What do they contain?
Here is a list of the ingredients:
Potatoes 80%
Palm Oil
Batter - this includes Salt, Dextrose, Raising Agents, Wheat Flour, Modified Potato Starch,Modified Corn Starch, Black Pepper, Chilli Pepper, Paprika, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Yeast Extract, Black Pepper Extract, Paprika Extract.
As you can see its the coating that contains the most ingredients. Even though its says ' batter ',this is taken directly from the packaging itself, its not, just a coating.
Per 100g, the fries contain 3.8g of Protein, 37.1g Carbohydrate 2.1g of that are sugars, 13g of Fat 3.9g of which are saturated, 3.2g Fibre, 0.9g of Sodium and 2.3g Salt.
How do you cook them?
Just as you would expect.You can oven cook by preheating oven at 200c/Gas 7 for around 20mins.Obviously times may need adjusting depending on the type of oven you have. You can also deep fry ( I wouldnt! ) for 5 mins in pre heated oil at temperature of 180c. You could probably stick fries in an Airfryer e.g Tefal Actifry, and get similar result but less fat used.
How are they packaged?
They are in a plastic bag. As mentioned-the picture is different on the front.Most of the packaging is blue. Theres the Iceland logo, quite small, in the top left hand corner. Across from the logo theres an American flag type pattern, highlighting that these are ' American Style '. Just below this is the name of the product, which is written in bold with a huge bowl of fries underneath and a big fat £1.00 mark slapped on top. No way you would have to figure out what you were buying and for how much!
The packaging itself is easy to open. A simple tear with the fingers will do. You cant re seal this bag ( unless you have one of those nifty gadgets ) so you do have to be careful where and how you put this in the freezer, as you dont want them spilling all over the place.
One thing I have noticed from previous posts is that although the price is still the same, the amount of product has gone down.This bag now contains 650g worth of fries, as before it was 700g.
What did I think?
We all like these. It makes a change from basic boring fries or chips. When cooked, they hold and keep there shape. They tend to be crisp on the outside and soft ( I wouldnt use the word fluffy! ) in the middle. They cooked evenly, but you have to be careful not to leave them in too long as they easily become too crisp, hard and unedible. They remain moist and not dry, but this could be due to the fact they do give off alittle oil, but not too much.The seasoning isnt in your face and obvious, but gives a mild kick.I can only describe the taste to be a mild version of Southern Fried type seasoning, but less cutting and blatant. The kids love the taste, and see the shapes as abit of fun.
Would buy again, cook as a treat, but need back that extra 50g they took out acouple of years ago!
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