At Christmas I bought a number of snacks and "nibbles" in preparation for the large numbers of family members that visit us. I felt that some of the nut products that I bought did not turn out to be particularly good value once we had tried them. So I was very happy to see that Sainsbury's sell a small bag of salted peanuts in their Basics range. At 48p for a 200g bag, they semed perfect for helping me reduce my food bill!


WHY ARE THESE NUTS CHEAPER?

One thing I like about Sainsbury's Basic range products is that the packaging gives you some indication of why they are especially cheap. In the case of these salted peanuts, the information states that the nuts are "a bit smaller, still nutty." I actually don't think that these are particularly small, except in comparasion to the "jumbo" nuts you can buy. However it isn't really fair to compare standard peanuts to those. For me, the main difference between these and the more expensive nuts is the fact that a few of the Basics ones are a little misshapen. It is only a few in a packet, and they are hardly noticeable once you have tipped the nuts out into a serving bowl. I was also pleased to see that the nuts were mostly whole rather than crushed up odds and ends as I thought they may be.

The other difference is in the packaging. The Basics nuts are in a typically plain and simple packet with no fancy colours or imagery. I personally only worry about the attractiveness of an items packaging if it is the sort of food that I want to give as a gift. This pack is purely functional and that is fine by me. I would prefer if it had been made of a plastic that could be recycled though.


TASTE AND TEXTURE

I have found that these nuts taste just as fresh and addictive as any of the branded peanuts that I have bought. The texture is satisfyingly crunchy and the saltiness is spot on for me. There is enough salt to compliment the flavour of the nuts themselves without there being so much that I am left gasping for water after eating a few. I don't like snacks that are salty enough to leave your lips tingling. If you do, these may not suit you.

I know that salt tolerance varies from person to person. Most salted peanuts that I have tried are rated "red" for salt/sodium levels if judged using the traffic light labelling system. In other words, they contain a lot of salt and are therefore a food that it is particularly important to eat in moderation. These Basics nuts actually rate only "orange" using the same system which means they are healthier in comparsion. This means that if you were to eat a quarter of the pack, you would have consumed 6.3% of your RDA of sodium. I don't think this is bad for a product that is "salted". [They are still a red level snack as regards saturated fat content though - a quarter of the pack represents 27.5% of your RDA of this.]

The nuts do not taste fatty to me but they do leave a slight oily residue on your fingers if you eat a few at once. I don't think they are any worse for this than other peanuts though. You may also end up with salt crystals on your fingers. Overall, I would say they are a moderately messy snack to eat.


AVAILABILITY

These are stocked in most Sainsbury's shops that I have been in recently. You can usually find them with the other nuts or adjacent to the crisps.


CONCLUSION

I would absolutely recommend these. They are good value for money as they are both good quality and low in price. I won't be buying the more expensive branded nuts again as there is just no reason to pay more for essentially the same product. I am more than happy to offer them to guests without feeling that I am serving a 3rd rate snack. At 48p, they wouldn't break the bank if you wanted to try them yourself. You could also mix them in with jumbo peanuts or other types of nut to help the more expensive nuts go further.


Suitable for vegetarians and vegans.


[This review may appear under my user name on Ciao in the future]