This week Value for Moneylooks at Chicken Slices
Excellent ***** Great **** Fine *** Below Par ** Awful *
Shaw's Chicken Breast Slices, €3.49 for 195g, €17.89 per kg
Highs:The packaging told us we were getting two extra slices of chicken for our €3.49, which made this a lot cheaper than it might otherwise have been. These don't taste all that bad although we did struggle to discern much by way of a chicken flavour from them.
Lows:Including chicken, there are 10 ingredients listed on the packaging, with water listed immediately after the chicken, which is rarely a good sign. There are also two types of colouring used, presumably to give each slice its neat brown rim, although why Shaw's would bother with such a pointless affectation is beyond us. The slices were flecked with small pieces of translucent fat which we thought was pretty vile, although in truth it makes little difference to the taste or texture.
Verdict:Only okay
Star rating: ***
Ballyfree Deli Supreme Roast Chicken Breast, €2.99 for 90g, €33.22 per kg
Highs:This comparatively thickly sliced chicken is fairly widely available and not confined to a single chain of retailers. It looks a lot better than some of the competition and tastes fine, with a hint of smokiness. The packaging can be easily re-sealed.
Lows:We're not sure if the re-sealable packaging is relevant as there are only four slices per packet, so it is hardly likely to stay too long in your fridge if you like it. The texture was a little on the clammy side and despite the ridiculous marketing hype on the packaging - "supreme", "succulent", "best quality" "cooked with natural juices" - they're fairly ordinary processed chicken slices, not some class of gourmet treat. The price was pretty over-the-top too.
Verdict:Too dear
Star rating: **
Marks Spencer British Wafer Thin Butter Roast Chicken Breast, €3.79 for 100g, €37.90 per kg
Highs:This product stands out as it tastes like real chicken. It also looks and feels like real chicken and we liked the wafer-thin slices. It tastes fresh and smells fresh and no water has been added to the mix.
Lows:Butter-roasted anything does not sound particularly healthy to us - neither does the sugar and salt that have been listed amongst the ingredients, although to be fair, the same criticism could be directed at much of the competition. While the thin-sliced nature of this product was appealing, it did mean that more slices had to be added to our sandwich and, at this price, that's a definite negative.
Verdict:Nice but pricey
Star rating: ***
Tesco Roast Chicken, 99c for 100g, €9.90 per kg
Highs:This is the cheapest of the sliced chicken we tried - nearly a quarter of the price of the cheapest option on the market. It is "produced in Ireland", the packaging assured us.
Lows:We found it to be almost completely tasteless and nothing like any roasted chicken we have ever come across. We were also less than impressed with the droplets of water which formed on the inside of the packet, creating the impression our "chicken" was sweating profusely. It is made with just 87 per cent chicken meat, which Tesco is commendably upfront in telling us has been "formed from chicken breast", although such a phrase is always going to struggle to sound in any way appealing.
Verdict:Very cheap but not so nice
Star rating: **
Green Farm Foods Roast Chicken Breast, €3.89 for 160g, €24.31 per kg
Highs:This chicken from Co Westmeath stands out from the posse because it looks and tastes like roast chicken breast that you might have carved yourself. It is thick and meaty and can be served hot or cold. It tastes pretty good in a sandwich and was also the only brand we tried that worked well in a chicken salad or even a hastily thrown-together chicken curry. It wasn't savagely expensive.
Lows:While it is certainly a good product, we preferred the taste of the MS chicken - it must have been all the butter used in the roasting process.
Verdict:Good and good value
Star rating: ****
