Sainsbury's Basics good/bad items

A question about : Sainsbury's Basics good/bad items

Hi,

After reading https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/sho...ping#downshift I thought it might be useful to list the Sainsbury's Basics items that are/aren't worth trying. Apologies if this exists already, I had a good search before posting! Here are the items I've already tried:

Good items:

Monkey nuts (500g for Ј1.19)
Sweet peppers (500g for about Ј1)
Carrots (2kg for 99p)
Potatoes (5kg for Ј1.76)
Canned chopped tomatoes (21p per can)
Canned kidney beans (14p per can)
Oranges (68p for a kilo, really sweet and juicy)

Bad items:

Bananas (they had a weird petrol-like smell, may have just been a bad batch)

Feel free to add to these. Kudos to anyone who dares test the basics curry sauce...

John

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Best answers:

• Basics Chocolate Ok .
  Basics Lasagna - Avoid - Awful - nothing like the picture or a normal lasagna - all runny.
• basics low fat natural yohurt is good. about 39p for a 500g tub last time i went in (a month or two ago)
• I like:
  Chocolate mouse
  Creme carmel (sp?)husband eats them not me as they are gross to me
  Jaffa Cakes
  Bacon
  Think that is it at the moment
  Yours
  Calley
• I used to eat Basic white 100g chocolate bar that was lush almost as good as a milky bar but now its awful. I am guessing because the manufacturer has changed as it used to be made in Israel but now its made in the UK.
  Recently I have been getting basic bags of fruit chews (200g) for 59p to take to those freebie preview films. That is nice but can be a chewy comed to starburst or chewits. They come in strawberry, orange, lemon and lime flavours. My gf tried the fruit foams at 39p but didnt really like them.
  My mum buys basic bio washing powder which works just as well as any other brand, think thats Ј1.49?
  Basics sliced loaf at 37p is ok.
  Basics blackcurrant and apple squash at about 19p a ltr concentrate bottle is good and the orange flavour is very nice too.
  Basics chocolate digestives(around 25-40p) are yummy and so too are their custard creams.
  Basics chilled orange juice and longlife orange juice are drinkable but not as good as their dearer rivals, they do not taste as sweet.
  Depending on the variety I find basics apples are nice, same with potatoes.
  Basics sugar free cola- absolutely vile! The lemonade version is ok for mixers etc but I wouldnt drink it on its own a bit too bitter for me and gassy.
  Basics ready salted crisps- taste like ready salted crisps!
  Basics chocolate wafer bars- about 39p for 6 they taste lovely just like the nestle version! There is also a caramel version-yuk! but may be to others taste?
  Basics 2ltr vanila ice-cream- not very nice at all
  Basics ice lollies come in a pack of 10 in lemon,strawberry and orange about 40p and are absolutely delicious. I have also tried the Tesco Value version and they are disgusting.
  Any chance of a Asda smart price thread too if one is not already up or if it is could someone kindly post the link up to save me looking thanks.
  P.S. great thread lets keep it going
  P.P.S. Asda Smart Price BBQ marinade at 66p is to die for, make a good caserol dish
• Great idea! These are my regulars - basically because they are such good value - ie a bargain but without impaired quality. With things like the mouthwash I thought it was a bit mild first time, but soon got used to it - especially when some brands are TEN times the price!!
  Basics Tomatoes, 450g - 53p Quality: Great!
  6 Basic Breakfast Muffins - 57p Quality: Good.
  Basic Baked Beans - 20p Quality: Good
  (AND LOWER CALORIE, LOWER SALT AND LOWER SUGAR THAN HEINZ)
  Basics UHT Skimmed Milk - 44p Quality: Great!
  Basics Mouthwash 500ml - 49p Quality: Good
  Basics Shampoo 1000ml - 27p Quality: Reasonable
  Jon Freda is Ј17.80 for the same quantity - SIXTY-SIX TIMES AS MUCH - Surely has to be worth a try - even if not for every wash?!
• I treated myself to a bag of basics cashew nuts the other week. Smallish bag but filled up..lots of bits and peices but tasted just as nice. 99p special the other week.
• Only have one to add to the list -
  Basics soft cheese (Philadelphia style) 47p for 200g - ok as a base with other foods (I mix it with tuna to make sandwich filling as no-one here likes mayo), but not enough flavour or texture to eat on it's own.
  By weight, the next Sainsburys label up the scale is much nicer for not much more.
• Basics beetroot slices in vinegar not so vinegary as other brands which is a plus for me. I've had a jar of Basics curry sauce in the cupboard for a few months now but haven't bitten the bullet and tried it yet. One of the assistants said it's really nice and you can just put it straight onto food on the plate like you would use ketchup.
• Good -
  Basics Tomato Ketchup, DS is avid Heinz fan and can't tell the difference.
  Onions, tend to be on the small side but taste just the same as the large ones!
  Tasty cheddar cheese, good medium-strength flavour.
  Tinned tomatoes, fine for cooking in sauces etc.
  Tinned fruit, great for trifles and kid's puds.
  Bio washing powder, great - use it all the time. Not highly scented and dissolves easily in the drawer.
  Bad -
  Mild cheese, too bland (but my kids liked it when they were younger).
  Tinned sponge puddings (though I may be mixing this up with an Asda basic one) was one of the most disgusting things I've tasted in a long while!
  Washing up liquid, looks nice and thick but is totally rubbish at getting rid of grease. You end up using 4 times as much as the normal stuff so it's not economical either.
• The bacon isn't bad - I don't mind their basics mild cheese but then I'm not one for strong cheese flavours usually anyway -
  Also try their tuna, I had a tin a while back and thought it was OK with mayonnaise -just got another tin - it's just that the size of the tins of the more expensive stuff is smaller and convenient for a sandwich.
• Basics Digestive biscuits, I think they are just as good as McVities, and Basics Peach Slices - great on breakfast cereal.
• Great thread. Keep it up. I didn't even know that Sainsbury's Basics range was that large.
  The only product that I have tried is the basics pineapple tin for 19 pence and this is as good as the more expensive ones.
  Next time I am in Sainsbury's I shall keep my eyes open for this range.
  Becky
• Basics butter is good. Basics potatoes are also fine.
• I always buy the basics lettuce. They are usually larger versions of the little gem type lettuce and only about 37p. Really nice. Also a lady who works in our local branch told me that the basic chicken breasts are from the same supplier as the dearer ones - just different sizes.
• I would recommend:
  Orange/blackcurrant squash - 18p a bottle.
  Crumpets
  Hand cream - really effective and not highly perfumed.
  Strawberries
  Chopped tomatoes
  Digestives - I use these for making flans, but they taste just as good as mcvities on their own.
  Following on from this thread I have bought the ketchup today and also the 10p(!) shower gel which actually smells quite nice. Will report back my findings!
• I only go to Sainsbury's once every 2 months or so and mainly stock up on their basics range while I am there. Since it has been a while since I have been I will not put the prices in case I get them very wrong .
  We love the Basics frozen yorkshire puds
  I know it's cheaper to make your own, but I am rubbish at it and these only take 4 mins to cook from frozen and are far better than Aunt Bessies and the other Value ones from T, M, A
  Basics pickled onions - great
  Basics frozen lamb chops - as with all the value ranges you have to have a rummage to get the best pack, but these were really cheap (3.50ish for 600g)
  Basics bacon, you have to have a rummage, but I get a few packs of the cooking and back varieties (ok, sometimes I have to cut off a bit of fat, but still far cheaper)
  Ditto Coupon on the white choc, used to be so good, but not lately
  Milk chocolate ok not great - could use in cooking
  I have tried the curry sauce . It's ok as a base to add more spices or a bit of chili flakes, and some tomato puree to thicken it a bit, but if you are really skint it's edible on its own.
  jar tomato pasta sauce, not bad if I recall, a bit watery, but I make my own now, and only bertolli's tastes as good .
  The tinned veg/fruit tastes just like "normal" tinned stuff - pineapple, mushrooms, sweetcorn, peaches we have tried
  I find the fresh f+v is just the same as "normal" but smaller/strange shapes, but fine chopped up
  packed peanuts and cashews are just like you'd expect too, just smaller or with a few broken nuts
  Honey - its just honey, can't go wrong there
  peanut butter - the crunchy is a bit dry with fewer nutty bits, but I only eat it on toast and it melts so no probs there
  marmalade - like any other cheap marmalade, unless you like the Dundee or darker types, this is fine just fewer bits of peel (which might be a good thing)
  I can't think if we get anything else. If I do will post them. I do feel that in general the Sainsbury's basics range is better quality than Tesco value and Asda smartprice, but then I only buy a few things from this range. Would love to hear about the extended range
  HTH,
  MrsB.
• I buy lots of basics...here's what I buy:
  * Potatoes - good, but tend to sprout early, so only worth the money if you're going to get through that many quickly.
  * Ketchup
  * Mayonnaise
  * Bio Washing powder
  * Vinegar
  * Mint sauce
  * Baked beans
  * Noodles (as in supernoodle equivalents)
  * All the biscuits (cookies, custard creams etc)
  * Ice Cream
  * Foil
  * Cling Film
  * Toilet Tissue
  * Kitchen Roll
  * Tea bags
  * Tinned peeled tomatoes
  * Bacon - but it has to be fried (no oil needed though). I found it very tough when grilled.
  * Eggs, although I'm trying to go free range now
  * Carrots
  * Apples
  * Crumpets (sometimes they have the holes missing though )
  * Scotch Pancake things - yum
  * Hand wash
  * Butter
  * Mature Cheese - although I prefer to get cathedral city when on offer
  * Salmon - they are like off-cuts, the tail ends, these are great for putting in a pasta dish.
  * Yoghurt (hubby says they are OK)
  * Chocolate mousse
  * Bread (I think this can vary in quality - I'm sure different stores store it differently)
  * Plain Flour for bread making
  * Milk chocolate is quite nice, it's really smooth and creamy unlike Tescos which i found horrible.
  Think that might be it
  The things we never bought again:
  * Salad Cream (we buy sains own)
  * Jelly
  * White chocolate
• Basic tomato chutney,
  " onion chutney
  " camenbert, in fact I buy mostly basic unless it's got meat in it.