Christmas 2024: Best frozen roast potatoes to serve with turkey ranked

Roast potatoes are a key highlight to Christmas Dinner, but the prepping, peeling and cooking can be very time-consuming. Which? put the frozen roast tats to the test and you'll be surprised to find out which one came out on top

Budget supermarket frozen roast potatoes have beaten branded items in a blind taste test. A panel for consumer group Which? compared spuds from well-known brands Aunt Bessie’s and McCain, comparing them with eight supermarket offerings.

Aldi Specially Selected Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes, which cost £2.49 for 1kg, came out top, receiving a score of 74%.
Which? said the flavour pleased most of its tasters, with three quarters being fans of the "fluffy interior" of the potatoes and two-thirds loving the crispy outsides.

Aldi's potatoes tied in terms of scoring with M&S Maris Piper Roast Potatoes, £3 for 800g - but came out slightly on top due to being cheaper. Aunt Bessie’s Duck Fat Roast Potatoes, the most expensive in the test at £4.50 for 700g, scored third. But in last place were branded rivals McCain. It's Triple Cooked Roasts, which cost £3 for 700g, scored 60% with 43% of the tasters saying they weren't crispy enough and it lost points for a weak flavour.

Which? say this Christmas, ready-made roasties can make a handy, time-saving short cut - but it is also worth checking product weights to get the best deal. For example, Aldi and Sainsbury's come in a 1kg bag - 300g more than the branded products.

Natalie Hitchins, Which? head of home products and services, said: “Roast potatoes are a staple for a Christmas dinner but can often be time-consuming to make from scratch while juggling other things.

"We tested a variety of frozen alternatives on offer from big brands and supermarkets that require next to no preparation and are the perfect cooking hack – saving precious time in the kitchen.

“Aldi's Specially Selected Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes and M&S’s Maris Piper Roast Potatoes proved to be the most popular among our taste-testing panel for their fluffy interior and crispy outsides, both receiving a Best Buy award.

“Aldi’s offering also received a Great Value award as it was the cheapest on test, costing almost £2 less than Aunt Bessie’s offering.
"This highlights that you don’t necessarily need to splash out on the big brands for a great tasting frozen roast potato."

Best ready-made roasties according to Which?

1. Aldi Specially Selected Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes – 74%. £2.49 for 1kg
2. M&S Maris Piper Roast Potatoes – 74%. £3 for 800g
3. Aunt Bessie’s Duck Fat Roast Potatoes – 72%. £4.50 for 700g
4. Morrisons The Best Beef Fat Roast Potatoes – 71%. £2.75 for 800g
5. Sainsbury’s Maris Piper Roast Potatoes with Beef Dripping, Taste the Difference – 71%. £2.95 for 1kg
6. Tesco Finest Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes – 71%. £3 for 800g
7. Co-op Irresistible Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes – 70%. £3.40 for 750g
8. Waitrose Frozen Roast Potatoes in Beef Fat – 70%. £2.75 for 800g
9. Asda Extra Special Beef Dripping Roast Potatoes – 68% £2.75 for 800g
10 McCain Triple Cooked Roasts – 60%. £3 for 700g