(upbeat pop rock music)
- [Mike] We are Sorted, a group of mates
who have your back when it comes to all things food,
from cooking battles, to gadget reviews.
- Ben, it's not worth it.
- [Mike] And cookbook challenges,
to a midweek Meal Packs app.
- [Jamie] Crack your eggs, bake.
- [Mike] We uncover the tools
that'll help us all cook and eat smarter.
Join our community, where everything we do starts with you.
(jolly rock music)
- Welcome to Sorted.
This is a special Christmas episode of Pick the Premium,
where we test and compare festive food items,
and see where you money is best spent.
- Participating today, we have our chef, Ben,
and our normal home cook Barry,
and the question is, can they, using their taste alone,
identify the premium festive ingredient?
Get your blindfold on, mate.
- [James] Oh, look at him.
- [Mike] Look at, he's loving it.
- Bring it on.
(jazzy Christmas music)
- You have two tiny bowls in front of you.
- [Mike] As always, A, is on the left,
and B is on the right.
One is a basic supermarket version.
The other is a premium.
- I'm presuming it's cranberry sauce.
- A very sweet cranberry sauce.
- You are absolutely right,
these are both cranberry sauces.
- It's got a tang and a kick to it.
- [Barry] And there are bits of cranberry in it.
- Give bowl B a taste.
- [James] I love cranberry sauce.
- [Mike] I love it, I absolutely love it.
- It's like Ebbers time 1,000.
- This is amazing.
You take his vision away from him.
- I think it's the hat. - And he just becomes
1,000 Ebbers.
- There's another flavour going on.
It almost might be, I think it's got cloves in it as well.
Yeah, cloves and cinnamon.
- He's good, he's doing well, you know.
- He's annoyingly good at this.
- Quite sour and tart, but more jammy.
- A feels very simple.
It's very sweet, a fantastic jam,
whereas B feels more like a luxury Christmas sauce.
- A had more pop of, like, whole cranberries, I felt,
and was tart and tangy, with a bit of sweetness,
whereas I felt this one, B, was more jammy.
- We need you to lock in your answer.
Please, Ebbers, pick the premium.
- A.
- B feels more sophisticated than A,
so I'm gonna have to say B is the premium.
- Well, Baz, before we reveal the answer,
do you wanna take your blindfold off,
see if you've made the right decision?
- Oh, okay.
- I said A was more premium.
Looking at it, I'm less convinced.
A is much more glossy, and B is much more pappy.
- I'm still confident in my choice.
That's got to be premium.
- Well, you've eaten them individually,
and you can taste some difference.
Can you notice any differences when served
with a superbly roasted turkey?
- [James] Thank you, mate.
- [Mike] From Mr. James Currie.
- I think Christmas is a lot of nostalgia,
and that's what I feel like A did.
It was super sweet, but fruity,
but not sickly sweet.
I said at the time, it still had a tang
and a sourness to it.
- [Mike] Mm.
- Do you wanna know?
- [Barry] Please.
- You are correct about the premium.
B is the premium.
Ebbers, A is cranberry sauce from M&S.
- Oh, so not the most basic of basic.
- Yeah, I mean, it goes without saying,
M&S are not the cheapest of UK supermarkets,
but it's Christmas.
This is absolutely not a hashtag ad.
- They say it is a traditional cranberry sauce,
serve with your Christmas dinner.
B is Daylesford Organic Cranberry Sauce.
Sweet, tart, and full of whole cranberries.
B actually has quite a lot more going on in it,
including blood orange, stem ginger,
cinnamon, star anise, allspice berries,
mixed spice, and cloves.
- We've used Daylesford Farm a few times in the past,
and we know their stuff is of the highest quality.
- Food-wise and animal standards-wise,
I think it's fair to say.
- And it is an incredibly delicious cranberry sauce,
I can't deny that.
- Let's see if we can sway you on price.
The M&S jar comes in 200 grams and is one pound.
(cash register dings)
How much do you think the Daylesford is?
- Three pounds 50.
- I imagine it's probably three or four times the price,
so three pound 50.
- [James] It's four pounds 10.
(cash register dings)
It's over four times the price.
- Weirdly, I wouldn't have thought that's expensive
until you see how cheap
what is already a good cranberry sauce at a pound.
- I think it's fair to say
they're both really decent products.
- For me, basic cranberry sauce has the win.
- Bring on round two.
(funky Christmas music)
- [Mike] Again, two items, A and B.
Have a sniff, have a taste, give us your thoughts.
- Oh, it's warm.
Oh, oh.
I think I know.
- It's a mince pie, that's what I'm feeling.
- Absolutely.
- Oh, wow.
That is very, very buttery pastry.
What was this thing in front?
- That's some brandy cream.
Kudos to you if you can scoop some of that
on your pie first time.
- Now, here's the logic, right?
I know where my knuckle is,
so if I put it on there, then I can do it.
- I didn't get any cream.
It's a really nice, nicely well spiced mince pie.
- There are two parts to a mince pie.
There's the pastry, and, in this instance,
is very, very, very buttery, and delicious, and soft,
and it is falling apart,
and then there's the mincemeat filling,
sweet and quite boozy,
but it's not, there's not a huge amount of it.
It's not as deep filled as, perhaps, I would like.
- Why don't you give B a try?
- Right, it's firmer.
There's a decoration on top of sorts.
More flavours are coming from this, from B,
than they are A, but I'd have said
the pastry feels more basic.
- B, I think, plays more to the fruit filling
than the pastry, and I said the last one was boozy,
I think this is more so.
- I think we're gonna have to push you for an answer now.
- B is the premium.
- I would imagine A is the premium
because I think it plays to what you expect
from an all butter shortcrust pastry.
I actually think it was also very, very sweet,
and I think, for that reason,
I prefer the slightly boozier filling over here,
so I think my preference might be here,
but I think A is the premium.
- Would you like to de-blindfold?
And I will tell you which is the premium.
How do you feel now you can see both of them?
- [Barry] I'm a little bit gutted.
- [Mike] Really?
- I think I've got it wrong.
- Ooh, I got the crimp,
the crisper crimp. - You did,
you absolutely did.
Well, Ebbers, I can reveal
that A was, in fact, the premium.
Option A is the Selfridges selection
traditional festive mince pie,
whereas B was our supermarket option,
six all butter shortcrust pastry mince pies.
- Interesting.
- I only ever really have basic mince pies.
- Sometimes, you can have something
that you think, this tastes a lot better,
but it doesn't taste the way
that I remember it tasting in past Christmases,
therefore, I want that feeling.
I want the nostalgia instead.
- Yeah, nostalgia is a big thing, yeah.
- So, a lot of the time,
that has to be sort of taken into consideration as well.
So, couple of talking points,
the Selfridges, A, palm oil-free,
and this is part of an initiative
that they call Project Earth.
They look to make more sustainable choices
when it comes to cosmetics, fashion, and their food.
Not all palm oil is sourced irresponsibly
or unsustainably, but they've decided to go out there
and say that these are palm oil-free,
whereas B do contain palm oil.
- Mince pies are super traditional and classic,
and never had palm oil in them in the first place.
They were a buttery pastry,
so that is definitely more traditional.
- Mm.
- The use of palm oil as a cheaper fat
has made mince pies more readily available en masse.
- For a pack of six, would you like to hazard a guess
at how much the Selfridges mince pies cost?
- Let's say it's a pound a pie, so six pounds.
- 12 pound 50.
- [Mike] They are nine pounds 99 for a pack of six,
whereas our supermarket mince pies, for six also,
are two pounds for the pack.
- Is it something that is worth spending a bit more money on
since it's something that maybe stands alone?
- No, but I'm gonna make my own.
- That is such a chef-y thing,
but that, it could be an answer,
it could be an answer.
- Actually, flavour-wise, I'd be happy with either,
and I don't think, flavour-wise, it was five times better.
- I'm still gonna go out and buy the premium one.
I'm buying them for the friends and family,
it's Christmas time, splash out.
- Ready for number three?
(upbeat jazz music)
(people clap)
- Barry, we have two more delightful treats for you
in front of you.
They are a little bit hot.
- Why do you spider your way up to them?
- Because it's creepy,
and that's what he goes for.
(Mike laughs)
- I think I can smell what it is?
- Go on.
- It's gravy, isn't it?
- Oh, wait a minute.
All right, stuff this.
(record scratches) B is the premium.
That is Bisto.
- I mean, do you wanna taste it?
- I am that confident.
- Before you do this, I think it's fair to say
that Baz sniffed the difference,
and backed himself in picking a premium,
so I think it's only fair
that we give you the opportunity
because we don't want you to look silly.
- Oh.
(Mike laughs)
Yeah, I'm pretty sure, but unless it's a...
(James laughs)
I think it's quite obvious,
but that's really embarrassing if it's wrong.
- You can taste it.
- Well, I'm pretty sure this one smells like,
I was gonna say turkey, but it could be chicken gravy.
It's poultry gravy, whereas this one smells like a pub
that might make it with granules.
- [Mike] Are you sure you don't want to taste?
- What are you gonna do?
Are you gonna lock it in?
- [Mike] No, he's gonna taste it.
- [James] So he couldn't do a Barry special.
- No, and I kind of respect him more for not.
- Oh, wow, they're completely different.
That is much more mellow, but kind of bone-brothy,
and makes me think it's more what you'd end up with
if you made it yourself,
whereas that, much thicker, much more acidic.
That would take over the whole plate,
and everything would taste the same.
- I think the reason he's struggling
is 'cause he's not basic enough.
Barry didn't pick the premium, he knew the basic,
so I think that's where the difficulty is.
Ben's palette is too distinguished.
- If we're talking gravy granules,
I haven't had gravy from gravy granules
for a long, long time.
- Yeah, gonna have to ask you for an answer, Ebbers.
Pick the premium.
- A is the premium.
- Would you like to remove your blindfold?
The answer's locked in, you can't change your mind.
- Yeah, I think I'm happy with that.
(James laughs)
- You're such a (beeps)
- But.
- But. - You're absolutely right.
(electric piano note clangs)
- I smelled that before, I was gonna taste it,
then I was like, I can smell, that's gravy, that's Bisto.
- [James] You are, of course, correct.
A is Bisto turkey gravy granules,
and they describe themselves as the nation's favorite.
Just add boiling water.
B is Potts turkey gravy with madeira and sage.
- So I feel like, well, I did lose, I lost,
but I'm still surprised at that.
- These are some amazing Currie roast potatoes.
- Currie, not curried.
- Yeah, Currie.
I'm interested to see whether B does overpower
the flavor of them.
- Now, just these on their own,
which one would I want to dip in?
That one, 'cause, for me, it's a sauce
that actually, it is punchy,
but I feel like, on a whole roast, it's too much.
That is the one that I would want on a whole roast
so that it doesn't make everything taste of that.
- The reason Bisto was the go-to gravy in my family
is 'cause it was all about convenience,
and gravy was always an afterthought,
and go, but we just need a vat of it
as quickly as possible, so it did the job,
and it still takes me home every time I have that,
so I don't not enjoy it because of that,
but when you experience proper, proper gravy,
it's a game-changer.
It's really hard to not have that
or treat yourself to that
every time you have gravy.
- So, in your opinion, gravy, massively worth
splashing out a bit of extra cash on.
- No.
- Oh.
- 'Cause it's easy to make yourself.
- So, presuming you've just made Christmas dinner,
bar a tablespoon of flour, perhaps,
the gravy is free.
- Let's talk price.
- [Barry] Mm-hm.
- A is about three pence per serving.
A tub is 50 servings, and a tub costs one pound 50.
Would you like to hazard a guess
at how much the premium gravy is?
It came in a posh bag, it was 350 mil.
That's probably two servings,
but you have to open the whole bag.
- I reckon just over a quid per serving.
- One pound 50 a portion.
- Bang on.
So three pounds for the pack.
That's about 50 times more expensive than Bisto,
if you work it out like that.
- What's really interesting is,
when you compare your thoughts and Barry's thoughts,
irrespective of which one was the favorite,
both of you have said,
I wouldn't bother with either of them, really,
I'd make my own,
and that feels like the overwhelming take out here,
is, if you're gonna roast a dinner,
make your own gravy.
Well, two out of three.
Moving on to four.
This is your last chance for points.
- So I have to get this.
- Let's bring it on. - Gonna be a toughie.
(upbeat Christmas music)
- Ready for number four?
- I can smell it.
- [Mike] You got an A, you got a B.
Have a sip, tell us what you think.
- Everything I love about mulled wine.
Super fruity with those warming spices.
- That is warm, that is sweet, that is silky,
that is well spiced.
- So you're liking it.
- Oh, it's delicious.
- [Mike] Okay, try B, tell us the differences.
- Okay, completely different.
Okay, this one tastes more like wine.
That has a slight burn, but in a good way, not a hot way.
- They're both pretty sweet.
I honestly, I honestly couldn't tell you.
- Gonna have to pick the premium, though, I'm afraid.
- B is the premium.
- So, my favourite is B.
- Mm-hm.
- Therefore, A is the premium.
- Well, Barry, before we tell you,
do you wanna lift your blindfold
and see if this changes anything?
- No. - No, it doesn't.
Well, Baz, I can reveal that B is the premium.
(electric piano note clangs)
A is our supermarket mulled wine,
a rich and fruity red wine with warming spices,
and it's vegan-friendly,
whereas B is the Harvey Nichols mulled wine.
This limited edition, ready-to-drink,
and vegan-friendly mulled wine has been crafted exclusively
for Harvey Nichols from organic wine,
fruits, and spices.
Made from red wine sourced from the Zellertal Rheinhessen
and Fats, Pfalz regions of Germany.
- So sorry.
- No, good on you.
- I tried.
Blended with traditional spices
such as cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice,
to create the perfect winter tipple.
- [Ben] They're both lovely tipples,
and I would happily sup at either.
- Again, a bit like the gravy,
you could make your own mulled wine pretty damn easily.
- Right, do you want some?
- Oh, here's the twist.
- It's not necessarily better.
- No, and this is where I really struggle,
because wine is so subjective.
What I do like about this one is that it's more spiced,
but it's not as sweet, so, for me.
- The worst of the three, that's what you're saying.
It's terrible, isn't it?
- No, it's very nice.
- I can smell how bad it is from here.
(James laughs)
- It is not as sweet as either of those,
and therefore, you could probably do more than one glass,
and enjoy it throughout an evening.
- Mulled wine, you can make mulled wine
from a fairly cheap red wine,
add some spices, sugar, orange peel.
It's really simple to make.
You shouldn't have to spend a lot of money on it.
- So, option A, the supermarket mulled wine,
75 centiliters, five pounds a bottle.
(cash register dings)
Would you like to guess how much B,
the Harvey Nichols, cost per bottle, also 75 centiliters?
- 12 pounds.
- 50 pounds sounds a lot.
45 pounds a bottle.
- [Mike] It's actually 15 pounds a bottle.
- [Ben] Three times the amount.
- [Mike] Yeah.
- Oh, I thought it was gonna be silly expensive,
unnecessarily silly.
Instead, it's just unnecessary.
- For me, that is a lot of money for a mulled wine.
- Well, would you like to hear your final score?
- Well, yes.
It wasn't great, was it?
- [James] Barry, you got two out of four,
and Ben also got two out of four.
- How?
- [James] So you're not a loser.
(Mike laughs)
- Merry, I'm gonna have a good Christmas,
and I'm gonna save some money.
Win-win.
- So, over to you.
Which ingredients should we blind taste test
in our next pick the premium episode?
- And who would you like to see in the hot seat?
Comment below.
- [Mike] Have you ever got to the end of a long day
with no ideas, ingredients,
or energy to cook?
Takeaway?
Hm, it'd be the fourth this week.
Well, that's why we built our revolutionary Meal Packs app.
Thousands of people are using it to shop, cook,
and eat a whole lot better and easier
while saving money as a result.
You can go and use it in its entirety for free
for a whole month and see if it's for you.
The link is in the description box below.
And now for the blooper.
(screen beeps)
He looks like a little mouse
on its hind legs, just munching a bit of cheese.