To help you host your finest Christmas ever, and with tightening budgets in mind, we’ve tested some of the best festive supermarket food on offer so you can decide what’s worth adding to your trolley this year. Since mince pies have to be on your Christmas dinner essentials list, we've hunted high and low for the best mince pies up for grabs in 2022.
Mince pies are a British Christmas tradition and were first served in the early middle ages. The pies were quite sizeable, filled with a mixture of finely minced meat, chopped up fruit and a preserving liquid. Traditionally they were eaten for 12 days from Christmas Day to Twelfth Night, this was believed to bring good luck for the year ahead.
It’s been a while since meat featured in the commercial sweet and spice mince pie treats we know and love today (although some recipes may still include suet). These days mince pies are filled with a warming spiced fruit mix, usually currants, sultanas, apples and candied peel. A glug of port or brandy is also an essential festive addition!
Read on for our festive favourites for this year's mince pies, plus, if mince pies aren't your favourite festive treat, there are also some alternatives so you can still have something to pop alongside your cuppa.
The best supermarket mince pies 2022
1 of 9Iceland luxury mince pies
It’s hard to beat these classic mince pies, with buttery shortbread which is just the right thickness and a rich filling, sharp with citrus but not overpowering. This winning combination is unbeatable. Keep a box of these on standby all Christmas!
2 of 9Aldi Specially Selected All Butter Classic Mince Pies
Six all-butter shortcrust pastry cases are filled with a luxury mincemeat of vine and citrus fruits with sweetened dried cranberries, infused with brandy, with a sweet dusting of icing sugar. Plus the price is hard to beat!
3 of 9Tesco Finest 6 Crumble Topped Mince Pies
Buttery and lavish with cognac, brandy and port, rich all-butter pastry is packed with a delicious mix of plump vine fruits, Napoleon glace cherries, festive spices and citrus peel. Infused with cognac, French brandy and port for a deeper flavour, topped with an all-butter crumble. While they're a bit light on the filling, the crumble topping is a tasty twist for this pastry treat.
4 of 9Morrisons The Best Deep Filled Mince Pies
The pastry is quite thick but it's moist and lovely, almost like marzipan in its consistency. The mincemeat is a touch light on the brandy more brandy. For deep filled we'd expect a bit more filling, but they taste delicious all the same.
5 of 9ASDA Extra Special 6 Luxury Mince Pies
These mince pies from Asda are generously filled and baked with all-butter pastry, with Valencian orange oil, ruby port and Cognac for the perfect Extra Special festive treat.
6 of 9Cook Mince Pies
It's worth spending the extra pound on these mince pies from Cook, with melt-in-the-mouth pastry, lots of delicious filling and great texture - a great traditional mince pie.
7 of 9M&S 4 Chocolate & Hazelnut Mince Lies
If you'd rather go for a twist on the traditional mince pie, these are so delicious they deserve a mention. Try as a dessert with a dollop of Baileys cream, too! M&S are of course also doing actual mince pies too, as well as some great M&S Christmas hamper options.
8 of 9Sainsbury's Gingerbread Blondie Pies, Taste the Difference
These look cute as a button and are brimming with festive flavours. Thick caramel with a layer of frangipane completes these seriously sweet treats.
9 of 9Waitrose Christmas Cherry & Almond Mince Pies
Butter-enriched pastry, filled with sweet cherry and Amaretto mincemeat. Topped with almond frangipane and flaked almonds for a festive twist on a cherry Bakewell.
Can you freeze mince pies?
Most mince pies are suitable for home freezing for up to three months, whether cooked or homemade and still unbaked. Once frozen they'll need defrosting overnight and won't be suitable to freeze again.
It's worth checking the packaging as individual brands may differ in their recommendations.