Best Christmas puddings: tastiest supermarket options revealed

We asked more than 70 consumers to taste and rate 10 traditional-style premium Christmas puddings from supermarkets including Aldi, Lidl, Tesco and Waitrose. 

Tasters rated the puddings based on their appearance, aroma, taste and texture. They also gave their verdict on the level of alcohol, spices, fruit and nuts in each pud.

The best Christmas puddings were moist, contained a generous amount of nuts and fruit and were full of festive flavour - without being overpowering. Our tasters found a few that were a bit too boozy and a little dry.

All of the Christmas puddings in our test are suitable for vegetarians, except for Iceland and Sainsbury’s. 

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Best traditional-style Christmas puddings

Only logged-in Which? members can view our full taste test results and tasting notes for each supermarket Christmas pudding. 

If you’re not yet a member, you’ll see an alphabetically ordered list of the Christmas puddings on test. To get instant access to these and thousands of other reviews join Which? today 

Aldi Specially Selected 18-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£7.49 for 800g (£0.94 per 100g)

Can Aldi’s budget-friendly Christmas pudding compete in taste with the more expensive rivals?

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Asda Extra Special 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding 

£8 for 800g (£1 per 100g)

Did the Infusion of French cognac and Spanish sherry make this Asda pudding ‘Extra Special’?

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Co-op Irresistible 12 Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£5 for 400g (£1.25 per 100g)

Can this Co-op Christmas pudding deliver an ‘Irresistible’ taste for just 1.25p per 100g?

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Iceland Luxury 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£4.50 for 400g (£1.13 per 100g)

What did our panel think about the taste of Iceland’s pudding? Was it a luxurious festive dessert?

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Lidl Deluxe 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding 

£4.49 for 400g (£1.12 per 100g) 

Compared to puds that are matured for 18 months, what did our experts think of this 12-month offering from Lidl?

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M&S Collection 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£13 for 800g (£1.63 per 100g)

As the priciest pudding per 100g, we were expecting a lot from this M&S offering. Is it worth splashing out on?

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Morrisons The Best 18-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£5 for 400g (£1.25 per 100g)

Morrisons’ Christmas pudding is part of its ‘The Best’ range. So has it earned our Best Buy recommendation?

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Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference 18-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£10.50 for 800g (£1.31 per 100g)

Sainsbury’s pudding was the best in our taste test in 2022. Has it maintained its number one spot?

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Tesco Finest 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£9 for 800g (£1.12 per 100g)

In contrast to Sainsbury’s, Tesco’s Finest Christmas pudding ended up at the bottom of our rankings in 2022. How well did it do a year on?

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Waitrose No.1 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding

£12.50 for 800g (£1.56 per 100g)

Being the second most expensive of the puddings we tested, we hoped this would be ‘No.1’ in flavour. What did our tasters think?

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These products were tested as part of our Christmas 2023 taste tests and are no longer available.

In need of mince pies, too? Find out the supermarkets that came top in our mince pie taste test 

How to get a perfect dome when turning out your pud

Christmas puddings always look delectable on the packaging, but transferring a neat dome of dessert from the plastic casing onto your serving plate isn’t always easy. 

If you’ve ever been left scraping half of your pudding from inside a tub, follow these simple steps:

1. Steaming your pudding is preferable to microwaving it, as the end result will be much tastier. It might seem like a hassle, but it’s surprisingly easy and you won’t have to worry about it once it’s on the hob (except for checking the water doesn’t dry up). It’s practically impossible to overcook your pudding this way, whereas the microwave can separate the fat too quickly and leave it dried out.
2. Most cooking instructions recommend leaving the pudding to stand for one or two minutes before serving, Waiting gives the dessert a chance to settle and keep its shape better.
3. Run a knife around the edge of the pudding to separate it from its casing.
4. Put a plate over the top of the casing and turn the plate and casing over. Wait a minute or so, or until you feel the pudding come free.
5. If your pudding comes in a plastic tub and shows no sign of shifting, use a corkscrew to make a hole in the base of the tub. This will allow some of the pressure to escape.

Best wine to have with Christmas pudding

We asked wine expert Charles Metcalfe for his recommendations on wines to serve with Christmas pudding. Here’s what he said: ‘The wine has to be sweet, so an asti or another moscato spumante are brilliant, refreshing and perfect in flavour. For a heavyweight, look out for an Australian liqueur muscat.’

You can find out which other drinks scored highly in our taste tests in our best champagne and best red wine guides.

Cocktails that go with Christmas pudding

Opting for a cocktail (or mocktail) instead can add some theatre to your Christmas lunch. Here are some options that pair perfectly with Christmas puddings:

• Espresso martini Our experts recommend coffee as a pairing for Christmas pudding. For a boozy twist, a traditional Irish coffee works well, or try an espresso martini.
• Spicy cocktails Anything with ginger is ideal, as the fiery taste will blend well with the spices in your pudding. Perhaps go for some ginger wine or ginger beer. You can make this into more of a mocktail by rubbing fresh ginger around the inside of your glass (filled with ice), before pouring in the ginger beer. Then garnish with fresh ginger slices or grated ginger.
• Brandy Alexander Try a brandy Alexander cocktail by mixing one part fresh cream, one part brandy and one part creme de cacao. Sprinkling some fresh grated nutmeg on top is delicious.
• Negroni Don’t limit Negronis to the summer; its orangey tang makes it a perfect choice to enjoy with Christmas pudding. Make your own by stirring together one part gin, one part vermouth rosso and one part campari over ice. Garnish with a slice of orange or some orange peel.
• Mulled cider A mulled cider will go better with a Christmas pudding than mulled wine. Our experts suggested heating cider with spices. Also add brandy and (surprisingly) butter when you heat it as it will give your drink more depth.

How to make Christmas pudding vodka

Homemade Christmas pudding-infused vodka is a great way of using leftovers to give drinks a festive twist. If you’re not a vodka fan, you can also try liqueurs such as Southern Comfort. Liam Trotman and Ryan Simpson, chef proprietors of Orwells, told us how they make it:

1. Crumble leftover Christmas pudding into a bottle of vodka.
2. Leave in storage for a couple of months to let the flavours infuse.
3. Strain through a muslin cloth and it’s ready to drink – either on the rocks or added to cocktails.

How we tested traditional Christmas puddings

The products on test were assessed by a large panel of consumers who like Christmas pudding in September 2023.

The make-up of the panel broadly represents the demographic profile of adults in the UK, and each Christmas pudding was assessed by 70 people.

Panellists rated the taste, texture, aroma and appearance of each product, and told us what they liked and disliked about each one.

They also gave their verdict on how well-balanced the alcohol flavour, spices and amount of fruit and nuts were.

The taste test was conducted blind, so people didn’t know which brand they were trying. The order they sampled the Christmas puddings was fully rotated to avoid any bias.

Each panellist had a private booth, so they couldn’t discuss what they were tasting or be influenced by others.

The overall score is based on:

• 50% flavour
• 20% appearance
• 20% aroma
• 10% texture

Where to buy free-from, vegan and vegetarian Christmas puddings

There is a wider choice than ever at the supermarket if you're after a 'free-from' pud. Here’s a round-up of key options:

• Asda Free-From Christmas Pudding, £3.25/400g - gluten-free, vegan. 
• Harvey Nichols Gluten and Alcohol-Free Christmas Pudding, £11.95/454g - gluten-free, alcohol-free, vegan.
• LillyPuds Gluten-Free Christmas Pudding, £21.50/908g - gluten-free, vegetarian. 
• LillyPuds Premium Vegan and Gluten-Free Christmas Pudding 2 x 120g, £8.75/£240g - gluten-free, vegan. 
• M&S Made Without Christmas Pudding 6-Month Matured, £4.50/400g - gluten-free, wheat-free, vegan. 
• Matthew Walker Alcohol-Free Christmas Pudding, £9.99/400g - alcohol-free, vegan. 
• Matthew Walker Gluten-Free Christmas Pudding, £6.50/400g - gluten-free, vegan.
• Morrisons Free-From Rich Fruit Christmas Pudding, £4/400g - gluten-free, vegan.
• Plant Pioneers Christmas Pudding, £1.50/100g - vegan. 
• Sainsbury’s Free-From Christmas Pudding, £4/400g - gluten-free, vegan. 
• Sainsbury’s Free-From Christmas Pudding, Taste the Difference, £2.00 / 100g - gluten-free, milk-free.
• Tesco Free-From Christmas Pudding, £4/400g - gluten-free, wheat-free, milk-free, egg-free, vegetarian.
• Waitrose Alcohol-Free Christmas Pudding, £4/400g - alcohol-free, vegan. 
• Waitrose Free-From Christmas Pudding, £2/100g - gluten-free, vegan.
• Wicked Kitchen Spiced Rum Christmas Pudding, £2/100g - vegan. 

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