the summer -- when we're putting it on anything and everything
from burgers and hot dogs to brats and grilled
chicken -- it's particularly crucial that we're
eating the best-tasting condiment on the
market.
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How to Cook a Wiener & Eat It
That's why here at The Stir we embarked on a
blind taste test of 10 ketchup brands to determine
which ones had superior tomato flavor and consistency, and which
ones were disappointingly watery and bland. The winners and losers
will definitely surprise you. Let's dip into the results.
For our official ketchup taste test, we blindly
sampled the following 10 brands (using McDonald's French Fries
for dipping) and chose the two best and two worst
based on flavor and consistency:
- Whole Foods 365 Organic Tomato Ketchup
- Whole Foods 365 Ketchup
- Generic Tomato Ketchup (Best Yet)
- Heinz Tomato Ketchup
- Heinz Organic Tomato Ketchup
- No Salt Added Heinz
- Reduced Sugar Heinz
- Sir Kensington Gourmet Scooping Ketchup
- Hunt’s Tomato Ketchup
- Hunt’s Tomato Ketchup (no salt)
thinking that best-selling ketchup brand, Heinz,
would be the clear winner (and that Hunt's would come in dead
last). But guess what: They were wrong. It looks like Heinz has
some definite competition, as all of its products ended up
somewhere in the middle.
Best Ketchup: Whole Foods 365 Organic Tomato
Ketchup
This was, hands down, the favorite of the bunch. Tasters said it
tasted like fresh pasta sauce but with perfect ketchup consistency.
Other descriptors used included: "really nice,"
"slightly sweet," "perfect consistency,"
"thick and smooth," "exactly like what I expect
ketchup to taste like," and, most tellingly,
"yummy."
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Runner-up for Best Ketchup: Generic Tomato
Ketchup (Best Yet Brand from D'Agostino Grocery
Store)
The only ketchup in the bunch that contained high
fructose corn syrup, the generic ketchup had a lot of
fans, too, for its bright tomato flavor. Other reactions included:
"medium-thick consistency," "really tasty,"
"tastes exactly like McDonald's ketchup (this was a good
thing)," and, "Is this my beloved Heinz?"
Worst Ketchup: Hunt’s Tomato Ketchup (No
Salt)
This ketchup disappointed across the board because of its watery
consistency and strong, too sweet vinegar taste. Tasters described
it as "bland," "way sweet," "thin,"
"bleh," "yuck," "It reminds me of bad
sweet and sour sauce," "tastes artificial," and
"bad, as if something had gone bad."
Runner-up for Worst Ketchup: Whole Foods 365
Tomato Ketchup
It's interesting that Whole Foods organic brand topped our
list, but the regular ketchup was at the bottom. Tasters mostly
complained about its strong, smokey flavor. Here were some other
comments: "Gross!" "artificial tomato taste,"
"watery," "yuck," "too sugary,"
"not thick enough," "vinegary," "tastes
like barbecue sauce."
Which ketchup brand is your favorite?
