Consumer NZ puts these doughy Easter favourites to the test.
As Easter approaches – and many of us prepare to scoff chocolate eggs and hot cross buns over the holiday weekend – Consumer NZ has put a selection of buns to the test.
A panel of willing Consumer staff blind taste-tested a range of traditional spiced hot cross buns, plus two ‘wild cards’.
Buns were purchased from all the major supermarkets. Tasters were then asked to rank them on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being dreadful and 5 being delicious).
Tasters were allowed to apply butter or margarine.
The winner, for the second year in a row for best traditional hot cross bun, was New World; with the top-ranked buns purchased from the bakery of a Wellington New World supermarket.
“Tasters gave this bun a high score of 3.9 out of 5, describing it as packed with fruit and not dry, well spiced and with a lovely citrusy taste,” says Consumer NZ spokesperson Ben Christie.
“Congratulations to New World for taking out the title for the second consecutive year!”
The top of the ‘wild card’ buns was Woolworths’ Indulgent Hot Cross Buns with Cadbury Caramilk Chips.
“These innovative types of hot cross buns really get up the nose of traditionalists, but our tasters enjoyed them,” says Ben Christie.
“Tasters described them as delicious with ‘good moisture levels’, although some did reflect they were more like a cake than a hot cross bun.”
The lowest rated hot cross bun came from Pak’nSave due to a strong gas scent and a weird aftertaste.
Consumer purchased the buns at Pak’nSave, New World, Fresh Choice and Woolworths supermarkets around Wellington, plus one variety from Commonsense Organics.
It’s important to note that recipes can vary from store to store for in-house baked buns.
For the full list of buns, the scorecard and reviews head to Consumer.org.nz
About Consumer NZ
Consumer NZ is an independent, non-profit organisation dedicated to championing and empowering consumers in Aotearoa. Consumer NZ has a reputation for being fair, impartial and providing comprehensive consumer information and advice.
