A taste test compared Pizza Express dough balls with supermarket versions from Tesco, Lidl, Sainsbury's and Asda. Asda's came closest to the restaurant's iconic ones, but Pizza Express still came out on top overall.
How the comparison was done
The tester, who described Pizza Express dough balls as a favourite, set out to see whether cheaper supermarket alternatives could match the original. Versions from Tesco, Lidl, Sainsbury's and Asda were tried against the Pizza Express ones.
Sainsbury's and Tesco results
Sainsbury's Takeaway 165g Sides Garlic Doughballs scored 4/10. The tester said they were not enjoyable, with the garlic going slightly overboard, almost like biting into a garlic clove. They cost £3.50.
Tesco's The Pizza Company Garlic Doughballs 165g scored 7/10. The tester enjoyed them, noting a nice buttery middle as described on the packet, and said the garlic was not overdone, though one was enough as a second might be slightly overwhelming. They cost £3.40.
Lidl and Asda results
Lidl's Chef Select Takeaway 12 Garlic Tear and Share Doughballs scored 8/10. The tester said they tasted more like a brioche than dough balls, possibly due to the tear-and-share style of baking. They were bigger than the others, with a soft texture and a crunchier top, but lacked a bit of garlic butter. They cost £1.99.
Asda's Garlic & Herb Doughballs 165g scored 9.5/10, tasting the most like the Pizza Express ones. The tester praised the perfectly soft doughy texture and the garlic and butter filling, saying there wasn't too much or too little of anything. The dough balls were a decent size, with 12 in the packet, costing £2.07.
Pizza Express still wins
The Pizza Express Dough Balls with Garlic Dip x16 scored 10/10. The tester noted they cooked in around half the time of the others, and liked that the garlic butter came separately, allowing the dough balls to be enjoyed plain or with the generous portion of butter. The dough balls were fairly small but the packet contained 16, which was also a generous portion. They cost £3.80, or £1.90 with a Nectar Card.
