Easter is not complete without a bag of Mini Eggs ready to devour after a visit from the Easter bunny—but at nearly £2 a bag, shoppers are up in arms about the price. The tiny speckled eggs have a hold over the nation every Easter thanks to their devilishly moreish taste.
Melt-in-the-middle chocolate with sugary hard shell eggs is always a go-to in their easily recognisable yellow packets, but they are undeniably becoming an expensive treat. The cost of an 80g bag has risen by over a third this Easter, coming in at £1.85, so it’s no wonder supermarkets have jumped on the bandwagon to create their own budget versions to help shoppers out.
As a huge Mini Egg lover myself, I can’t resist picking up a packet or two whenever I take a trip to the shop, and will happily devour the whole bag in one go. So, I decided to see if Aldi, M&S and Poundland’s take on the beloved chocolate eggs live up to the original Cadbury version.
Customers were left ‘screaming’ when they spotted WHSmith charging £19 for a 1kg bag of the Mini Eggs, so it was only right to see if there were any cheaper alternatives. Here’s what I thought…
Cadbury’s Mini Eggs are a classic for a reason. Maybe it’s down to them only being available once a year, or because they are so devilishly moreish. They have a certain powdery sweet smell that instantly makes your mouth water, and the crunchy hard shell housing melt-in-the-middle chocolate will be tough to beat. The only downside is the price.
In true Aldi fashion, the packaging is incredibly similar to the original, right down to the yellow and purple branding. The Dairyfine Mini Chocolate Eggs come in an 80g bag for 99p, making them nearly half the price.
When it comes to taste, you can tell they aren’t Cadbury. The iconic crunch from the hard shell is there, and the chocolate is soft inside. But they have that sickly artificial flavour you often get with cheap chocolate and I simply couldn’t get past it. These were a real let-down.
Taste – 2/5
Similarity – 4/5
Overall – 3/5
Again, much cheaper than Cadbury’s, and I can say they definitely taste just as good. Out of the packet, they don’t look as similar, but they are even more decadant. M&S’ ‘Chicky Choccy Speckled Easter Eggs’ have the same yellow bag, but a more illustrative design, putting their own stamp on a classic.
As for the actual eggs, they are a lot bigger than original Mini Eggs, which makes them a little harder to eat. The chocolate is a bit harder too, so they don’t melt in your mouth, but the rich filling screams quality. The shell had the perfect crunch and I couldn’t stop eating them.
Taste – 5/5
Similarity – 2/5
Overall – 4/5
I was very impressed with Poundland’s take on the popular treat. Similar to the Aldi packaging with the small yellow bag, these ‘little speckled eggs’ were impressive, but were in a significantly smaller bag, and a lot of the eggs were broken which was a shame. They had a very hard shell which made it hard to chew on and break down, so perhaps wouldn’t be the best for children, but the chocolate was tasty, and for the price you can’t complain.
Taste – 3/5
Similarity – 4/5
Overall – 3.5/5
Overall I was pretty impressed with all of the own-brand eggs – Aldi was a surprise letdown when it comes to flavour but for the price, it’s still a good option. Out of my whole haul, M&S was the true showstopper. While they weren’t a direct copycat, the chunkier eggs offered more chocolate which is always a win – and the chocolate itself was glorious.
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