Tesco Butcher's Choice Lincolnshire Sausage

It’s been quite a while since Rate My Sausage looked at a mainstream sausage, so today it’s the turn of Tesco and their standard range – Butcher’s Choice.  I picked the Lincolnshire variety, for no particular reason, so let’s see how they measure up!

SARCASTIC PARAGRAPH WARNING!  SARCASTIC PARAGRAPH WARNING

In case you were wondering about the unusual brand name, Tesco is a tiny, bespoke, up-and-coming grocery store, that I “believe” only has shops in King’s Lynn AT THE MOMENT.  Maybe with good trading conditions and a fair breeze they’ll open up near to you soon.....

Meat Content:

72%, and they initially taste firm and meaty.  This is a deceptive first impression.  I think the 72% claim must include plenty of back fat, and that’s the kindest I can be.  These are small sausages, the pack is obviously designed to make you think it’s full of big bangers....they’re thin, almost chipolata thin, and what meat content there is is spread as thin as the sausage itself.

Flavour:

Not very much like a Lincolnshire sausage!  Too bland for that description, and I’m sure the Lincolnshire Sausage Appreciation Society would absolutely Do Their Nut if they knew about these pale imitations.  Not spicy enough, not herby enough – it’s like a Diet Lincolnshire sausage.  Lincs Lite.

Texture:

Not completely smooth and flat....but..... identical in every mouthful.  Doesn’t surrender instantly, but it’s not VERY far off being an honorary member of the Italian Tank Regiment.  If you buy them - what a mistake-a to make-a.

Shrinkage: 

Average weight uncooked - 55g

Average weight cooked - 39g

Shrinkage - 28%

28% is a hell of a lot to lose between purchase and eating.  Would you be happy if you bought a bottle of champagne for a special occasion, and when you opened it over a quarter of the bottle had disappeared?  No.  Or you buy a small box of eggs, and find only 4 ½ in the box next breakfast time?  Of course it’s not just these bangers that shrink, they all do, but there’s surely an acceptable level?  I’ve looked at my scoring system (never published or available anywhere) and I think the award of 2 points for a shrinkage of 26-28% is too much.  So if nothing else, these inferior sausages have prompted me to change my ways!

Value For Money:

£1.85 for 8 sausages, weighing 436g - this works out as a price of £4.24 per kg, or 23p per snorker.  A low price to pay for a sausage, you’d think – but these are poor quality sausages.  Even if you take advantage of the “3 for £5” offer, and the price drops to 21p each, it’s still not worth it.  Buy four or five proper butchers’ bangers instead, for the same money.  Avoid!

Opening Hours:

Tesco is open every hour that they think they can liberate more money out of the population.  Allegedly closed (by accident) for five minutes around the time of the first Moon landing (unconfirmed).