Bacon is a mainstay in kitchens around the country as it makes for the perfect sandwich filler, and you really can't make a full English breakfast without it.
But which bacon should you go for? Each supermarket has its own store-branded version and they vary wildly in price, so one must surely be the best.
To figure this out, we bought the entry-level back bacon from Morrisons, Iceland, Co-op, Sainsbury's, Tesco, and Waitrose and rated each one from first to last.
We put each to the test in the most controlled way possible to see which won out, and there was a clear winner.
Ketchup or HP sauce in your bacon sarnie? Let us know in the comments...
To conduct this test fairly, we bought comparable products where possible and put the finished product into a sandwich made with the exact same ingredients.
Unfortunately, Morrisons had run out of unsmoked bacon so that was substituted for a smoked alternative, but other than that difference all the items were no-frills thin-cut back bacon.
Once the sandwiches had been made, we conducted a blind taste test to ensure no previous bias made its way into the final review.
Tesco
Tesco seems like a good place to start this test as they came in bang in the middle of the results.
The bacon was crispy, salty, and just a bit average. There was nothing wrong with it, but nothing especially right either.
It cooked nicely and didn't reduce too much, and at £1.55 a pack, which is £5.17 per kg, it was competitively priced.
I wouldn't be disappointed if I picked up this bacon for a fry up on a weekend, but I wouldn't write home about it either.
Final score, 6/10.
Morrisons
This is the anomaly, as there were no packets of unsmoked bacon left when I went to pick them up and I went for a smoked version instead.
Maybe this is because of how popular the unsmoked bacon is in Morrisons, which would make sense considering how bad the smoked version was.
It was very salty and gave off a strange aftertaste that reminded me somewhat of glue. Here's the strange thing, I actually like smoky bacon so I expected to rank it higher than the rest.
It cost £1.89 for 300g, or £6.30 per kg, it was thoroughly disappointing in both taste and price - but not the worst on our list. Final score, 4/10.
Sainsbury's
For Sainsbury's, I had high hopes. In the packet it looked great, a rich colour, a fine consistency - it looked the real deal, but you can't always judge a book by its cover.
Things started to go downhill after I opened the packet as the rashers were very finely cut. So much so, that they broke up as I tried to unstick one from another.
Not a great start, but from there it was plain sailing - the bacon fried nicely, smelled great, came out crispy and had an even flavour.
It comes out at £1.50 per pack but that's for just eight rashers, weighing in at 250g, making it £6 per kg, so pretty reasonably priced too.
I'd give it a final score of 8/10 - It'd be sharing the top spot on this list if it wasn't for that unsavoury thin cut of the top two rashers, a slight I cannot ignore.
Waitrose
Alright, alright, I know what you're thinking - 'Waitrose comes out on top because it's the most expensive'.
A valid argument, not least of all because Waitrose's option was the most expensive at £2.25, or a whopping £7.50 per kg.
But, despite it's outrageously high price point, it genuinely was the best. It tasted strong without being overpowering and was the perfect accompaniment to buttered bread and a cup of tea.
Final score - 9/10.
Iceland
Oh, how the mighty have fallen. At just £1.25 this one seemed like the cheapest. So much so, that I didn't question it until right now as I was writing this sentence.
But, that was for just 150g, making it an eye-watering £8.33 per kg.
For that, you'd expect it to be good, right? Wrong. The only thing watering more than my eyes was the bacon, which left my pan looked like it was on the soak before I'd finished cooking.
The bacon was bland, boring, lacked texture and was devoid of any taste. Completely pointless.
Final score, 1/10.
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Verdict
With the cost of living squeezing the nation, people will be looking for ways to cut costs while maintaining their quality of life.
With that being said, stay out of Iceland when you're making your next fry up. It's a false economy, you're better off splashing a little bit more cash and freezing whatever you don't cook.
But you should probably stay out of Waitrose too. It was the best, yes, and while it was only slightly more expensive than some you'll probably pick up some Natoora Blood Oranges on your way out and have to remortgage before you get home.
For the best value for money and overall taste, I'd recommend Sainsbury's - it was well priced and tasted great, can't say fairer than that.
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