We tested five Aldi cheese and tomato pizzas – from budget frozen options to premium stonebaked sourdough – to find the best value for money
Cheese and tomato pizza remains a favourite dinner choice across the UK. It's quick, easy, and frequently delicious when paired with garlic bread or a fresh salad.
While nobody would dispute that homemade pizza or offerings from an authentic Italian pizzeria reign supreme, supermarkets are now providing some rather impressive alternatives. With this in mind, I set out to test Aldi's cheese and tomato pizzas to determine the best value for money. I sampled five different pizzas, both fresh and frozen, across various price points to establish which delivered the best taste. Here's how they ranked: 5.
Everyday Essentials Cheese & Tomato Pizza, 58p for 114g or 99p for 293g Score: 2/5 Essentially just a bread-heavy pizza base topped with tomato paste and a modest scattering of cheese, this wasn't destined for any accolades. That said, the overall flavour proved satisfactory. The cheese delivered a salty, tangy punch, while the tomato paste offered a pleasant sweetness that provided balance. The primary problem with this pizza lies in the base.
While the flavour is acceptable, the texture disappoints considerably. It's somewhat soggy and evokes memories of school dinner pizza. Overall, it's passable and would likely improve with your own additions, such as ham, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, or perhaps even a drizzle of Marmite. 4. Takeaway Classic Crust The Big Cheese Pizza, £2.49 for 531g Score: 3/5 'Takeaway' perfectly captures this pizza, as it tastes exactly like what you'd pick up from a major takeaway pizza chain.
The sauce was rather sweet, the cheese was so dense it created an impenetrable barrier over the sauce when I removed it from the oven, and the crust was thick and crispy. I had no objection to this pizza, but the flavours were unremarkable. The sweet sauce pairs nicely with the excessively salty cheese, yet beyond the sweet tomato, there were no traces of garlic, basil, or oregano.
The generous cheese layer was enjoyable, but as the pizza cooled, it dried out quickly and took on a cardboard-like consistency. The single element of this pizza that stood out was the crust. It certainly evoked memories of a takeaway pizza crust and had a delightful crunch that would be scrumptious dunked in sauce. 3. Stonebaked Margherita Pizza, £1.99 for 305g Score: 3.5/5 This is typically my preferred pizza.
It bakes in 12 minutes, and it delivers a genuinely pleasant classic margherita taste. The sauce is abundant with herbs and garlic, and the cheese provides satisfying cheese pulls when cooked to perfection. I also appreciate that the tomato sauce extends all the way to the crust's edge, so every slice is packed with flavour. The sole drawback with this one is the base.
While the crust is pleasant, the base can become somewhat soggy, meaning you might find half the toppings slipping off. For this reason, I invariably cook mine slightly longer or at a higher temperature to keep the toppings secure. 2. Specially Selected Mozzarella & Slow Roasted Tomato Wood Fired Sourdough Pizza, £2.89 for 210g Score: 4/5 This pizza is a 'personal pizza', which means it's the perfect size for one.
Coming from Aldi's Specially Selected range, I had high expectations, and it absolutely succeeded in taste. The creamy mozzarella, slow-roasted tomatoes and basil pesto provided a delightful, authentic flavour. The '30-hour slow-fermented dough' base, crafted from '00' flour, had a genuine impact. The texture was crisp rather than bready and featured a char that gave it the impression of being straight from the pizza oven.
The sole disappointment was the quantity of topping; it was minimal. There were sections of the pizza without any cheese and other areas heaped with tomatoes and cheese. This resulted in some bites being excellent while others were rather underwhelming. At £2.89 for a premium individual pizza, I anticipated better, which is why I deducted a point. 1.
Carlos Stonebaked Sourdough Mozzarella Pizza, £2.49 for 355g Score: 4.5/5 I hadn't anticipated this frozen pizza claiming the top spot, but I was genuinely blown away by the flavour, toppings, crust and base. The pizza features a rich, deeply flavourful tomato sauce, creamy mozzarella, a spinach and basil sauce and cubed tomatoes. The sauce had a satisfying, garlicky, herb-laden flavour that I thoroughly enjoyed, while the chopped tomato added an extra dimension of tomato flavour that was absolutely delicious.
The basil and spinach sauce brought a welcome freshness without overwhelming the cheese and tomato. The sourdough base was crispy with a pleasant chew and was seasoned beautifully. The only notable downside was the cooking time. The packaging claims it takes 12 minutes to cook this pizza, yet it took closer to 20 minutes to ensure the cheese had fully melted and the base had properly crisped.
For that reason, I deducted half a point. The verdict On the whole, the frozen Carlos Sourdough Mozzarella Pizza was my clear favourite, and at £2.49, it represented excellent value for money. If you're looking for something a touch more indulgent and don't fancy tackling a large pizza alone, Aldi's Specially Selected Mozzarella and Slow Roasted Tomato Wood Fired Sourdough Pizza is a worthy option.
For those watching the pennies, Aldi's Stonebaked Margherita Pizza for under £2 is simply hard to beat.
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