With spring picnics and footy finals on the horizon, sausage rolls – one of the pinnacles of frozen celebration foods – are in order. But with up to a dozen varieties in your local supermarket freezer, it’s hard to make an informed choice.
I rounded up six friends (plus a couple of kids) with discerning frozen-food palates: people who love a sausage roll and see it as a culinary staple, whether it comes from the servo or a bakery, and parents used to baking them in a pinch for dinner or for a crowd at birthday parties.
We agreed that a good sausage roll is all about a flaky and crispy exterior; a soft, meaty interior; and a decent meat-to-pastry ratio. With those qualities in mind, we then set about taste-testing 10 varieties from Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and independent grocers.
Participants were given a score sheet that de-identified each brand, and the sausage rolls were numbered and served in stages, as they were ready, to ensure no cross-brand confusion. All the sausage rolls were cooked according to packet instructions – most in the oven, though one variety specified microwave cooking and another an air fryer.
All testers felt the oven-baked rolls needed a longer cook time. Meanwhile the roll made for air-frying had a superior crispiness, and testers were pleasantly surprised that the microwavable variety was not at all compromised in texture.
Best overall
National Pies Large Sausage Roll, 150g, $2.85 ($1.90 per 100g), available at Woolworths
Score: 8.5/10
This Tasmanian-made and owned variety, which I’d never seen prior to this testing, scored the highest because of its crisp exterior and evenly textured sausage-like filling. Though only made up of 20% beef, testers still labelled it “awesome”, the “most bakery-like” and “best flavoured”. It was praised for its overall “balance”, and its “perfect, flaky casing”. Score sheets also commended its mouthfeel and “good smell”.
Best value
Coles Frozen Party Sausage Rolls 24 Pack, 900g, $9 ($1 per 100g), available at Coles
Score: 6.7/10
Although these sausage rolls were the favourite among our child tasters, the grown-ups were less impressed. One said they were a good standard roll, others described them as “quite generic”, “average” and “yummy but not amazing”. These sausage rolls had the highest beef percentage by far at 39%, and scored well on their inside texture and meatiness, though some testers felt the filling tasted fatty. Their crust, on the other hand, was “bland”. I have to agree with the adults here. These were the highest scoring home brand rolls, particularly for their texture, but the flavour was safe and basic. They’re exactly what I’d expect at a kids’ party – hitting the right notes without any surprises.
The rest
Strength Meals Co High Protein Sausage Roll, 1kg, $11 ($1.10 per 100g), available at major supermarkets
Score: 8/10
Despite their high score, these rolls were divisive. One tester said they had a “sawdust-like interior”, while others commended them for tasting like “actual sausage” and having the “boldest meat taste”. I suspect their air fryer-only instructions played a part, because their exterior was universally praised for its buttery taste and “yummy crunchiness”. They also scored points for being the thickest of the lot. Made up of 26% meat – less than the Coles variety but more than the winner – testers felt they did not “taste cheap”, though one found the flavour “too busy”, and several remarked on their dryness. A note for the protein buffs: while each serve had 26g of protein, it also had 36g of fat, which was a similar fat percentage to other varieties that didn’t have as much protein per serve.
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Herbert Adams King Island Beef Sausage Rolls 12 pack, 420g, $11 ($2.10 per 100g) available at major supermarkets
Score: 7.4/10
One of the most expensive varieties in our test, these certainly looked the part. Their delicate, buttery pastry was decorated with little incisions that gave off homemade pastry vibes. They could “easily be a staple”, according to one tester, who found them tasty and, less positively, “serviceable”. But the consensus among the group was that, like the prettiest mean girl in a teen movie, their outside was way better than their inside. Meanwhile, their filling was “busy” and a little too “fancy” (with only 19% beef). One person said they had a bad aftertaste, and everyone said they needed more cooking time.
Mrs Mac’s Microwave Sausage Roll, 175g, $3.50 ($2 per 100g), available at major supermarkets
Score: 7.2/10
I was reluctant to include a microwave variety in the taste test, but decided to go with it for the simple reason that Mrs Mac’s is an iconic sausage roll maker, and this variety was their only available offering at the supermarkets I visited. I also thought it would make for an interesting conversation when I revealed how they were cooked. Testers were duly surprised: they didn’t come out soggy in the slightest. Instead, they were praised for their “crisp texture”, tasty but “not overly flavourful” interior (made up of 21% beef), and an excellent meat-to-pastry ratio.
Liz & Betty Pork and Fennel Sausage Rolls, 420g, $9.90 ($2.36 per 100g), available at Coles and select grocers
Score: 5.6/10
I wrongly assumed these would be my favourites, as I was immediately struck by their sesame seed-studded crust, which looked like it would be crispy on first bite then melt in your mouth a moment later. But I felt let down by their over-seasoned interior. Although made up of 25% pork, testers said the inside was “too mushy” or “too squishy”, with an overwhelming fennel flavour that somewhat complicated its taste.
Patties Party Sausage Rolls 12 Pack, 450g, $9.70 ($2.16 per 100g), available at major supermarkets
Score: 4.9/10
My kids and I like Patties’ party pies because we think their crust and filling are both very good, so I was looking forward to trying their sausage rolls. Yet the crew – young and old alike – were near unanimous in their last-place verdict, marking them low on first bite texture, “bland” flavour and aftertaste. The kids were a little less specific but a lot more efficient: one simply wrote YUCK in capital letters, a case they did not utilise for any other product.
Products cut for brevity:
Elmsbury Party Sausage Rolls 6.2/10
Woolworths Party Sausage Rolls 5.25/10
Four N Twenty Party Sausage Rolls 5.2/10
