Welcome to this week’s Try Me Tuesday. As a reminder…each week I will grab a new set of products and test them out. I’ll put the Publix brand up against a national brand product and report back.
I know many times I struggle with what brand to choose. Often a sale or a coupon/sale combination make that an easier decision…but what about those times when you need an item and there is not a sale? Do you grab the house brand or pay more and get the national brand? More importantly, is there really a difference in taste?
This week we tried Publix Popcorn.
Publix Light Butter Popcorn, 6pk, $3.59
Serving Size – 1 cup popped
Calories – 20
Total Fat – 0.5g
Sodium – 30mg
Total Carb – 3g
Dietary Fiber – 0g
Sugars – 0g
Ingredients: Popcorn, Palm Oil, Salt, Natural Flavors, Color Added, Rosemary Extract (To Preserve Freshness), Ascorbic Acid (To Preserve Freshness), Butter (Cream, Salt).
Orville Redenbacher’s Light Butter Popcorn, 6 pk, $3.89
Serving Size – 1 cup popped
Calories – 25
Total Fat – 1g
Sodium – 30mg
Total Carb – 4g
Dietary Fiber – 0g
Sugars – 0g
Ingredients: Whole Grain Popping Corn, Palm Oil, Salt, Color Added (Annatto, Turmeric, Paprika), Natural Flavors, Butter, Mixed Tocopherols (Vitamin E for Freshness).
Pop-Secret 94% Fat Free Butter Popcorn, 6pk, $4.59
Serving Size – 1 cup popped
Calories – 20
Total Fat – 0g
Sodium – 45mg
Total Carb – 3g
Dietary Fiber – 0g
Sugars – 0g
Ingredients: Whole Grain Popping Corn, Salt, Palm Oil, Natural Flavors, Annatto, Paprika.
RESULTS
- Publix – 0
- Orville Redenbacher’s – 0
- Pop-Secret – 4
We eat a TON of popcorn at my house so I thought this week we would try something that might actually possibly change my buying habits. To be perfectly honest, I always just grab whatever popcorn is the best deal. We see a bunch of BOGO deals pretty regularly so I am not sure I have ever actually paid full price for a box of popcorn.
So I popped up a bunch of popcorn and put it in bowls for everyone to try. I was very surprised to see that there was a clear winner from a taste standpoint. Everyone in my house chose Pop-Secret as their favorite. I try to avoid looking at the nutritional info until it’s time to type everything up. It was interesting to see that while most of the nutritional info was the same, the Pop-Secret had the highest sodium count. I am guessing that was likely the reason that we chose it.
But in all honesty, the taste difference was negligible. I would be more than happy to kick back and watch a movie with any of the varieties. So, I guess I will stick to my usual habits and grab the popcorn that’s on sale.
So have you tried both? Did you have a preference?
