Need to know
- The best tasting tinned tomato in our test – Mutti Polpa Chopped Tomatoes Organic – was also the most expensive
- Three supermarket brand products (two from Coles and one from Community Co) were the other products to earn a recommendation
- Woolworths Australian Diced tomatoes was the best product made from Australian tomatoes
Tinned tomatoes are a pantry staple that most home cooks will reach for at least once a week.
But with so many options at our supermarkets, it can be tricky to choose the right one. Are Australian- or Italian-grown tomatoes best? Is it worth paying more for organic varieties? Are budget options just as good as more expensive products?
To help make the decision a little easier, we conducted a blind taste test of 18 diced or chopped tomatoes to find out which tastes best.
On this page:
- Top tinned tomatoes in our test
- Cheapest tomatoes in our test
- Most expensive tinned tomatoes in our test
- Best Australian varieties
- Organic options
- Additives in tinned tomatoes
- How we test tinned tomatoes
- Our expert testers
Top tinned tomatoes in our test
Of the 18 chopped or diced tinned tomatoes included in our blind taste test, four received a CHOICE Expert Rating of 75% or more, earning them recommended status.
Supermarket brands gave a good showing, with two of the recommended products coming from Coles (one a home brand, one from Coles phantom brand, Cucina Matese) and one from IGA's Community Co brand. Mutti Polpa Organic – the most expensive product in our test – took the top spot.
The Mutti Polpa Chopped Tomatoes Organic product earned the highest rating in our test, with a score of 80%.
Mutti Polpa Chopped Tomatoes Organic
CHOICE Expert Rating: 80%
Price per 400g tin: $2.95
Experts say: "Rich red colour, chunky texture, thick juice. Pleasant flavour. Good consistency." "Thick sauce, luxe texture, rich, vibrant, tomatoey flavour and beautifully balanced."
The Coles Cucina Matese Diced Tomatoes was the second highest scoring product, earning a CHOICE Expert Rating of 76%.
Coles Cucina Matese Diced Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 76%
Price per 400g tin: $1.40
Experts say: "Pleasant tomato aroma." "Balanced sweet and acidic taste." "Good, smooth consistency. Well-rounded, balanced flavour."
Equal third were two supermarket brand products: Community Co Italian Diced Tomatoes and Coles Italian Diced Tomatoes.
Coles Italian Diced Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 75%
Price per 400g tin: $1.10
Experts say: "Pleasant appearance, nice, juicy consistency." "Fresh, tomatoey aroma." "Perfect for soups and chunky pasta sauces."
Community Co Italian Diced Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 75%
Price per 400g tin: $1.30
Experts say: "Bright red colour, fresh tomatoey smell." "More saucy/liquidy (so perhaps better for soups, pasta sauces). Clean, fresh, tomatoey flavour."
Cheapest tomatoes in our test
Our tests often show that price is not always an indicator of performance and that's the case here. While the most expensive product in our test came out on top, some of the least expensive earned good scores.
For example, the Coles Italian Diced tomatoes was equal third-cheapest, but ranked joint third and were recommended.
But unfortunately, there were also a lot of cheap products that underwhelmed our testers – including the three cheapest in our test (excluding the Coles product mentioned above which costs the same as the Woolworths product in this list).
Aldi Remano Italian Diced Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 58%
Price per 400g tin: $0.95
Experts say: "A bit watery, slightly bitter and acidic." "Slightly metallic, with limited flavour." "Pale colour, thin juice, slightly sour/bitter taste."
Black & Gold Chopped Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 48%
Price per 400g tin: $0.95
Experts say: "Very watery with a mild aroma." "Bitter, sour flavour." "Lots of discoloured green/yellow pieces."
Woolworths Diced Italian Tomatoes
CHOICE Expert Rating: 63%
Price per 400g tin: $1.10
Experts say: "Flavour sour and bitter." "Lots of green, large chunks." Limited tomato flavour and tomatoes taste under-ripe." Very acidic and bitter taste."
Most expensive tinned tomatoes in our test
While the most expensive product in our test came out on top, some of the other pricier varieties didn't score so well and were beaten by much more budget-friendly brands.
- Mutti Polpa Finely Chopped tomatoes – $2.30 per 400g tin; CHOICE Expert Rating: 69%
- Val Verde Diced Italian tomatoes – $2.90 per 400g tin; 68%
- Coles Certified Organic Italian Diced tomatoes –$1.70 per 400g tin; 64%
- Woolworths Macro Wholefoods Market Organic Diced tomatoes – $1.70 per 400g tin; 73%
- Aldi Remano Italian Diced tomatoes Organic – $1.59 per 400g tin; 65%
The highest scoring Australian product in our test was the Woolworths Australian Diced Tomatoes, which earned a score of 73%,
Best Australian varieties
While 13 of the 18 samples we tested were produced in Italy, the largest global exporter of canned tomatoes, we also included five locally produced varieties in our test.
Woolworths Australian Diced Tomatoes ($1.30 per 400g tin) was the best of the bunch, with a score of 73%. Leggo's Australian Diced Tomatoes ($1.80) was fairly close behind with a score of 71%.
The Coles ($1.30) and Ardmona ($2.10) Australian Diced Tomatoes both earned 67%.
Aldi's Remano Australian Diced Tomatoes were the cheapest of the Australian products at $1.19 per 400g tin, but earned just 54% in our taste test.
Organic options
If you prefer to buy organic, you're in luck: it was an organic product – the Mutti Polpa Chopped Tomatoes Organic – that took out the top spot in our taste test.
We also tested organic varieties from Coles, Woolworths and Aldi. The Coles and Aldi organic products failed to impress, but the Woolworths Macro Wholefoods Market Organic Diced Italian Tomatoes ($1.70) received a score of 73% – falling just short of the recommended mark.
Additives in tinned tomatoes
Diced tomatoes and juice were the most common ingredients in the products we sampled. Six products contained nothing else, while the Mutti Polpa Finely Chopped Tomatoes contained only tomatoes and no juice, though it did contain salt. Leggo's Australian Diced Tomatoes was the only other product containing added salt.
Acidity regulators
Nine of the products contained citric acid or another unspecified acidity regulator. Acidity regulators are added to tinned tomatoes to lower pH levels, helping to preserve the product and extend shelf life. They can also be used to balance flavour and help stop the natural red colour of the tomatoes from fading to brown.
Firming agent
A firming agent – calcium chloride – was added to three products: Coles Australian Diced Tomatoes, Aldi Remano Australian Diced Tomatoes and Woolworths Australian Diced Tomatoes.
Firming agents help products retain their shape and texture to stop them from becoming mushy during the canning process. Calcium chloride also helps to retain pH levels, extend shelf life and reduce bacterial activity.
How we test tinned tomatoes
Products
We included products labelled as tinned or chopped tomatoes, excluding crushed and whole options. We chose products that are available nationally through at least one major supermarket chain.
Tasting
Our experts tasted the samples blind (without knowing the brands) in a randomised order and rated the tomatoes on taste, texture, aroma and appearance.
Scores
The ratings each product received were based on the scores for each aspect of the judging. The results were weighted as follows:
Flavour: 40%Texture: 20%Appearance: 20%Aroma: 20%
We recommend products with a rating of 75% or more.
Our expert taste testers (L to R): Jane Bardell, Pru Engel, Chantelle Dart and Fiona Mair.
Our expert testers
Fiona Mair is part of our CHOICE kitchen lab team and has a degree in home economics and dietary supervision. She also conducts and judges food taste tests and is a judge for the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show.
Jane Bardell produces content for our CHOICE insurance team, but also knows a thing or two about food, being an avid cook and baker. She holds a statement of attainment in sensory analyses for fine food judging.
Chantelle Dart is another member of our CHOICE kitchen lab team whose expertise extends beyond her knowledge of our real-world cooking tests, having studied food technology, hospitality, business administration and event management.
Pru Engel is the CHOICE audience and engagement editor and has enjoyed a long career working on some of Australia's leading food magazines, where she honed her expertise in identifying quality ingredients and cooking with them.
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Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
