“11 Foods I Think Are Actually Worth Spending More On”
I don’t believe every ingredient in the weekly shop needs to be the fanciest version available. There are plenty of things where the basics do the job perfectly well, especially at a shop like Waitrose. But there are also certain foods I’ll happily spend a little more on: good cheese, properly sourced fish, a ready meal that actually feels like dinner and, apparently, potatoes involving Wagyu beef.
In Partnership With Waitrose
That’s where the Waitrose No.1 range comes in. Designed for the bits of the food shop where taste really matters, it combines old favourites with a new crop of products landing this autumn – and selected No.1 products are currently 20% off. From truffle and Parmigiano Reggiano butter-stuffed chicken to a king prawn linguine for the nights when cooking feels wildly ambitious, these are the seven I’d have on my radar.
1. Truffle buttered chicken
When it comes to chicken, I want something that feels like more than a weeknight default. This butterflied breast is stuffed with truffle and Parmigiano Reggiano butter, which means the flavour is already built in. All you need to add is some dressed leaves or roast vegetables. It’s the sort of low-effort dinner I’d happily serve when people come over.
2. Strained & thick Greek yoghurt
Not all yoghurt is created equal. Strained natural Greek is the version I’ll always spend a little more on. Thick, simple and versatile enough to work with fruit and granola in the morning or a spoonful alongside something savoury at dinner.
3. Crunchy & chewy sourdough
Good bread is perhaps the easiest upgrade to justify, and sourdough is the loaf I’ll always choose. This white version has the right balance of chew and tang, ideal for thick slices of toast, alongside soup or simply torn into while dinner is still cooking.
4. Ready-to-serve paté
For entertaining, smoked salmon is hard to beat. This pâté takes all the good things about it – richness, saltiness, that faintly smoky depth – and turns it into something you can put on the table with crackers, cornichons and very little else. Minimal intervention, maximum reward.
5. Pizza topped with Calabrian heat
A freezer pizza has to be good enough that I actively choose it over ordering one. This sourdough-based version, topped with spicy Calabrian salami, is exactly the sort of thing I’d want tucked away for the nights when cooking isn’t happening: proper heat, proper base, no compromise.
6. Properly aged Parmigiano Reggiano
Parmesan is firmly on my list of ingredients where quality matters, particularly when you’re using so little of it. This one has been matured for 30 months, which gives it that deeper, more crystalline flavour. Grate it generously over pasta, shave it onto salads or break it into chunks for the table.
7. Potatoes dressed in Wagyu
Roast potatoes are rarely the place to exercise restraint, and these take that idea one step further. Coated in Wagyu beef flavour, they’re the freezer shortcut I’d reach for when a Sunday roast or dinner with friends needs to feel a bit more ambitious without another hour in the kitchen.
Whenever I shop at Waitrose, it’s always the No. 1 range that calls to me. The selection is hard to pass up.
8. Small but mighty blueberries
Blueberries are the least obvious luxury on this list, but also one of the easiest to work into everyday life. These speciality ones are the sort I’d pile over yoghurt and granola, bake into something at the weekend or, more realistically, eat straight from the punnet before they make it anywhere near a recipe.
9. Gently smoked cheddar
Of all the cheeses worth making space for on a board, a good smoked cheddar is the one I’d choose. This Silver Fox has enough substance to hold its own among the crackers and cornichons, and enough character to keep people picking at it long after dinner is technically over.
10. Wild-caught salmon
When I’m buying salmon for the week, sockeye is the one I look for. It’s firmer, deeper in colour and more flavourful than the paler varieties, which means it works just as well roasted simply with vegetables as it does flaked through a herby salad or made the centre of a weekend dinner.
11. Plump & sweet Prawns
King prawns are the seafood I’ll always choose over the smaller, less generous alternative. In this linguine, they’re paired with tomato for a bowl of pasta that feels properly composed rather than thrown together, ideal for the evenings when you want dinner without the chopping, simmering and washing up.
20% off ends 27/10/2026
