First off, let me apologise for the photo. The camera ran out of batteries and by the time I came to write this, I had already finished the pudding, so all I had left was the box (thought I’d already taken a photo of the contents, doh). Secondly, I know it’s a while since I did a review, mainly because I haven’t been trying much new stuff.
Tesco’s dessert/cream cake chiller cabinet is a dreadful place if you’re gluten intolerant… But I have found one item that, at least for the time being, is gluten free. They call it “Tesco Silky Sweet Luscious Clotted Cream Rice Pudding” – nobody would guess Tesco is a British company with all that puff for a simple rice pud! Blow their own trumpet? They just went out and got a full one-man-band outfit, from the looks.
So they’ve made a bit of a song and dance about how nice their rice pudding is. And, truthfully, it’s not bad at all, delicious in fact. Very similar to the rice pudding I used to make myself (not that I ever used clotted cream). And whether you heat it up in the microwave or bake it in the oven (a bit nicer), it’s very edible indeed.
This is the ingredients list: Milk, Clotted Cream, Sugar, Rice, Double Cream, Water, Modified Maize Starch, Flavouring, Nutmeg.
And here is the Allergy Advice panel: Contains milk [well, duh]. Recipe: no nuts. Ingredients: Cannot guarantee nut free. Factory: Before being prepared for manufacture of this product, the equipment was previously used to make products containing nuts.
So, the packet I bought was gluten free.
However, this is not a “gluten free product”, which means the recipe may change at any time. You need to check the label if you buy this yourself, to ensure that the rice pudding you are buying is also gluten free. Please remember that manufacturers change recipes all the time without any mention on the front of the pack. The only way to be sure that a mainstream product is gluten free (even if it was gluten free last time you bought it) is to Check the Label of Every Pack, Every Time You Buy!
The price for Tesco Silky Sweet Luscious Clotted Cream Rice Pudding at my local store is £2.15 for 500g. It’s supposed to be for 4 people, but in my view is only enough for 2. However, the pack contains 1060 calories, so it’s a rich and calorie-laden dessert! You could make it an occasional treat, but it’s definitely not something you should include in your diet frequently unless you’re trying to put on weight.
This is a perfect demonstration of something I’ve been telling people for a couple of years, maybe more. Manufacturers change ingredients without warning. Never trust what someone tells you is gluten free without checking for yourself.