Cheap Aldi Foods That Customers Say Taste Bad

If there's one thing customers know about Aldi, it's that the chain's product quality often exceeds the low prices. This German supermarket is famously affordable, but it also supplies customers with goods that rival more expensive retailers in taste and calibre. Plenty of their offerings hit the spot, but there are certain items and meals you shouldn't buy at Aldi. Some cheaper foods at Aldi taste exactly how one would expect for the price point, and some are downright inedible.

Sadly, many of these cheaper foods are basics that many people can't go without. Items like Aldi's Reggano pasta or deli meat have been criticized for their standard and poor flavor; as well as being nearly impossible to cook correctly. Others — such as items in its Clancy's snack range — come up short when put next to their more expensive counterparts. Grabbing a bargain doesn't always pay off, and these are the affordable Aldi items that customers should leave on the shelf.

Aldi is normally a good place to stock up on pantry staples, but some of its private-label items should be given a wide berth. Aldi's Reggano pasta range — and particularly its Penne Rigate Pasta – has been widely named as an item to avoid at the store. The main problem is that it can't hold its structure: The pasta falls apart rapidly when cooked, with tubes of penne splitting and unravelling. What's left is a gummy, starchy mass of pasta that tastes terrible, disintegrates into sauce, and lacks bite.

This issue appears to date back to 2024, with customers pointing out that the product's switch to bagged packaging seemed to usher in a recipe change. Since then the penne's not worth buying, and other Reggano pastas suffer the same fate. Rather than opt for the Reggano range, pick a bronze-cut pasta from Aldi's Priano line, which have been praised for their sturdiness and sauce-retaining surfaces.

Aldi's deli meat selection is far more extensive than many might think, and most of it comes at a good price. One of the cheapest options the store stocks is Lunch Mate Family Size Roast Beef, which is substantially less expensive on an ounce-by-ounce than equivalent products at stores like Walmart. The problem here is that you get what you pay for. $6.29 for 14 ounces of roast beef isn't exactly luxurious, and Aldi's offering seriously disappoints on the taste front. Many customers criticize this product for gross texture and a lack of flavor.

Some folks have gone even further and stated that Aldi's roast beef is actively offensive. "My husband buys the roast beef. He asked me to make him a sandwich for work I almost threw up in my mouth," said one person on Reddit. A large part of the problem with this roast beef isn't just the flavor, but the texture, too: According to customers, it's all gristle and slime. Yuck.

Sachets of taco seasoning mix work to give food some flavor, but most home chefs would want that flavor to be balanced. Sadly, it seems Aldi's Casa Mamita Taco Seasoning Mix misses the mark. This taco seasoning is a steal at just $0.55 per pack, but that price nets an overly spicy blend which lacks nuance. Customers used to love this taco seasoning mix, but now that's far from the case. Many have questioned whether Aldi shifted to a new, inferior recipe for the seasoning.

Shoppers have also criticized Casa Mamita Taco Seasoning Mix for its overwhelming saltiness, which masks anything else in the blend — apart from the chili powder, that is. In addition, there's a chance customers may even end up with a bunch of empty sachets. Talk about a waste of money. Shoppers are better off just making taco seasoning from scratch: It's super easy, and way more fun than buying it.

English muffins shouldn't be expensive — especially considering they're made of just a few cheap ingredients. Aldi clearly agrees, and its L'Oven Fresh Plain English Muffins are a steal at just $1.75 for six. However, this is a situation where shoppers might want to pay extra for a little quality. Customers have stated that Aldi's English muffins are terrible, and brand-name versions like Thomas' are far superior. One shopper on Reddit went as far as to call them "disgusting," which feels like a nail in this chewy, grainy coffin.

The biggest issue with L'Oven Fresh Plain English Muffins? Their flavor. Aldi patrons state that these muffins carry an unpleasant sour note, which hardly tickles the taste buds. When considering what goes into English muffins — a fairly simple construction of flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and yeast — it's hard to see where this sourness comes from. We'd rather not stick around to find out.

Vienna sausages are hardly the healthiest canned meat, but most will agree that some brands still have a quality taste. Others, however, leave much to be desired. That's the case with Aldi's Brookdale Vienna Sausages. Expectations aren't high when each can rings up at just $0.85, but customers still prefer to buy their sausages elsewhere; especially considering the Aldi version's poor taste.

The main complaint regarding Brookdale Vienna Sausages is an overwhelming saltiness. This salty note leaves little room for any flavoring nuance, or even the basic taste of meat. Their texture is also rather nasty, with a soggy softness instead of the tense snap that most would expect from a hot dog. All of this adds up to a displeasing canned sausage that pales in comparison to competitor products. Save your Brookdale Vienna Sausages for days when there's literally nothing else to eat — or even better, don't buy them at all, and spend a couple of cents more on a better version.

Those in the know will know to avoid Clancy's Cheese Curls when visiting Aldi. Several Aldi products are cheaper dupes of name brands, and in this case, Clancy's Cheese Curls offer customers a cheaper version of Cheetos. However, shoppers aren't fans as Aldi's Cheese Curls taste noticeably worse than name brand.

It's hard to know where to start with Clancy's Cheese Curls. These chips have virtually no flavor, and some folks state that they taste absolutely nothing like the more expensive brand. This lack of flavor may have been caused by a recipe change, with some customers noticing a decline in quality around the start of 2025.

There's also the question of texture. Multiple customers have noted that Clancy's Cheese Curls have no crispiness or crunch, and don't give the satisfying snap that Cheetos deliver in abundance. When regular Cheetos cost just a dollar or two more than Aldi's product, is it worth saving cash just to buy a vastly inferior product? We don't think so.

If you're after a delicious bowl of chicken Alfredo, make sure to purchase a sauce that isn't in Aldi's Priano range. The retailer's Priano Alfredo sauces have long been criticized for their quality and taste, and its Priano Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce might be the worst of the bunch. This sauce is priced at under $2, but it's not worth even that low price according to customers. "This is the most disgusting sauce ever," said a shopper on Facebook. "It tastes like the smell of sweaty moldy feet & bile." Excuse us while we get a barf bag.

If that description wasn't vivid enough, let's get into a little more detail. Aside from the off-putting cheesy note, Priano Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce also fails on the garlic front. Instead of the smooth, mellow flavors of roasted garlic, it carries a bitter, raw note that's not what's promised on the jar. When considering how easy it is to make Alfredo from scratch, it's difficult to justify wasting money on a poor quality product.

Intensity. Punch. Vibrancy. These are just a few flavors that soy sauce gives to a dish, and most supermarket versions are fairly decent. However, shoppers who are looking for all the fullness that soy sauce can provide should steer clear of Aldi's version. The supermarket's Burman's Soy Sauce is just $1.75 for 15 ounces, but it definitely tastes as cheap as it costs. One customer on Reddit called the soy sauce "watery and tasteless," while another deemed it "garbage."

It's hard to justify Burman's Soy Sauce after such strong criticism, especially when there are many other options available for not much more. Lee Kum Kee, Yamaroku, and Kikkoman soy sauce are all considered excellent options, with the latter being best for everyday use. A bottle of Kikkoman soy sauce costs just over $3 at Walmart for the same volume as the Aldi version. Sometimes cheaper just isn't worth it.

We all know that canned corned beef hash isn't a gourmet product, but it can do in a pinch and serve as the base for a quick and easy breakfast. That said, prepare to be seriously disappointed if opting for Aldi's Brookdale Home Style Corned Beef Hash. Multiple customers compare this product to pet food; stating it has both the look and smell of canned treats for your four-legged friends.

Sadly, it didn't seem to always be this way. Aldi shoppers point out that Brookdale Home Style Corned Beef Hash used to be much better, but an apparent supplier change ruined the recipe and turned it into a cheap-tasting mess. Customers are now met with a product that's mainly fat, with the odd bit of beef here and there. Customers instead recommend Walmart's Great Value Corned Beef Hash, which must hit the spot better than one often compared to dog food.

Canned olives can be seriously hit or miss. If they're good, then they're plump, juicy, salty, and sweet; all at once. When they're bad however, they're mushy and discolored, with an overpowering and strangely industrial taste. Aldi's Tuscan Garden Large Ripe Pitted Black Olives fall into the latter category. These olives — which cost just over $2 for a six-ounce can — have been sharply criticized by customers for their awful flavor and an apparent decline in quality.

Some customer descriptions of this product are fairly vivid. "I tried one and it tasted like straight-up chemicals. Like burnt rubber and latex and like the smell of a helium balloon," stated a shopper on Facebook. "It completely coated my mouth." Both this customer and others have questioned whether there's been a supplier change recently. One Aldi patron identified that may indeed be the case, as newer cans are apparently shipped from a different area in Egypt. It's impossible to tell whether Aldi's will go back to its former supplier any time soon, so these olives are a no-go for now.