10 Aldi Foods That Taste Like They're Homemade

There are numerous ways to make store-bought food taste homemade. From doctoring store-bought hummus with a simple step to making store-bought muffins taste fresh with an easy hack, a lot of the items that you buy in-store are pretty adaptable and can be made even more special in no time. It's a little more difficult to find store-bought items that already taste homemade, though — and you'd be forgiven for assuming that Aldi isn't the kind of place that offers them. Aldi's renowned for its affordable prices and unfussy feel, but it's not exactly known for having items that taste as though they came out of your kitchen, and it can feel as though you're sometimes sacrificing quality for cost when you shop there.

That's not entirely the case, though. There are plenty of Aldi foods that taste homemade, and that manage to do so without charging you the earth. What's more, a lot of them are in a section of the store you might not expect: The freezer aisle. From breakfast bowls to cheesecake slices, shepherd's pie to pizza dough, Aldi is chock-full of fresh-tasting items that you may well start buying again and again. Let's take a look at some of your new favorites.

As Aldi items go, its Village PieMaker Strawberry Rhubarb Pie is more expensive than most. This Aldi freezer find costs just under $15, and while that price will get you 3 pounds of pie, we think we can all agree that's a higher price than you might want to pay at the store. We implore you to give it a try, though. The Village PieMaker Strawberry Rhubarb Pie is a thing of beauty, with customers and reviewers alike saying how homemade it tastes. Not just that, but it also looks like the real deal, with a delightfully rustic crust that could have come straight out of your own oven. Plus, its ingredients list is pleasingly straightforward, with the pie containing no artificial flavors, colorings, or preservatives.

You know that a pie tastes fresh when it reminds shoppers of the ones their loved ones used to make — and Village PieMaker's product gets the seal of approval here. "It tastes like my Grammie's. I have missed it so much," said one customer on Reddit. "She used to pick the rhubarb in our garden, then we would pick our own berries, and my mom and Grammie made jams, syrups, strawberry pie, and the best part was the strawberry rhubarb pie with home churned vanilla ice cream on top." Honestly, if it can evoke memories like that, we're sold.

We wouldn't hold it against you if you thought that a frozen breakfast bowl that cost just over $2 wouldn't taste homemade. We wouldn't either. That's why we were so surprised by how impressive Aldi's Breakfast Best Meat Lovers Breakfast Bowl was. This dish has been praised for its homemade feel and flavor, with customers being bowled over by its quality. What stands out here is that Aldi absolutely nails each element. The scrambled eggs manage to be fluffy and perky, it's got a surprisingly good amount of bacon and sausage, and the potatoes are well-cooked without being mushy. It's got a nice amount of cheese, too, and Aldi holds back on the temptation of drowning the bowl in dairy, allowing all of the other elements to shine through.

If you're trying to get more protein into your breakfast, this breakfast bowl is also a great bet. In each bowl, you get 24 grams of protein, enough to cover 44% of your recommended daily value. It is a little high in sodium, so it might not be a meal you want to have every day. However, if you're looking for something that matches a good price with a homemade taste, you're onto a winner here.

It's pretty hard to find supermarket baked goods that taste homemade, folks. Most of the time, the bakery section in grocery stores is full of items that have none of the homespun charm that we all crave from these foods, and instead taste artificial, overly sugary, and a little too perfect. Thankfully, Aldi's Bake Shop Cinnamon Sweet Rolls don't suffer the same fate. These cinnamon rolls (which cost just $3.55 for a pack of eight) have been named as the most homemade-tasting out of all of the supermarket cinnamon roll options out there, and feel plump, soft, and full of cinnamon filling — just like the kind you'd make yourself. Customers have even stated that they've tricked people into believing they were made fresh, which is kinda the highest praise you can get.

Where these cinnamon rolls really nail it is in their ability to remain tender for days after you buy them. Other premade cinnamon rolls can dry out very quickly, turning stale and having an unpleasant bite to them. Aldi's, however, will last a good few days. If you want a serious dose of comfort for a good price, this is the product for you.

Store-bought pasta rarely tastes homemade, and frozen pasta items are even less likely to nail it. That's why it's pretty stunning that Aldi's Priano Hand-Stuffed Shells, which can be found in the freezer aisle, taste as though you made them day-of. Somehow, this dish (which is just $4.99) totally sticks the landing, giving diners perfectly al dente pasta pieces that are full to the brim with cheese. Each shell is nice and chunky, and they cook up in no time at all in the oven. They're flavorful enough that all you need to do is combine them with some tomato sauce and a little extra cheese on top, and you've got yourself a solid weeknight meal.

Clearly, Aldi customers love this product. "I just had the Priano stuffed shells. They were delicious!" Stated one customer on Facebook, in a post that was met with a wave of comments agreeing with them. Other people have pointed out how good its price is relative to its quality. The only problem is that this item, which was once a regular product at the supermarket, is now one of its Aldi Finds. As a result, you're gonna have to wait until the store brings it back around to try it again.

Frozen shepherd's pie isn't one of those things most people expect much from. Those people clearly haven't been to Aldi recently, though. Aldi's Bremer Shepherd's Pie is a sheer delight, and at $7.49 for 30 ounces, it's price-to-portion ratio is more generous than you might expect.

However, we're here to talk about its taste — and we're pleased to tell you that Aldi's shepherd's pie is delightful. Customers are seriously in love with this product, with one person on Reddit saying, "It really tastes like homemade!" Other customers have said that it's practically addictive, with its flavor hitting the spot and highlighting how easy it is to get on the table. We also love that it doesn't go too heavy on the salt: While some shoppers have noted that it needs a little more seasoning, we think that it shows a good amount of restraint on Aldi's part to not flood the dish with sodium, and speaks to the brand's confidence in the quality of this product. Turn the oven on, guys, we're hungry.

Making your own Italian meatballs can be rewarding, but who has the time to whip up their own batch after work on a weekday night? We certainly don't. That's why we're always on the hunt for supermarket versions that taste like the real thing, and Aldi's Mild Italian Style Meatballs definitely deliver. Shoppers have stated that these meatballs taste as good as the fresh kind – not bad for a product that costs under $4. Aldi's meatballs even meet the expectations of fussier customers, who have deemed them worth the money spent on them.

Because these meatballs are mild, they can be used in loads of different ways, and they'll be a crowd-pleaser for kids and adults alike. They're as good combined with a simple pasta sauce as they are thrown into a slow cooker meal, or you can crush them up and throw them on a homemade pizza (perhaps even combining them with Aldi's premade pizza dough). You could even serve them on their own as a starter. Hey, when they're this good, why wouldn't you?

We're not afraid to say it: Store-bought soup can often suck. Most of the time, it's way too salty, and if it's not, it's lacking in any flavor whatsoever. Sure, it's cheap, but it tastes like it — and it's hard to beat the homemade version.

Well, somehow, Aldi manages to do it. Its Park Street Deli Tomato Feta Soup comes in at just over $3 per tub, and for that price, it delivers a nuanced flavor that feels both hearty and light at the same time. It promises a homestyle experience on the label, and it definitely delivers: Customers have raved about it online, with one Facebook user stating: "So yummy, it tastes homemade!" Others have commented on how fantastic its flavor is. Its small feta crumbles give it a pop of saltiness, while the smooth soup pairs excellently with grilled cheese or just your favorite loaf of bread. It doesn't matter how you cook it, either. Even if you put it in the microwave for a couple of minutes, it still comes out tasting as though it just came off the stove. Don't sleep on this soup, guys: You'll regret it if you do.

Tomato sauce is one of those things that's really difficult to get just right, particularly if you're buying it at a store. In the pursuit of making their products taste good, supermarkets pump their marinara sauces full of salt and sugar, and in doing so, remove any of the fresh, tangy flavor that we all crave from this item. Aldi, however, doesn't do the same. Its Specially Selected Premium Marinara is a stunning feat, with multiple folks praising it for tasting fresh and homemade.

Specially Selected Premium Marinara puts its tomato notes front and center. Each bite is fresh and has a nice zing to it, with an undercurrent of garlic and onion that shines through but isn't overwhelming. Lots of people have compared it to Rao's version of marinara, with one Redditor posting an incredibly detailed analysis of the two products before concluding that they may well have exactly the same recipe. We can't speak for how Aldi gets its products, but when an item like this is being compared to a premium option like Rao's sauce, you know that it's doing something right.

Who'd have thought that store-bought pizza dough could taste just like the real thing? We know, we didn't either — but Aldi has managed to pull it off. Its Mama Cozzi Pizza Dough costs just $1.35 per pack, and yet somehow it tastes like you've just whipped it up in your own kitchen. In each pack, you get a pound of dough, which is enough for two smaller pizzas or one big pie. When you get that much with a homemade flavor, and you don't have to spend hours mixing and proofing your own dough, it feels like a winner to us.

We also love how versatile this pizza dough is. Sure, you can use it to make your own 'za, but what about opting for a homemade focaccia? When it's baked with plenty of olive oil and herbs, it comes out crispy, flavorful, and full of air pockets. If you want something a little sweeter, try using it to whip up some cinnamon rolls or knots, or make your own donut holes.

A frozen pack of cheesecake slices that taste homemade ... Now we've seen everything. Well, it's true: This product does exist, and you can find it at Aldi. The retailer's Belmont New York Style Cheesecake has been lauded for its homemade taste, and some customers have gone as far as to say that it's even better than their own cheesecake recipes. They've also stated that it beats the Cheesecake Factory's version — and when a frozen product is acing a restaurant that's made its name on that very product, it must be doing a pretty good job.

Aldi's Belmont New York Style Cheesecake has a nicely balanced flavor, with the product managing to avoid the overt tanginess that a lot of other cakes exhibit. Its crust is tender, and there's a good ratio of crumb to cheesecake. What really sells it to us, though, is the price. This cheesecake costs just over $2 for two slices. When you compare how good it is to how much it costs, it's hard to turn it down.