This January, Brits are getting savvier with their food shop as new data from Ocado, the UK’s biggest online-only supermarket, shows 70% want to prioritise value without compromising on quality when it comes to groceries.
Enter High-Low shopping – the latest trend that’s sweeping the grocery aisle. Originating in the world of fashion, this consumer behaviour refers to the pairing of a premium item with lower-cost choices to elevate the overall outcome. For time-poor shoppers, it also offers a practical solution, making it easier to build high-quality, great-value meals in one place, without compromising on taste or creativity.
Almost two-thirds (63%) of UK shoppers already follow this approach when food shopping, regularly combining premium and everyday ingredients to elevate otherwise simple meals. This number rises to three-quarters (75%) of young Millennials looking to make the savviest use of their grocery budget.
According to Ocado’s study of 2,000 Brits, ingredients shoppers prefer to splurge on include extra virgin olive oil (35%), butter (34%) and eggs (32%). Premium Tomatoes (24%) also featured highly, as well as honey (21%), whilst proteins topped the overall list with fresh meat (58%) and fresh fish (37%) in first and second place.
On the other end of the spectrum, shoppers are happy to make savings on simple carbs, with pasta (42%), rice and grains (38%) and potatoes (36%) topping the value-focused ingredients list. Sales of Ocado Own Range Basmati Rice are up 46% year on year and Ocado Own Range Fusilli Pasta sales have risen by 63%. Sales of the latter more than doubled (up 110%) between December and January, a time when Brits become more value-focused.
Putting the High in High-Low, many of these premium ingredients have been influenced by social media, including Isle of Wight Tomatoes favoured by chefs like @tylerbutteats and Chris Babe, and Clarence Court Eggs, described by users in this recipe by @_eating_with_emily as ‘perfect’. Searches for Isle of Wight Tomatoes have risen on Ocado by 92% year on year, whilst sales of Clarence Court Leghorn Whites have more than quadrupled year on year, up 456%.
To give shoppers a dose of High-Low inspo this January, Ocado has partnered with home cook Saff Michaelis to release three recipes that splurge on hero ingredients whilst making savvy savings on others. As both a dinner party chef and home cook for a family of three, Saff is an expert in combining the elevated with the everyday. Her recipes include a rich and smoky Nduja Penne with Burrata, hearty Creamy Truffle Mash & Sausages and a deliciously original way to use up a seasonal winter star in a Brussels Sprout Caesar with Crispy Chicken Schnitzel.
Saff has also shared her top tips for High-Low shopping success:
When to splurge:
- Favour Fats: Fats like butter and olive oil impart and carry flavour – so if your fats are of great quality, your flavour will be too. A good olive oil paired with a cheaper garlic will taste better than the other way around, so don’t be afraid to splurge a little here.
- Quality Through Colour: I always invest more in the ingredients that are giving colour and visual appeal to a dish. For example, if I’m making a Caesar salad dressing, I always use great quality eggs with richer coloured yolks, as if I don’t, the dressing could end up looking a little anaemic!
When to save:
- Cost-Effective Carbs: Carbs should never be the most expensive thing on your shopping list. In my experience, cheaper own-brand pasta is often as good or even better than a premium brand, and equally, enough delicious butter or cream can make the humblest potato sing.
- Budget ‘Back-up Dancers’: Ingredients like soffritto mixes, tinned or jarred pulses, and stocks are all back-up dancers to your star ingredient(s). You layer these to create an overall flavour, and therefore each one doesn’t necessarily need to be premium in isolation.
Dan Elton, chief customer officer at Ocado Retail, says: “January has always been a prime time for savvier consumer spending, but we know customers don’t want to feel as though they’re having to make a trade-off between quality and convenience. Customers want to know they can find everything they need in one place, without having to shop around. That’s why at Ocado, we make it easy to combine premium ingredients with great-value everyday staples, all while offering recipe inspiration that shows value-led cooking doesn’t have to be boring.”
From splurging on Isle of Wight Tomatoes to saving on Ocado Own Range Pasta, Ocado’s vast range has something for everyone. Visit www.ocado.com to find out more and check out all three of Saff Michaelis’ High–Low recipes.
