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Sausages are a cornerstone of British cuisine - served in breakfast rolls, alongside mash or chips, nestled in Yorkshire puddings, smothered in gravy, or sizzling on a barbecue. A quality pork sausage should be full of flavour and not overly fatty, boasting high-grade meat, a well-crafted seasoning blend, and a natural casing.

One of the most recognisable brands on the market is Richmond, widely regarded as the top name on supermarket shelves. To put that reputation to the test, editor Sophie Law sampled five different supermarket sausages to see whether they could hold their own against the branded favourite. Enlisting the help of five family members, she carried out a blind taste test pitting sausages from Tesco, Aldi, Lidl, M&S, and Sainsbury's against the well-known Richmond variety.

All sausages were cooked in an air fryer for 10 minutes at 200C, with each participant ranking them from one to five. The combined scores were then tallied to determine an overall winner.

Here are the sausages ranked from worst to best based on the blind taste test:

At the bottom of their taste test was the big-name brand itself: Richmond. Despite holding the title of the nation's leading pork sausage, it failed to win Sophie and her family over on either flavour or texture.

During the blind taste test, the sausages were described as having "no taste or texture," being "very soft and salty," and "tasteless and very rusky."

Score: 12 out of 30

At the second lowest score, Aldi's sausages were noted for having "less flavour" and "not as much taste" when set against the remaining contenders. Despite this, they remain the most affordable of the lot at £2.49 for a pack of six at 400g.

Score: 17 out of 30

Sharing third place is Sainsbury's pork sausages from its Taste the Difference range. Sophie and her family found these to be flavoursome and a decent size, though they did come out noticeably pale in colour compared to the rest. Priced at £3 for a pack of six, that works out at 50p per sausage.

Score: 19 out of 30

M&S' sausages tied for third place alongside Sainsbury's, and while they fared considerably better in terms of colour, they fell short on texture. The sausages were described as "chewy," and "quite fatty", with an "odd taste". At £4.25 for a 400g pack, this was the priciest option in the taste test.

Score: 19 out of 30

Taking second place were Lidl's pork chipolata sausages. These earned praise for their "good colouring" once cooked and performed strongly for their "herby" flavour.

While these chipolatas are slimmer in size, they ranked well for both flavour and texture. At £2.49 for 12 sausages (375g a pack), they also represent good value for money.

Score: 23 out of 30

The overall winner was Tesco's finest pork sausages. These were described as "salty, juicy and meaty" with a great taste and generous size. While slightly pricier at £4 for a pack of four sausages, this option offers the greatest quantity of meat, weighing in at 440g in total.

The sausages are generously sized, making them ideal for hot dogs. Better still, they delivered on flavour, boasting a superb blend of seasoning that was neither too fatty nor overly salty.

Score: 25 out of 30