What are the best jaffa cakes? Seven brands, ranked

Who knew a bit of sponge, orange jelly and chocolate could be so controversial? In 1991 the bakers at McVitie’s waged war with the taxman, insisting that their Jaffa Cakes were in fact cakes despite looking like biscuits, and therefore exempt from VAT. McVitie’s won, reportedly based on the evidence that Jaffa cakes go hard when stale, like cakes, rather than soft, like biscuits.

But the controversy didn’t end there. Last year scientists undertook some very serious research into Britain’s most dunkable biscuit. Researchers dunked 17 of the country’s most popular biscuits into water at the average temperature of a cup of tea and recorded how long it took for them to fall apart.

I’m not sure McVitie’s was complaining about being included in the biscuit category this time as they came out on top. Jaffa Cakes withstood 116 dunks and survived three minutes and 16 seconds before crumbling. As for the classic digestive? It came last, surviving just six dunks and less than 12 seconds.

I personally prefer to eat my Jaffa cakes without tea. Though did you know that you’re meant to enjoy them chocolate-side down? According to McVitie’s, the chocolate forms the bottom of the biscuit, while the sponge goes on top.

Waitrose Mini

★★★★☆
Waitrose, 125g, £1.50

Nobody wants to eat just one mini Jaffa cake. Waitrose is selling its version in a bag, which makes it all too easy to polish off the whole lot. These are particularly dangerous as they nail the sponge-to-jelly-to-chocolate ratio. A point docked for the size.

M&S Dark Chocolate Orange

★★★★☆
Ocado, 125g, £1.85

A sophisticated choice. M&S has done away with the circle shape and these Jaffa cakes are rectangular, very neat and have a marmalade-esque flavour. Paddington would approve.

McVitie’s The Original Twin Pack

★★★☆☆
Tesco, 244g, £2

Not the light sponge I am looking for. The cake on this is chewy, dry and overpowers any tang from the orange jelly. A nice thick layer of chocolate, though.

Asda

★★★☆☆
Asda, 150g, 95p

Chocolate, sponge and jelly in just about the right proportions. Perfect for the children’s party.

Belmont

★★★☆☆
Aldi, 300g, £1.19

This one has the thickest layer of jelly, which means those artificial orange flavours are turned up to ten. But it’s all Jaffa and no cake — the sponge is barely there.

Tower Gate

★★☆☆☆
Lidl, 300g, £1.15

This is more like a stale biscuit — the sponge is wafer-thin, crunchy and the tangy jelly is uneven. However, the chocolate does have a nice snap.

Tesco Twin Pack

★☆☆☆☆
Tesco, 282g, £1.35

Bleurgh, these taste stale! There’s far too much sponge, which is also crunchy and dry. Pass.