Choosing the best ketchup -- and so much more

Last month, we looked at choosing the best mustard. This month, we're examining another popular condiment: ketchup. Ketchup -- or catsup, if you prefer -- is not only one of America's favorite condiments, it's also a product category dominated by just a handful of brands: Heinz, Hunt's and Del Monte. Yet when it comes to choosing the best ketchup, the most popular brand (Heinz) isn't necessarily the most highly rated.

We found comprehensive, multi-ketchup reviews at a several sources: Cook's Illustrated magazine, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the San Francisco Chronicle, as well as Epicurious.com and TheNibble.com. We also found plenty of food for thought at Chowhound.com, where foodies debate the merits of the best ketchup, discuss Heinz organic ketchup versus conventional Heinz, and trade tips on ketchup without high fructose corn syrup.

Heinz is the biggest, but is it the best ketchup?

You might think that Heinz Ketchup, the nation's top ketchup, would squash the competition in professional condiment reviews. However, in all five head-to-head taste tests, Heinz typically finished no better than the middle of the pack. At Epicurious.com, editors tested 20 ketchups -- including big-name condiments like Heinz as well as store brands like America's Choice and smaller labels -- judging them on the basis of taste, visual appeal and flavor consistency. Their top pick, Hunt's Tomato Ketchup, earned a perfect score and won praise for "obvious tomato flavor with a mild tang, and it's not overly sweet." Heinz Ketchup finished third behind Walmart's store brand, America's Choice. 

Hunt's also topped Heinz in a detailed, eight-ketchup test conducted by Cook's Illustrated. Editors loved Hunt's flavor, saying the ketchup tasted "exactly as it should." Interestingly, original Heinz Ketchup finished behind another brand-mate, Heinz Organic Ketchup, which was ranked just behind Hunt's. While the organic Heinz "tastes like ball-park ketchup," editors said, the conventional version was merely "unremarkable." Muir Glen and Annie's Naturals, two other organic ketchups, finish lower.

After reading the Cook's Illustrated article, editors at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Heinz is based in Pittsburgh) decided to assess six brands of ketchup, including Heinz and Hunt's, for themselves. Eight readers were asked to taste Hunt's, Heinz conventional and organic ketchups, as well as two organic brands, Annie's Naturals and Muir Glen, and a local supermarket brand, Giant Eagle. Once again, conventional Heinz was bested by Hunt's, although it's organic version scored highest of all ketchups. 

Interestingly, neither Heinz nor Hunt's was one of the top-ranked ketchups in TheNibble.com's epic test of 32 tomato-based condiments and 10 nontraditional ketchups (made from ingredients such as mushrooms or fruit).  Instead, writer Stephanie Zonis chooses six smaller labels, the best-known of which is Muir Glen Organic Tomato Ketchup. She describes Muir Glen as tasting of "tomatoes, cloves, and cinnamon, with some vinegar aftertaste," noting that it has a higher sodium content than other ketchups she sampled.

Organic ketchups earn praise from pros, foodies

Organic ketchups come in for special scrutiny at a review conducted by editors at the San Francisco Chronicle. In that article, staffers sample seven well-known organic ketchups from Heinz, Muir Glen, Annie's Naturals, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Woodstock Farms and Safeway. Once again, Muir Glen Organic Tomato Ketchup comes up a winner, earning praise for its "good balance of salt, sugar, acid and spice." Trader Joe's organic ketchup finishes second, while Heinz Organic places fifth (""sweet, not very complex,") and Annie's Naturals finishes seventh. Just for kicks, the Chronicle also included two non-organic ketchups, Safeway and Heinz. Conventional Heinz finished dead last.

In addition to these professional reviews, we also decided to see what foodies have to say. The forum discussions at Chowhound.com are always lively (if a bit scattered) and we weren't disappointed by how popular ketchup is as a topic. Heinz Organic Ketchup, which uses sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, was mentioned frequently in all three threads as a favorite condiment. More than one person noted that organic Heinz was better-tasting than the conventional version. A couple users also nominated Muir Glen Organic Ketchup as their favorite, while Trader Joe's and Whole Foods get a nod or two as well.

Our opinion on choosing the best ketchup

If you're looking for a conventional ketchup, Hunt's Tomato Ketchup is the clear favorite. However, if you'd prefer an organic condiment or want a ketchup that doesn't contain high fructose corn syrup, then Heinz Organic is the way to go. However, Muir Glen is a respectable organic alternative.

Want to know more about ketchup?

We found a number of interesting, funny and unusual ketchup resources online. One of the most engaging is a 2004 essay by Malcolm Gladwell that appeared in The New Yorker. In "The Ketchup Conundrum," Gladwell discusses why Heinz has come to define how Americans think of ketchup, and why it's so hard for small ketchup makers to challenge its dominance. He also asks a university researcher to compare Heinz with boutique brand World's Best Ketchup.

The New York Times, meanwhile, delves into why the Heinz ketchup bottle has become so ubiquitous. A fascinating slide show of historical Heinz ads accompanies the report

If you can't get enough of ketchup packaging, then you definitely need to pay a visit to The Original Condiment Package Museum, a website dedicated not just to ketchup, but mustard, mayo and every other condiment package you've ever seen at a restaurant. The original site is gone, but you can find a backup at Archive.org.

Want evem more? Then check out the world's largest ketchup "bottle," a water tower located in Collinsville, Ill., at the former site of a Brooks Catsup plant. It's on the National Register of Historic Places.

Lastly, next time you're looking for a cleaner to clean your tarnished copper or brass, Real Simple magazine suggests using ketchup. Hold the fries, please.