I was invited along to ASDA’s Summer food and drink launch recently, and had a chance to try out lots of their new products. These are now being rolled out into the shops, so if you see anything you like here then you can pick most of them up today online or from your nearest store.

There’s something for just about everyone, from traditional burger and picnic fans to healthy eaters and vegans this year, and ASDA have created some fun treats for the kids as well. The prices are all very reasonable too, even those more at the luxury end of things, and it’s been interesting to see how well they’ve been able to innovate and keep up with trends.

Let’s start with a few drinks…

They have a really good selection of non-alcoholic drinks at the moment, perfect for sipping in the garden or the park on a sunny afternoon. We tried most of them and our favourites were the ASDA Pina Colada and Mojito mocktails, £1.60 per litre, both cheap and fun, and the Extra Special cordials, £2.00 for 500ml of concentrate. We also liked the Extra Special Non Alcoholic Rhubarb and Ginger Botanical Drink, £15.00, which is a premium style alcohol free spirit in the style of a fruity and spiced gin, something nice to offer to friends who are driving, or who prefer not to drink for other reasons.

We also enjoyed the Extra Special gins, including their colour changing Extra Special Parma Violet gin that goes from purple to pink when you add lemonade or tonic. The other two gins contain edible gold shimmer and silver glitter, and they’d probably all make a nice gift for a gin fan. Not in the shops yet but look out for them.

BBQ food

There were fresh ideas for meat eaters and vegans alike this summer. On the meat front they had Extra Special Waygu Beef Hot Dogs, and an Extra Special Steak Burger that went down well with my guest. There was also a clever ASDA Donut Burger for a new twist. These are a bit wider than standard burgers and have a hole in the middle, so you can either serve them in a bagel, or fill up the middle with relish, cheese or a cooked egg and stick them in a large burger bun.

The veggie and vegan offerings were really good, and I will definitely be going back for more of them. Look out for the Summer Pride Jackfruit, £1.20 per can, which takes on the flavour of sauces and marinades and works well a a substitute for pulled pork in burgers or wraps. They also had some smoky-flavoured red pepper and sweet potato sausages that were delicious, but these don’t seem to have arrived in the stores yet.

Picnic food and tapas

I liked a lot of their food for eating on the go and for sharing, and right now you can get three dishes for £5 in their picnic promotion. Some of them would also make a nice quick ‘al desko’ lunch if you aren’t into making your own packed meal. Favourites included the superfood salad, the goat cheese and caramelised onion in beetroot pastry, and the hummus-stuffed cherry peppers.

Sweet treats

One interesting innovation saw ASDA getting into the lower-calorie ice cream trend with four new flavours. At £2.50 per tub these are half the price of the big brands in the market, and the ‘birthday cake’ flavour turned out to have real chunks of birthday cake in it. We liked the ASDA Peanut Butter Ice Cream from this range.

They also had some new lollies to try, including ASDA 4 Strawberry & Watermelon Sorbet Lollies and ASDA 4 Mango, Pineapple & Coconut Sorbet Lollies, both £1.50 for a box and very light and refreshing. A bit like a strawberry split but with a fruit water ice in the middle rather than ice cream. They’d a good thirst quencher on a hot day or a tasty little mid-week dessert.

We liked the ASDA Extra Special Coconut & Rum Dark Chocolate bar too, £1.50 for 100g. It’s 52% cocoa solids, not bad for a supermarket bar, and has a nice hint of rum and some crunch from the pieces of coconut in it.

Party cakes

There were plenty of cakes to choose from, including many with lots of kid appeal including a Baby Shark cake and this one shaped like a narwhal, both £11.00. Most are madeira cake inside with jam and buttercream fillings. I think they’d be more likely to feed 8 to 12 people than the optimistic 14 slices they state on the packet but they’re still a lot of fun.

We especially liked ASDA’s new healthy eating ranges, and their new drinks, ice lollies and tapas / picnic ideas. Their currently available summer products can be found here if you’d like a browse. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the new ASDA Summer food and drink launches!

Full disclosure: I’m not working with ASDA in any capacity, nor have I worked for them previously. All thoughts and comments are my own.