Vanilla

Vanilla pods (costly)
or
Vanilla Essence (less so)

I have not used the latter, though I guess a lot of people do, as supermarket bakery isles always seem to carry stocks of it.

Reading the ingredients list on some of the things which I buy, I see they have gone for both vanilla, and vanilla extract (I assume that is similar product to essence.)

I got to wondering how different they are to the palate.

Of course, you are not going to be tasting them neat are you.

Can you tell the difference in flavour?

Is it variable, the less costly option flavouring some food/drink better than it does other?

Or are the pods always going to deliver (at some cost) a superior taste?

Priscus, there is a big difference, vanilla pods are a far superior flavour, but it depends what your using them for really.

If you are for example using other flavoring in addition to the vanilla, it might not be so noticeable, so you would probably get away with a vanilla essence or extract. Also, you might need to consider if little black specks would be off putting if they are visible in the food.

I have also got some vanilla oil for use in oil burner. It is very tempting to dilute and try the taste, but it carries a warning not to do so! ie not to taste, consume or add to foodstuffs.

I really love vanilla so do not mind the specs. They are very apparent in my favourite chocolate.

My mother always kept a tub of sugar with vanilla pods in, and used the vanilla sugar in baking and the like. Unfortunately not an option for me as I do not add sugar to owt. Only buy it for visitors, as told in recent sugar bowl saga.

Thanks, Jazzy. Tesco appear to have ceased selling Madagascar Vanilla Pods, and Tesco online lists them as not available.

In view of your comment, I will await delivery of these and not buy any essence.

Green and Blacks white chocolate?? Have you tried their Vanilla ice cream

Have you found the sugar bowl yet? My pesky scissors are still missing gggrrrrrrr......

I like this one.

Only tiniest portions. Cannot really have ice cream: restricted calcium diet - kidneys cannot handle it.

Not found sugar bowl. Will buy a replacement when I see one.

Pods are back on the supermarket shelves, so stocked up.

Do not know why they were briefly unavailable, had not heard of any glitch in the supply chain. Maybe just Tesco's buyers could not get them at price they were prepared to offer. (Had also tried Sainsbury, they had not marked them as unavailable: just did not have any on the shelves.)