Dorset Cereals Fruity Porridge €4.05 for 800g €5.06 per kg Highs:There is a very fine line between muesli and plain old porridge, and the people at Dorset Cereals are stomping all over it.

Made with blueberries, cranberries and raisins and packaged in an eco-friendly box, this goes a long way to making porridge sexy. The oats have a nice texture without being excessively chewy, while the dried fruit is surprisingly juicy and filled with flavour.

Lows: It is pricey and posh - two things no porridge should be. We followed the instructions to the letter and were left with thick porridge that might have been a bit too daunting for more delicate folk.

Verdict: Fruity and flavoursome

Star rating: ****

Flahavan's Progress Oatlets

€0.79 for 500g, €1.58 per kg

Highs: If Tayto is the Irish for crisps, then Flavahan's is our word for porridge. It is one of the most traditional products still occupying space on our supermarket shelves, and it probably hasn't changed a whole lot in decades - and nor should it. It is cheap, available pretty much everywhere and makes the perfect porridge. It also scores highly for not using grams and litres in its instructions - instead it uses looser, easy-to-follow, cup-based ratios.

Lows: It might be a bit old-fashioned for some tastes, and the oats are quick to lose their texture if cooked even slightly too long.

Verdict: Old-school and great

Star rating: *****

Bunalun Organic Porridge Oats

€1.66 for 1kg

Highs: This is an organic porridge that, unlike most of the competition, actually has a fairly strong oaty flavour. That may be because the oats are on the large side and there is precious little residual dust left in the bag. It is simple to make - the instructions are based on loose proportions rather than precise measurements.

Lows: It has a cement-like consistency that is a bit too wholesome for PriceWatch's taste. While the bag can be resealed, the seal isn't that great. It is not as widely available as some brands and the price is on the steep side.

Verdict: Nice and wholesome

Star rating: ***

Odlums Smooth & Creamy Oats

€2.99 for 400g, €7.47 per kg

Highs: Odlums is not lying: this is smooth and creamy. It can be ready to eat in less than three minutes and it has a sweetness that might appeal to children, who might not take to the earthier varieties on offer.

Lows: Odlums makes loads of different kinds of porridge, which are good value and taste fine. This, however, is not one of them. In its headlong rush to make porridge easier to prepare, Odlums has made this taste pretty horrible. It is too sweet, too creamy and contains a lot more than just plain old oats. There's glucose syrup, refined coconut oil and five times more saturated fat than some of the other varieties we tested.

Verdict: Fast, dear and sweet

Star rating: **

Tesco Scottish Porridge Oats

€0.67 for 500g, €1.34 per kg

Highs: This bag of oats is really very cheap, and although it looks like something you'd be better off feeding to a horse or, failing that, Oliver Twist, it is surprisingly good. It has a nice smooth texture, cooks very quickly and tastes absolutely fine, proving that it is hard to mess up something as simple as oats.

Lows: Some of the smoothness might be explained by the high volume of oaty dust in the mix. While Tesco should be commended for keeping their porridge oats simple, they really could do something about the bag - it's not easy to open and impossible to reseal.

Verdict: Cheap and cheering

Star rating: ****