Choose tiger bread if you want its distinctive crust to stand out on the buffet; choose a wholemeal option if the type of bread and fibre content matter to your guests. If you’re mainly looking for a different kind of bread to make a feature of your bread basket, compare artisan loaves or sourdough too: a tiger crust doesn’t make a loaf premium in itself. Before you buy, check the ingredients of the option you’ve chosen, as well as your local store’s opening hours and range.
You want to serve bread with toppings, dips or soup, and are wondering whether the tiger crust will give it the look you’re after. If a more distinctive type of bread matters more, you could also compare sourdough or an indulgent artisan loaf; Albert Heijn and ALDI offer these alternatives alongside tiger bread.
You want to keep the tiger crust but don’t want to serve only white bread. Check that the option you’ve chosen is actually labelled as wholemeal, and compare the stated fibre content per 100 g.
If your guests need to avoid wheat, gluten or other ingredients, the name tiger bread doesn’t tell you enough. Read the ingredients and allergen information, and check for any ‘may contain’ warnings on each loaf you buy.
First decide whether you want a tiger crust or would rather serve a different type of bread. Then check the type of bread and the ingredients of the specific option.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Appearance and type of bread | Compare the tiger crust with an artisan loaf or sourdough, and choose a size that suits your buffet. | For my celebratory bread basket, I want to make a considered choice between the distinctive tiger crust and a different type of bread. Presentation is the top priority for around 40% of consumers. |
| Type of bread and fibre | Check whether the bread is labelled as wholemeal, and compare the fibre per 100 g shown on the packaging. | If I also want to offer wholemeal tiger bread, I don’t want to judge it by its brown colour. The type of bread and fibre content are the top priority for around 30% of consumers. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the ingredients and ‘may contain’ warnings for the option you’ve chosen; check the ingredients list for baker’s salt if that’s relevant to your choice. | If my guests have dietary restrictions, I want to know what’s in the bread and which ‘may contain’ warnings apply. Around 30% of consumers make this their top priority. |
The name tiger bread describes the crust, not a separate premium range. Albert Heijn and ALDI offer sourdough or indulgent artisan loaves as alternative types of bread.
Decide which type of bread you want to serve and compare the options individually, rather than judging by the word ‘premium’.
The colour and the name boeren-tijgerbrood don’t tell you whether an option is wholemeal. Jumbo states that its Boeren Tijger Volkoren contains 7.3 g of fibre per 100 g; that figure doesn’t automatically apply to other tiger breads.
Read the product description and compare the nutritional information per 100 g on the packaging of the option you’re buying.
PLUS lists wheat, soya and milk among the ingredients of its Korenlanders Boeren tijger wit. Ingredients and ‘may contain’ warnings can vary from product to product.
Check each loaf you choose individually. If you need a gluten-free option, choose a product explicitly labelled as gluten-free and keep it separate from bread containing gluten when serving.
Bank holiday opening hours and the fresh range can vary from store to store. Lidl notes that its fresh range isn’t the same in every store.
Shortly before 26 December, check your local store’s opening hours and whether it has the bread you want. If you’d rather buy it earlier, follow the storage advice for the option you’ve chosen.
Albert Heijn offers AH Tijger volkoren heel, as well as OerDesem as a separate sourdough option.
Jumbo offers white, brown and wholemeal boeren-tijgerbroden.
PLUS offers, among other options, Korenlanders Boeren tijger wit heel and Volkoren tijger heel.
ALDI offers boeren-tijgerbrood and separate indulgent artisan loaves in its fresh daily bread range.
Lidl is worth considering if you’re looking for freshly baked bread rolls shortly before your buffet.
Dirk offers Bakker van der Akker Boeren tijger wit heel as a white tiger bread option.
Don’t assume it is: the tiger breads from Jumbo and PLUS mentioned here contain wheat. For that guest, check for a product explicitly labelled as gluten-free and keep it separate from bread containing gluten when serving.
For packaged bread, check the ingredients list for the option you’ve chosen, or ask the baker. The fact that another tiger bread lists baker’s salt tells you nothing about the bread you’re buying.
You can, as long as the storage advice for the option you’ve chosen allows it. PLUS says you can freeze its Volkoren tijger heel on the day of purchase and should use it within one month; check the storage advice for other breads.
Check both with your local store before you set off. Lidl says adjusted bank holiday opening hours can be checked through its store finder from seven days in advance, and that its fresh range can vary from store to store.
