Listen up, chocolate lovers… M&S has just unveiled its own take on one of the nation’s favourite snacks, and if you love Maltesers, you’re going to want to hear this.
Launching from tomorrow, 25 March, are the brand-new Milk Chocolate Malt Balls (£2.50 for 120g, landing as part of the ever-popular Pick ‘N’ Marks range. And while they might look familiar, M&S has gone all in on making these feel like a proper upgrade to the original.
We haven’t had a chance to try them just yet, but from what we’ve heard, these are not your standard light coating situation. Each ball is covered in a thick layer of smooth Belgian chocolate that you can actually bite into and savour, rather than it disappearing in seconds. It already sounds richer, more indulgent and just a little more grown-up than the classic version we all know.
Then there’s the centre. The crunchy malt filling has been developed over more than a year, using a bespoke recipe made with malted barley flour to achieve that perfect crisp texture and deep, malty flavour. Expect a satisfying crunch followed by that melt-in-the-mouth finish you want from a really good chocolate snack.
And, after having tried these we can confidently say that these are significantly bigger than your usual malt balls. We're talking at least 25% bigger in size, and almost 3x the weight of a Malteser! In a world where shrinkflation seems to be everywhere, we’re fully on board if that is the case..
Malt is also having a bit of a moment right now, with more brands leaning into those comforting, slightly toasty flavours. We’re big fans here at GH too, often adding it into our cakes and bakes, like our malted milk chocolate chip cookies, so this feels perfectly timed. Also, we think they'd make the perfect addition into our malteser brownies which are generously studded with malt balls throughout..
What to read next
These join M&S’s Pick ‘N’ Marks line-up alongside favourites like Chocolate Beans, Chocolate Peanuts and the very dangerous Chocolate Megamix. And honestly, we can already picture these making their way into the Very Moreish Munch tins.
Something tells us these won’t stay on shelves for long, so if you’re near an M&S tomorrow, you know what to do.
Mel is the Senior Food & Drink Writer for Good Housekeeping UK, covering all the delicious new product launches that come her way, writing about food and drink topics, and curating gift guides for the best foodie products to buy. Alongside that, she can be found developing and creating cocktails for GH and holds her WSET Level 2 in Wine and Spirits. She was part of the Good Housekeeping Institute food testing team for over four years before moving over to the digital side, so knows a thing or two about great food products. You'll find her scouring the supermarket shelves in her spare time for new and exciting ingredients to experiment with in her kitchen.
