Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Waitrose Tikka Masala with Chargrilled Vegetables & cashews ultra-processed?

Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Waitrose Tikka Masala with Chargrilled Vegetables & cashews

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 46 ingredients
  • 1 additive
  • Nutri-Score C

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

Cooked pilau rice (water, basmati rice, onion, rapeseed oil, salt, turmeric, cumin seeds, cardamom, cardamom pods, cloves, black peppercorns), vegetables 24% (red pepper, cauliflower, butternut squash, courgette), onion, coconut, tomato paste, cashew nuts, sugar, rapeseed oil, coriander, cashew nuts, garlic purée, ginger, paprika, salt, coriander, turmeric, cumin, coriander seeds, fenugreek leaf, cinnamon, kalonji seeds, clove, chilli, white pepper, bay leaf, ground ginger, colour (paprika extract), nutmeg, cardamom ALLERGY ADVICE, MTA ESPOSO EES NU TY En Wi

Additives: E160c Paprika extract

As written on the pack

Cooked pilau rice (water, basmati rice, onion, rapeseed oil, salt, turmeric, cumin seeds, cardamom, cardamom pods, whole cloves, black peppercorns), vegetables (24%) (red pepper, cauliflower, butternut squash, courgette), onion, coconut extract, tomato paste, cashew nuts, sugar, rapeseed oil, chopped coriander, ground cashew nuts, garlic purée, ginger purée, paprika, salt, ground coriander, turmeric, cumin, crushed coriander seeds, ground fenugreek leaf, cinnamon, kalonji seeds, clove, chilli powder, white pepper, ground bay leaf, ground ginger, colour (paprika extract), nutmeg, cardamom ALLERGY ADVICE: For allergens see ingredients in bold. May contain peanuts, other nuts and sesame MTA ESPOSO EES NU TY En Wi

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
3 ingredients that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000169613740, last edited 27 March 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.