When preparing food for a large picnic, first choose a stock that suits the dishes and your guests. Then work out how many cubes you’ll need using the dosage instructions for your chosen product. A large pack is only useful if you’ll use all its cubes; check the flavour, ingredients, allergens and salt content before cooking for a group.
If you’re making starchy dishes or other food to share, compare the number of cubes and the dosage with the amount you plan to prepare. MAGGI packs of 32 cubes and JUMBO packs of 24 cubes are among the products featured by Auchan, but the number of cubes alone won’t tell you how much stock each pack makes.
Before cooking for a group, read the ingredients list, check which allergens are highlighted and look at the nutritional information for the product you’ve chosen. The DGCCRF advises that allergens must be emphasised on the labels of prepacked foods.
Vegetable stock can be used in rice, pasta and vegetable dishes, as suggested by Knorr and Auchan. Always check the exact recipe, though: a ‘vegetable’ flavour doesn’t tell you everything about the ingredients or allergens.
Plan your menu and decide how much you need to make before choosing a pack. Then compare the dosage for each product with the group’s needs, and read the label if the dish is for several guests.
| What to consider | What to check | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| How much you need | The number and weight of the cubes, then the dosage shown for the quantity you plan to make. | If I’m cooking for the whole group, I want enough cubes without mistaking a large pack for a larger quantity of stock. Around 36% of consumers put this need for capacity first. |
| Ingredients and salt | Ingredients, allergens and salt per serving, comparing servings defined in the same way. | When I’m serving a dish to share, I need to know what’s in it before offering it to guests with dietary requirements. Around 29% of consumers prioritise ingredient suitability and salt content. |
| Flavour | Whether it goes with the planned dishes and what the chosen recipe contains. | When I’m making several side dishes, I want a flavour I can use in the planned recipes without changing their character. This is the main priority for around 21% of consumers. |
| Local availability | Whether the product is in stock at your chosen shop or collection point before you finalise the menu. | If my shopping depends on a particular shop, I’d rather check that I can get a suitable recipe there. Around 14% of consumers prioritise this when planning their shopping. |
Two packs may contain cubes of different weights or require different dosages. For the JUMBO chicken stock it lists, Auchan recommends one 10 g cube per litre of soup or boiling water. This guidance doesn’t apply to other products.
Use the instructions on the product you plan to buy and the actual quantity you need to work out how much to use.
Knorr’s reduced-salt vegetable stock lists 1.4 g of salt per serving. You’ll also need to consider the salt in the rest of the dish.
Compare the nutritional information for equivalent servings and take the other ingredients into account when seasoning your dish.
The recipes we looked at don’t all contain the same ingredients. One Knorr vegetable stock lists celery, while the JUMBO prawn-flavoured stock featured by Carrefour lists fish, crustaceans, wheat and soya, among other ingredients.
Ask your guests about any dietary requirements and check the label on the pack you buy, even if you’re already familiar with the brand.
Whether a product is available can depend on the shop or collection method you choose. Lidl also notes that some catalogue offers may not be available in smaller stores.
Check local availability before shopping, and identify another recipe that works with your menu if needed.
Auchan features MAGGI Bouillon Kub Or Classic, a 100% vegetable stock in a pack of 32 cubes, as well as other recipes from the brand.
The range we looked at includes different vegetable stock recipes, including one the brand describes as reduced in salt.
Carrefour’s dehydrated beef stock comes in a pack of 15 cubes weighing 10 g each.
Auchan features dehydrated vegetable-flavoured stock in a pack of 12 cubes weighing 10 g each.
E.Leclerc features Marque Repère RUSTICA cooking stock, with 12 tablets weighing 120 g in total.
The local catalogue can help you plan your shopping before a picnic.
These two products could be used to season dishes for your picnic. Check their dosage and ingredients before working out how much to buy for the group.
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Worth considering for soups, stews or stir-fries if you’re looking for a vegetable recipe. The pack states 120 g; check the number of cubes and their dosage on the packaging before working out how much you’ll need for the group.
If any guests have allergies, check the information about celery and possible traces of egg, milk and gluten.
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Consider this if its herb and olive oil flavour suits your planned dishes, including pasta, rice or vegetables. The pack contains 15 tablets and weighs 150 g.
Before working out how much you’ll make, follow the dosage printed on the pack: the dilution guidance on the product listing is inconsistent. Also check the label for allergens, including wheat, which is listed among the ingredients.
Start with the amount you plan to make and the dosage stated for your chosen product. For the JUMBO chicken stock it lists, Auchan recommends one 10 g cube per litre of soup or boiling water. Don’t automatically apply this dosage to another pack.
No. The flavour alone doesn’t tell you what’s in it or whether it’s suitable for everyone in the group. The Knorr vegetable stock we looked at contains celery, and its reduced-salt version lists other possible allergens. Check the label on the product you buy.
Read the ingredients, allergens, dosage and nutritional information for the product you’ve chosen. For prepacked foods, the DGCCRF says allergens must be emphasised, which makes them easier to spot but doesn’t replace reading the full ingredients list.
No: ‘reduced salt’ doesn’t mean ‘salt-free’. According to the brand, the Knorr vegetable stock version we looked at contains 1.4 g of salt per serving. Compare equivalent servings and take the other ingredients in the dish into account.
No. Also check the storage instructions on each pack and how much you’ll use. The best-before date relates to how long the product retains its qualities. The DGCCRF says that once this date has passed, a product with intact packaging may lose some of its flavour qualities.