For a secondary school packed lunch, choose a tin that’s the right size for your child’s appetite. Carrefour Extra offers one with a drained weight of 85 g, while Saupiquet sells a 95 g drained-weight tin in a multipack. A plain recipe may have a short ingredients list, but sauces can change the ingredients and sometimes the allergens, so check the label. If the tin isn’t finished, follow the storage instructions for the product you’ve bought.
If your child is expected to finish the tin with their meal, compare the stated quantity with their appetite and the other items in their packed lunch. The 85 g and 95 g drained-weight options from Carrefour and Saupiquet offer useful points of comparison, but they can’t be compared directly with weights that aren’t labelled ‘drained weight’.
Ingredients matter just as much as size if you’re looking for a simple recipe or need to check for allergens. Petit Navire and Auchan each offer a plain option made with mackerel and salt. Carrefour Extra’s product information for its grilled plain recipe, on the other hand, mentions possible traces of mustard and milk.
If plain fillets aren’t to your child’s taste, the ranges we looked at from Saupiquet and the supermarkets also include grilled or sauced recipes. Check the ingredients and quantity for the specific recipe rather than assuming a flavour they like will be available in a small tin.
Start with how much your child is likely to eat, then compare recipes based on their ingredients and your child’s preferences.
| What to consider | What to check | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Just the right amount | Check whether the weight is the net weight or drained weight, then compare the amount served with your child’s appetite. | I want my child to finish the tin with their meal, so I don’t have to store leftovers. Around 46% of consumers would prioritise a portion that leaves no leftovers. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the ingredients list and any may-contain warnings for the exact product, even if it’s labelled ‘plain’. | When I choose a recipe, I want to know exactly which ingredients and allergens it lists. Around 36% of consumers would put checking the ingredients first. |
| Flavour | Start with a flavour your child already enjoys, then check the size and ingredients of that version. | If my child prefers a seasoned recipe, I look for a flavour they’ll enjoy without assuming it’s available in a small tin. Around 18% of consumers would make flavour their main priority. |
The 85 g Carrefour Extra product and the 95 g Saupiquet tin are both labelled with their drained weight. Don’t automatically treat the 110 g shown for Petit Navire or the 120 g for the Auchan product as the same type of measurement.
Check the exact wording on each pack before deciding which size is right for the meal.
Carrefour Extra’s product information for its grilled plain mackerel mentions possible traces of mustard and milk. Mackerel is a fish, too, so the recipe name is no substitute for reading the label.
Check the ingredients and any may-contain warnings on the specific tin you’re planning to buy.
A 169 g recipe, such as E.Leclerc’s ECO+ mustard option, could leave leftovers if your child only eats some of it.
Save a larger size for a shared meal, or for a meal where you can follow the storage instructions on the tin once it’s opened.
If you open a tin and don’t finish it, you’ll need to store the rest and plan another time to eat it.
These products give you some useful points of comparison for size and ingredients. Always check the exact recipe, as details can vary across a range.
The brand offers plain steamed mackerel fillets in a 110 g tin.
The products we found include plain fillets in multipacks of 95 g drained-weight tins, as well as grilled plain fillets in a 120 g tin.
According to Carrefour’s product information, the range includes grilled plain mackerel fillets in a 85 g drained-weight tin.
Auchan offers plain mackerel fillets in a 120 g tin.
Not necessarily. Choose based on your child’s appetite and what else is in their meal. Carrefour lists its grilled plain mackerel at 85 g drained weight, while Auchan’s plain option is labelled 120 g. Check how the weight is measured before comparing the two.
No. The Saupiquet product listed by Carrefour is a multipack of ten separate tins, each with a drained weight of 95 g. You can use one tin for a meal and leave the others sealed.
No. Mackerel doesn’t mean crustaceans are present. Mackerel is a fish; to find out about other ingredients and possible traces, read the information for the exact product, especially if you need to avoid an allergen.
Follow the instructions on the tin you’ve bought. Auchan’s product information for its plain fillets says to refrigerate them and eat them within two days of opening. For Saupiquet’s grilled plain fillets, Auchan’s product information specifies 0 to 4 °C and consumption within 48 hours.