Catch of the day (John West Mackerel Fillets)

Member Name: xxcookiexx

Product:	John West Mackerel Fillets
Date:	27/08/09 (241 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap tasty meal, healthy and rich in omega 3, quality chunky fish

Disadvantages: Fishy breath

For the past months or so, I have been on a bit of an economy drive and have been getting a bit fed up with eating potatoes, so after scrounging around the back of the cupboard I found a stock pile of tinned John West Mackerel Fillets (in tomato sauce) along with half a loaf of bread which was on the turn. You don't have to be Gordon Ramsay to figure out this one, but I decided to have Mackerel fillets on toast.

John West Mackerel fillets come in an easy open ring pull type can which means no more trips to the local accident and emergency with bad cuts resulting from the old razor sharp lids and fiddly keys that were sometimes missing. It was always a good laugh watching dad cursing at a can whist trying to open it with a pair of pliers. The only drawback with these ring pull lids are that they sometimes snap off quick at the last seconds and shower you with the contents on the lid; never a good idea with Mackerel fillets unless you want all the cats in the neighbourhood as your best friend next time you go out.

For me there is nothing worse than tucking into a fish meal and discovering a bone; it has you feeling a little apprehensive and unsure as to whether your next mouthful will have another one, it's a bit like discovering egg shell in scrambled egg or in a sandwich. The good news is that I have rarely found a single bone in any of John West's mackerel fillets which seem to be cram packed with just quality chunky fish; apparently there are plenty of 'omegas' in it too which are good for you, but I didn't see any in mine.

The mackerel fillets that I had today contained tomato sauce. The sauce was not too salty and worked well with the fish and made good mopping up with the toast. The quality of the fish doesn't seem to vary from tin to tin, but the amount of sauce does, which is never a big problem because the fish is so tasty that you don't really need a lot of sauce. The texture of the fish is really meaty and doesn't seem to have any nasty bits thrown in just to make up the weight.

There is one particular drawback with eating mackerel fillets and that's the after breath and fishy burps. It's a no brainer really but don't go eating these any time before socialising, going for an interview or going on a date.

All in all, I would definitely buy this particular brand over any other tinned fish as right from the moment that you tip it onto the plate, the meat holds together nice and chunky like a quality steak, with no unsightly bits of skin and bones, and a smell of fresh fish rather than a fishy smell.

Asda have the 125g tins for 93p, they are a little more expensive than a shops own brand, but in my opinion are definitely worth the extra because you are almost guaranteed to receive a quality product.

Each 125g tin contains
203 calories
17.2g protein
13.9g fat (2.8g saturated fats)
2.3g sugar
1g salt
And of course lots of health boosting Omega 3 fish oils.

Summary: A healthy quick and tasty snack/meal full of goodness