One spoon pouch rice with sardines or tuna and peas
A microwave pouch of rice, a ring-pull tin of fish and a handful of frozen peas. Five minutes, one bowl and around 30g of protein.
1 out of 5 spoons
This is what I make when there’s almost nothing left in the tank. It’s barely cooking: a pouch of rice, a tin of fish and some frozen peas, all done in one bowl in the microwave. It’s still a proper meal with plenty of protein, and everything in it keeps for months in the cupboard or freezer, so it’s there on the days you can’t get to the shops. Sardines in tomato sauce bring their own sauce; tuna wants a splash of soy sauce or a squeeze of mayo.
At a glance
| Spoons | 1 out of 5 |
|---|---|
| Standing time | about 5 minutes |
| Hands-off time | about 3 minutes in the microwave |
| Washing up | one bowl and one fork |
| Makes | 1 portion |
| Cost per portion | roughly £1.30 (sardines) or £1.35 (tuna with soy sauce) |
| Protein per portion | roughly 30g (sardines) or 35g (tuna) |
| Freezes | no, make it fresh |
| Gluten free | yes, if you skip the soy sauce or use tamari |
The pouch says it serves two, but as a whole meal I eat the lot.
Why it’s low spoon
- No chopping, no hob, no oven. Just the microwave.
- Ring-pull tins, so no tin opener. Check the tin before you buy, as most own-brand sardines and tuna have one.
- One bowl and one fork to wash.
- No fresh ingredients, so nothing goes off before you get round to it.
Ingredients
Prices are Sainsbury’s online prices at the time of posting.
The base
- 1 × 250g pouch of microwave basmati rice (Sainsbury’s microwave rice basmati, 55p)
- a big handful of frozen peas, about 80g (Sainsbury’s garden peas, £2.80 for 1.81kg, so about 12p)
The fish
Either:
- 1 × 120g tin of sardines in tomato sauce (Sainsbury’s, 60p)
Or:
- 1 × 145g tin of tuna chunks in spring water (Sainsbury’s, 65p)
- a splash of soy sauce, or a squeeze of mayo or sriracha
Optional extras
- black pepper or chilli flakes
- a squeeze of lemon juice from a bottle
Method
- Tip the peas into a microwaveable bowl with a splash of water. Squeeze the rice pouch to break up the grains, then tip the rice on top of the peas.
- Cover loosely with a microwave cover or a sheet of kitchen paper and microwave on full power for 3 minutes (800W), until everything is piping hot. Give it a stir halfway if you can, but it’s not essential.
- Open the tin.
- Sardines: tip the whole lot, sauce and all, over the rice and break them up with your fork.
- Tuna: drain it over the sink (pressing the lid down onto the tuna squeezes out most of the water), fork it over the rice and add your soy sauce or mayo.
- If you like the fish warm, put the bowl back in for 30 to 60 seconds. Otherwise, eat it as it is.
Storing leftovers
This is best eaten straight away. Cooked rice needs a bit of care: if you don’t finish it, cool it and get it into the fridge within an hour, eat it within a day and only reheat it once, until piping hot.
A note on salt
Most of the salt comes from the tinned fish and the soy sauce. If you’ve been advised to increase your salt intake for POTS, a bit of extra soy sauce or a pinch of salt is an easy win. If you need to limit salt, choose fish in spring water, skip the soy sauce and use pepper, chilli or lemon instead.
Things to know
- Sustainability: I’ve moved away from mackerel because stocks are under pressure. Sardines are generally a better choice. For tuna, look for MSC certified or pole and line caught on the label.
- Sardine bones: they’re soft enough to eat without noticing and are a good source of calcium. Boneless sardines exist but cost more.
- Tuna and pregnancy: the NHS advises that if you’re pregnant you have no more than 4 medium-sized tins of tuna a week, because of mercury.
- Oily fish: sardines count towards your oily fish for the week; tinned tuna doesn’t.
- Gluten: standard soy sauce contains wheat. Tamari is usually gluten free, but check the label.