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Original poster

Do people REALLY only eat half a carton of fresh soup?

212 replies

sprigatito · 02/01/2026 20:00

I’m struggling to get my head around this! I’ve seen on MN several times lately that people eat half of a carton for a meal, and I know the calories are given that way on the packaging, so officially it’s a serving…but I’ve never met anyone in real life who doesn’t eat the whole carton! I’ve lost 4.5 stone this year and I eat soup most evenings for dinner. I don’t overeat generally. My soups are mostly homemade, but I do use fresh supermarket ones sometimes, and half a carton really would be a miserable little puddle in the bottom of the bowl! Is it really, honestly normal? And…why?

YABU: half a carton is ample. You’ve lost sight of what a normal bowl of soup looks like
YANBU: nobody actually does that. It’s soup, not golden syrup with extra chunks of pork fat.

OP posts:
TheHateIsNotGood · 02/01/2026 21:18

I voted YABU for calling a carton of soup "fresh soup".

PersephoneParlormaid · 02/01/2026 21:17

I do only eat half, but because it’s so expensive and I want it to do 2 meals.

soupyspoon · 02/01/2026 21:16

BeavisMcTavish · 02/01/2026 21:14

Just gone back and changed my vote, a normal can of Heinz that’s considered two servings is 400g - I’d smash that with bread on top and that barely fits in a bowl.

600g you’re going back for seconds as standard breakfast style bowls aren’t big enough to take that in one go.

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No no no, a tin is one serving.

SophiaSW1 · 02/01/2026 21:16

I have half but with croutons or crackers.

Bigearringsbigsmile · 02/01/2026 21:16

I am a massive porker and I have half a carton covent garden soup for lunch with a slice of bread and some fruit. It fills me up until I go home from work.

Original poster
sprigatito · 02/01/2026 21:15

BeavisMcTavish · 02/01/2026 21:14

Just gone back and changed my vote, a normal can of Heinz that’s considered two servings is 400g - I’d smash that with bread on top and that barely fits in a bowl.

600g you’re going back for seconds as standard breakfast style bowls aren’t big enough to take that in one go.

Show quote history

I don’t serve soup in breakfast bowls, I have earthenware soup bowls that fit 600ml pretty much exactly. I don’t have bread and butter or cheese with it, though.

OP posts:
2026Panther · 02/01/2026 21:15

I can't comment on the fresh cartons but the the fact that a standard tin of soup apparently contains two portions is amusing!

Dishing out half a tin of soup would absolutely be a tiny sad puddle in the bowl. But maybe I'm just a greedy, gluttonous, soup-guzzling pig.

soupyspoon · 02/01/2026 21:15

OneBadKitty · 02/01/2026 21:11

YABU to think a bowl of soup is an evening meal which is why you are confused about half a bowl being listed as a portion.

Half a carton with a couple of slices of bread is fine for lunch, or half a carton a s a starter before an evening meal.

A whole carton of soup just leaves you with a belly full of liquid which sloshes around and then gets absorbed quickly leaving you peckish later on. Not enough protein in many soups to be a meal for me.

Urgh exactly my point on that other thread, the sloshing around, too much wet.

I cant even take in a lot of liquid overall, I struggle to drink enough during the day for the same reason, just cant stand the amount of wet

Having said that, we still have xmas chicken to get through, so its soup all the way for days on end still. Tomorrows is with a red wine gravy base, not sure how that one is going to turn out.

BringBackCatsEyes · 02/01/2026 21:15

1/2 plus bread and butter.

maddiemookins16mum · 02/01/2026 21:15

It’s like those pouches of rice, one is too much for one person yet half is not enough.

BeavisMcTavish · 02/01/2026 21:14

sprigatito · 02/01/2026 20:10

Yes, I mean the 600g ones! I have approximately the same measure of my homemade soup - it looks like a well-filled soup bowl, not excessive.

Show quote history

Just gone back and changed my vote, a normal can of Heinz that’s considered two servings is 400g - I’d smash that with bread on top and that barely fits in a bowl.

600g you’re going back for seconds as standard breakfast style bowls aren’t big enough to take that in one go.

OneBadKitty · 02/01/2026 21:11

YABU to think a bowl of soup is an evening meal which is why you are confused about half a bowl being listed as a portion.

Half a carton with a couple of slices of bread is fine for lunch, or half a carton a s a starter before an evening meal.

A whole carton of soup just leaves you with a belly full of liquid which sloshes around and then gets absorbed quickly leaving you peckish later on. Not enough protein in many soups to be a meal for me.

TheChosenTwo · 02/01/2026 21:10

I’d serve half if I had a carton of soup but I don’t buy it, dd makes it. I have about 3 ladles and am bored after half of it.
I just find soup a really dull meal so generally avoid it as much as possible!
Dh will sometimes buy a carton for lunch and eat the lot with bread too!

liveforsummer · 02/01/2026 21:10

Yea I do but I’d never have a soup carton as a main meal and I don’t have it alone. I usually have half for lunch at work and will have with some toast or crusty bread with cheese, some yogurt, a piece of fruit and maybe some chocolate. I get bored of things quickly and only have half hour break so probably wouldn’t finish a full carton for that reason

MCR24 · 02/01/2026 21:08

I have half but it's because I get bored of the same flavour and texture, by the time I'm half way through I don't want anymore of the same.

LittleMidlander · 02/01/2026 21:07

I’ll have a whole carton but don’t eat bread or anything else with or after it.

MolkosTeenageAngst · 02/01/2026 21:06

I usually only have half a carton of soup at a time, but I have it with loads of bread thick with butter and often cheese as well.

soupyspoon · 02/01/2026 21:06

sprigatito · 02/01/2026 21:03

I’m sorry if I made you feel got at, I wasn’t meaning to be horrible! I’m not sure if your post was one of the ones I saw, there have been several. I’m just still really surprised (and a bit crestfallen, if I’m honest!) that eating a whole carton of soup can be considered excessive. I eat every scrap and I’m still hungry.

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Well I dont feel got at, I was just wondering

In no way did I imply in my post that a carton was excessive, I was trying to help the OP calculate the liquid content of the soup she was wanting to make and was calculating out portions and happened to mention that its either 4x400ml or 4x300ml and use the big cartons as a reference point

Its not excessive if thats the meal you want. Its just soup!!

I personally struggle with large amounts but also I cant take in a lot of liquid which is just me, its fine for others.

And on the salt point raised in other posts, salt is flavour, I use quite a lot of salt in my cooking, salt and fat is flavour.

tealandteal · 02/01/2026 21:06

I think the Covent Garden cardboard cartons are the wrong size. Half is too little but a whole is too much for lunch. I have half of one of the plastic tubs and this is a nice sized bowl.

sakura06 · 02/01/2026 21:05

I tried eating half a carton and was ravenous. The calories aren’t that much for a whole carton either. I tend to have one for lunch with a couple of slices of bread and that gets me through to dinner.

Girasoli · 02/01/2026 21:03

I have half a carton with toast or bread.

HippoandtheScabbyBrats · 02/01/2026 21:03

EatSleepDreamRepeat · 02/01/2026 20:52

@Catwoman8 I've been back down the google rabbit hole for salt. Nearly 3g in a whole carton! I tend to eat weetabix for breakfast and home cooked tea so the odd one with bread would average out less than 6g salt a day. I'll stick to my big flasks of homemade I think 😋

😲 That's a LOT of salt!

Original poster
sprigatito · 02/01/2026 21:03

soupyspoon · 02/01/2026 20:59

Are you talking about my post on the pearl barley soup thread?

I did specify I was talking about the 600ml big cartons and also specified that for me personally I cant take too much liquid so was just talking personally.

Most people would have a tin (400ml) or the covent garden cartons (400ml) in one go

I would go for half the big cartons, its about a mugfull.

You know everyone has different capacities dont you?

I’m sorry if I made you feel got at, I wasn’t meaning to be horrible! I’m not sure if your post was one of the ones I saw, there have been several. I’m just still really surprised (and a bit crestfallen, if I’m honest!) that eating a whole carton of soup can be considered excessive. I eat every scrap and I’m still hungry.

OP posts:
Cnidarian · 02/01/2026 21:02

There are people here who have soup with NO BREAD?! faints

soupyspoon · 02/01/2026 20:59

Are you talking about my post on the pearl barley soup thread?

I did specify I was talking about the 600ml big cartons and also specified that for me personally I cant take too much liquid so was just talking personally.

Most people would have a tin (400ml) or the covent garden cartons (400ml) in one go

I would go for half the big cartons, its about a mugfull.

You know everyone has different capacities dont you?

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