NOW CLOSED: Young's 'Twice a Week Challenge' feedback thread

[AnnMumsnet]

This thread is for the 25 Mumsnetters and their families that are taking part in the Young's "Twice a Week Challenge"

Here's what Young's say about the "Twice a Week Challenge":

"The UK Government's general advice is to eat two portions of fish a week, one of which should be oily, and we'd like to show folks how easy it is to meet this target. Young's has a wide range of delicious fish meals so you needn't get bored of eating the same dishes and there's something that all the family will enjoy".

"Jamie Oliver by Young's has recently launched a frozen-fish range for Young's, championing high-quality and sustainable alternatives to species such as cod and haddock. The range includes MSC-certified fish fingers, crispy fishcakes and little meals created especially with kids in mind all made from Young's responsibly sourced salmon and Pollock and packed with hidden veg and low in salt. What is more, the pollock in Jamie's range is filleted and frozen within hours of being caught, keeping it as fresh and delicious as possible and all the recipes use chunks of fish and not minced fish, so you can be confident knowing you've got a quick and healthy meal on standby whenever you need it"

Below are a few questions for you to answer but please feel free to add any other thoughts or comments you may have.

Please also state which products you tried throughout the "Twice a Week Challenge". Everyone who adds their feedback will be entered into a prize draw to win Jamie Oliver goodies worth £100 - the winner can choose between JO kitchenware to the value of £100 or a £100 voucher for one of Jamie's Italian restaurants (locations nationwide).

Please add your feedback giving overall first impressions at the start of the 2 week challenge period and then answer these questions towards the end of the fortnight. We'd also love to hear how you get on during the challenge and your recipe and meal idea tips.

Thank you and good luck with the prize draw!

Questions to be answered at the start of the challenge

~ How easy generally do you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet?
~ Do you eat frozen fish as well as fresh? If so why? If not why not?

~ What was your overall impression of the Young's range? What did you like? What didn't you like?
~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

Questions to be answered towards end of challenge

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?
~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?
~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?
~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?
~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?
~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

Thanks, MNHQ

Ds is currently having the JO pollock fish fingers for tea in front of the telly .
He pronounces them 'better than normal'. We've had a sneaky bite and they are good. Great breadcrumb coating (Young's seem to do cracking coatings) and nice fish texture, good taste too.

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?
~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

I liked all the products I tried but particularly the bags of cut up fish and the basa fillets - both types. Wasn't that keen on the JO fishcakes - I make fishcakes myself and reckon mine are much nicer

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why? Yes because they were much nicer than I expected and I enjoyed eating them

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not? Definitely changed as the products were good to eat and my family enjoyed them.

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why? Very easy as they were keen to try new things

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not? Yes they were convenient. I usually cook from scratch so it was quite nice to put some frozen fish in the oven - particularly on a busy day

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet? I will try for health reasons and I have got my fish mojo back

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why? Yes because I enjoyed them and they were far better than I expected

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

Yes it is

Sorry for not getting to the final questions until now, I normally post on my phone.
Here goes:

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

We enjoyed the battered haddock the best. I always imagined that frozen battered fish would be really dry, but it was really nice.

Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

We weren't very keen on the pies, we tried 3 types and the only one that was ok was the Ocean pie, but that wasn't anything to write home about either. They were seriously lacking in fish and tasted quite artificial. Definitely think Young's should get back to the drawing board on those.

Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes, we will buy Young's fish fingers again, I was quite impressed with those after eating very cheap ones as a child! I think paying a bit more is definitely worth it!

If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

The things which we manged to find and buy didn't alter my view of frozen fish much as it was mostly 'convenience' food that we bought as our local large Tesco didn't seem to stock anything very interesting and exciting like the gastro range :( But I have been impressed with the range which is apparently available in the rest of the country, from reading others posts on this thread. If I ever see the Basa fillets anywhere, I will be buying them!!

How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

It was quite easy, although DH missed meat too much, so I still don't think we'll eat it more than once a week now that the challenge has finished. He is the one who cooks, so he does make most of the decisions on what we eat day to day.

How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

As I said before, we could only find the convenience type meals, so fairly convenient! However, we thought the pies took a long time to cook in the oven, 50 mins! As DH pointed out, you could make a real fish pie for that and it would be a lot nicer and actually have some fish in it!
One thing I was impressed with on the JO fishcakes was that there were seperate cooking instructions for fan ovens which was great and so much better than the 'adjust according to manufacturers instructions' that you normally get

Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

No, as I said before, DH likes meat too much (I know, I know, I have tried to persuade him that fish is a meat but he's not having any of it ), so I think we can manage once a week.

If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

As others have said, I'm not sure why it would come up in conversation! I don't think I would recommend the range as a whole, but if someone mentioned specific products, I would give my opinion on them.

Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?
Yes, it has been nice to discover that I can't actually tell the difference between cod, haddock and pollock, so will avoid cod from now on!

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?
DH and myself both agreed the Basa fillets with salt and black pepper were the best. DD liked the JO fish fingers.

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?
We tried the Youngs chip shop fillets but found the fish not very nice and also they were very greasy too which was dissapointed.

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?
Yes I will be buying the Basa fillets and also the JO fish fingers too. :)

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
I did eat frozen fish before trying the youngs range, but by doing this test it has opened my eyes to a whole range of other fish to try as well.

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?
I found it easy to introduce the fish into my family as on the whole we do eat fish anyways, this test has encouraged us to try other product we would not normally have tried.

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?
I found all the fish I tried easy to prepare, they were no quicker than the normal fish I usually buy but easy all the same.

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?
Yes I think we will definatly be eating 2+ portions of fish per week from now on.

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?
I would definatly recommend the Youngs/ JO range to friends as there is a lot of choice and also items in the range you would not usually try.

~ Is sustainability important when you're choosing meals to feed your family?
Yes it is important because if we do not catch fish in a sustainable way there might not be enough for future generations or when my DD get older, so if I can do something to ensure this then I will.

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?
DS liked the "CHip Shop" fish best, "because it's got better fish in it than a fish finger" I liked the frozen "White fish" because it has no additives and was easy to cook from frozen..
~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?
I wouldn't buy the frozen prawns with real money; they were fine, but too expensive for everyday eating. USing the vouchers they were a real treat for me.
~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why? Yes, but I will try the Sainsburys equivalents as they seem cheaper on average, and look out for what is on offer.
~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not? Used to eat occasionally, will try to eat more often now.
~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why? Tricky, because DH is genuinely allergic to all fish and seafood, so can only have fish when he is not around.

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not? About the same or easier, I generally cook from scratch then freeze, so it's harder than the gwt out of the freezer days, harder than the cook from scratch days.
~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet? Yes, we will try, we've got some vouchers still to use, I hope it will get us in the habit.
~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? No more or less than any other eg Supermarkets own, or Birds Eye. Why? There's not difference really.
~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family? Yes, but I tend not to believe what it says on the packet anyway.

Thanks, MNHQ

Have not forgotten this.... Need to interview Dh again as he ate some more fish last week but I was in bed. Also am cooking again tomorrow with some cod in parsley sauce so will film that and then will post the camera and answer the final questions.

Just as an addendum tried the JO Crispy Salmon and Pollock fishcakes (2 pack) with hit of lemon, parsley and kick of chilli, with boiled spuds, swede, carrots and salad.

DS tried it but the chilli was too overpowering for my delicate little flower, he did try another bit that wasn't too spicy but wasn't too keen to continue.

DP thought they were much better than the four pack version - a LOT larger and tastier.

I thought they were what fishcakes ought to be about tasty, nice chunks of fish, love the parsley, very crispy, decent size - only needing one each. The packaging was good cause you could actually see what you were getting, luckily we can recycle plastics round here. The only negative I could see was that I could understand what DS was on about in that some mouthfuls were very powerfully chillified and others none at all.

I may even get them again for when we have fishfinger teas, DS can have the fishfingers and DP and I can have these. Hopefully it will fit in with his ethos of only cooking one meal at teatimes

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

Our favourite product was the Gourmet range Basa Fillets with Lemon & Herb. The fish was soft, light & very tasty. The tempura batter was lovely - thin but crispy. The lemon & herb taste was just right - not so overpowering as to spoil the taste of the basa but strong enough to taste. We will definitely buy this again.

Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

DH & DS1 did not like the Fishermans Pie. They agreed that there was not enough fish content to truly call it a fish pie - it was more a mixture of processed mash & a fish flavoured sauce. We would not buy it again. Of the other products tried, we enjoyed them all .

Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

We would definitely buy the Gourmet range basa fillets again, they are delicious. We would also buy the Chip Shop range cod fillets in crispy batter & the haddock fillets in Kingsmill breadcrumbs as they tasted better are were of a better quality than other brands we have tried in the past. We would probably not buy Youngs fish fingers regularly as my DCs noticed no difference in taste between them & their regular, cheaper, brands.

If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

In the past, frozen fish products we have tried have been less tasty & have had more of a "mushy" consistency to them than fresh fish. Yes, on the whole I have to say we have been very pleasantly surprised by the Youngs products we have tried. The flavour has been good and the texture/consistency much better than we have previously tried.

How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

My DCs were fairly sceptical of any fish product other than fish fingers, the type of fishcakes you get at the chip shop (which contain minimal fish) & tinned tuna in a sandwich. DH thought that he was "not a huge fan" of frozen fish. The DCs have tried & liked the JO fishcakes with cheddar cheese & sweetcorn, the Chip Shop range cod fishcakes (which seem to contain a lot more fish than actual chip shop fishcakes) & the Flipper Dippers. DH loved the basa fillets with lemon & herb and is looking forward to trying the sea salt & pepper version. All in all, taking part in the Youngs trial seems to have increased the family's willingness to try new things, which can only be a good thing .

I will come back & answer the last four questions in a short while, when I have put DD to bed .

BTW, when I say Gourmet range, I mean Gastro .

OK, so for the last 4 questions....

How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

I wouldn't necessarily say quicker, but certainly easier. There is very minimal preparation involved in sliding something from a box onto a baking tray .

Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

In the immediate future, definitely, especially as I still have a freezer drawer full of Youngs fish . The trial has opened our eyes to new products that we have enjoyed so, yes, realistically we probably will be eating fish more often now.

If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

Yes, if it were to come up in conversation, because we have enjoyed most of the products we have tried. I would especially recommend the basa fillets (and have done already).

Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

Yes. We cannot simply continue to consume like mad without thinking about the consequences for future generations.

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

We loved the basa fillets! The calamari was great, Loved the fish pieces made a great fish pie. Wasn't too struck on fishcakes bit tasteless for our liking
.
~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

Fishcakes jamie oliver salmon ones were a bit bland. Jumbo scampi great normal scampi was a bit watery

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes definitely the fish pieces really loved them for fish pie

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

Have always bought fresh fish for fish pie and making fishcakes would definitely use frozen fish now

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

If its covered in breadcrumbs and batter they will always give it a go!!! However they even sampled the fish pie and said it was alright and I can make it for them again but not too often!

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

It was all about the same

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

Twice might be difficult for the kids but I will definitely be eating fish more often

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

Yes definitely the basa fillets and fish pieces were a definite hit

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

I would like to think it is but realistically I don't give it as much thought as I could

we have tried 2 more fishy meals.

1. Low fat Admiral's crumble

dd refused to try this and I was not keen as it smelt very strongly. I did not like the texture of the fish, crumble & butter sauce.

1. Gastro range Florentine Crusted Alaskan Pollock fillets

I wasn't sure about these as the description sounded a bit fancy & complicated (pollock fillets topped with Gruyere cheese and spinach, finished with a crunchy cheddar cheese & wholegrain mustard breadcrumb crust) however I was pleasantly surprised. all the different flavours and textures worked really well together. looking forward to the 2nd fillet and will definately be buying these again. dd even showed an interest although declined to taste it!

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

I really liked the Basa fillets with sea salt & pepper and am looking forward to trying the tempura ones at some point. I also enjoyed the Gastro Pollock fillets and we will be trying more of the fishcakes. dd really liked the JO fish fingers and has asked when she can have them again which is unusual for her to request fish.

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

JO crispy salmon fishcakes - quite dry when cooked but might try them again
Salmon Fillet Dinner - watery sauce and dry fish
Low fat Admiral's crumble - didn't like the texture of the whole meal

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

yes, have been pleasantly surprised at the range of fish available as previously only bought fish fingers

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

we only ate fish fingers before the trial but am looking forward to fish being a more regular part of our diet

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

fairly difficult as dd seems quite reluctant to try anything other than fish fingers but I will persevere and hopefully she will become more adventureous. it still isn't an automatic option for me to include fish when meal planning but I am trying to change this

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

quite convenient. I preferred cooking the fish in the main oven to grilling as I always seem to burn fish fingers under the grill (trying to do too many things at once!)

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

we will definately be having fish at least once a week and will try for twice

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

yes, in fact have already recommended the Gastro Basa fillets

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

yes but I don't always have time to think about it when doing the weekly shop

forgot to say thank you for giving us the opportunity to take part in this test

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

Loved the gastro lemon fillets. A special treat at a good price. DD loved the salmon JO fish pie and I have found a love for fish pie that I never knew existed! They are prefect for a quick lunchtime meal when working and better than crisps and chocolate on the run!!!

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

The frozen salmon pieces were tough and not enjoyed. May use them in a homemade fish pie but not ImPressed by them really.
~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes definitely and have done since spending the vouchers! As I said the fish pies are great for when I'm too busy to eat and DH really likes the jO pollock fish cakes.

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

Yes. I like the frozen cod, perfect for my weaning child and the cod in parsley sauce is great also. The haddock fish shop style was delicious also. I like knowing I can buy it and have it in the freezer for convenience.

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

Well DS aged 11 did try bless him but he is a non fish eater for sure. I was actually impressed how well myself and DS and DD adapted to fish and I think the youngest bonkerz children prefer fish to meat!!!

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

I found all the fish meals to be super fast to cook! So fast I struggled to cook the veg and potatoes at same time!

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

Definitely!! I think fish may be a regular meal addition from now on!!

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

Yes for sure. I was impressed with the range and also after reading up on the sustainability I was happy to do my bit!!

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

It wasn't if I'm honest. I would have only ever bought cod as its all I knew (deep fried and covered in batter) but I'm happy to buy haddock and pollock now!

Thanks for giving me the chance to try something I thought was a waste of time for my family and for changing our diet for the better!!

Just to add camera all bagged up
To be sent tomorrow

Ooh I tried the Florentine Crusted Alaskan Pollock fillets as well tonight. Really lovely

I meant to say thank you for this opportunity to take past in this

Did a mini taste test tonight had some JO fishfingers left over and mixed them with some Sainsbo basics (emergency stash) ones.

Would you adam and eve it, both DS and DP reckon they liked the Sainsbos one's better "cause the coating is darker and crispier (ie orange )".

Head+wall=bang

Have already done feedback above but wanted to post feedback on the Gastro Basa fillets with sea salt and cracked black pepper which we had for the first time last night (still finishing the last of the vouchers!) - these were delicious and a generous size - we'd certainly buy them again :). We've really enjoyed trying new things and eating more fish - thank you for the opportunity!

Questions to be answered at the start of the challenge

~ How easy generally do you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet?
Usually not very easy at all - which explains the serious absence of fish in our diet

~ Do you eat frozen fish as well as fresh? If so why? If not why not?

We eat frozen if we and when we do eat it. No fresh as I just find it abit scary to cook.

~ What was your overall impression of the Young's range? What did you like? What didn't you like?

Overall impression was quite mixed; DD (Aged 3) loved the fish pies and DH enjoyed the mariners pie but I wasnt so keen. I liked the gastra meal very much, the other bits not so much because they just felt too "ready mealy."

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

er, not really.

Questions to be answered towards end of challenge

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

DD (3) loved the fish pies and I will continue to buy her these. I tried making one with the youngs frozen fish fillets and she said its yucky and that she liked the other one better! I will most definitely be buying the gastro meal again; the fish was delicious, not too fishy (just the way I like it), we all ate it up with mash and veggies. Really delicious. The scampi was mine and DH's second favourite. I really did not like the scottish kippers as it was just fishy for me. DH usually loves any fishy fish, but wasn't a huge fan of this. Although perhaps that had something to do with the way he cooked it rather than the actual fish itself.

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

answered above. Also, wasn't a huge fan of the extra large fish cakes. DD refused to eat it, and it tasted very bland and abit dry.

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes, I would buy our favourites again without a doubt. Firstly as its an easy way of getting fish in us, and secondly because we did enjoy eating it! Very easy to cook (just throw it in the oven!), and most days we dont have the time to cook (Im full time postgrad student with DH working long hours six days a week, in the middle of a house selling/buying and a DD prone to tantrums!). Youngs fish pies have filled DD's belly many nights where she point blank refused to eat my hastily thrown together meals

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

Hmmm, this is a tricky one because we didn't eat much fish at all before, so my opinions of frozen fish are quite positive.

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

Well, incredibly easy, alot easier than I thought! All I had to do was buy it from the supermarket, throw it in the oven, and put in on the table. How much easier can it get?!

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

HA! Very very convenient indeed

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

ooh, I would love to say yes, but I don't know if I can do twice a week. DD will certainly have her pies often. Actually cooking it from scratch might still be a issue, although it is alot less scary - and I might attempt it when things are abit less manic around here.

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

Yes, I've already reccomended it to my sister who also has a fussy eater DD, because I know shes just as hopeless at cooking fish as I am!

~ Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?

That question again - really, it should be, but honestly speaking, me and my family eating ANYTHING throughout our jam packed day takes precedence!

hope that helps and thanks for the opportunity

Would like to add that I found a packet of cooked, peeled prawns in the freezer that I forgot about!!
They were good and I will def buy them again for instant lunches.

2nd part of feedback

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

Jaime Olivers fishcakes with chilli - popular with the kids, not very spicy at all but still also liked by the adults

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

Did not like the scampi rings, just did not go down well, found them v strong and had to throw a nearly full bag away

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes i will buy the Jaime Oliver fishcake

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

I felt before it was unhealthy, loads of breaded products mimicking the fish and chip shop tea. I think now i can see as a frozen quick meal they can be quite healthy.

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

Easy, the children liked it a lot more than i expected and the fishcakes taste quite mild.

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

Very convenient to cook, fast food really. Quicker than fresh fish to prepare.

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

Once a week.

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

I would recommend some of there products as nice tasting and convenient.

~ Is sustainability important when you're choosing meals to feed your family?

Yes very, as is animal welfare.

~ Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?

The JO fish pie, haddock ones, as Dd (who is 5) found them really tasty and loved the creamy sauce

~ Which didn't you / your family like? Why?

The JO fish pie with peas in - my daughter really struggled to eat the peas, which she normally will eat happily, but there seemed to be more peas than fish

~ Would you buy Young's products again? Why?

Yes, certainly. The Chip Shop fillets were lovely and a really good size

~ If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

My concept of frozen fish has altered. Im happy to buy other products than just fish fingers now, and know that DP and the children will eat them happily

~ How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?

Children, fine - as they are happy to try things once or twice, and DP will eat any thing but I do worry about not cooking fresh every meal and frozen fish seems like its "conveinence" rather than fresh

~ How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?

the frozen fish portions, cod, haddock etc were very good in the fish pie and very tasty. Would def use again over buying fresh fish from fish counter as I trust these products are nice, and wont poison me!

~ Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?

Yes, we have eaten double the amount of fish we used to since this challenge

~ If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?

yes as the fish pies are lovely and so easy, serving with some fresh green veg and its a lovely dinner to serve up for hungry little ones, I have told my friends about these!

~ Is sustainability important when you're choosing meals to feed your family?

yes, I would like to feel responcible and as guilt free as possible about my shopping choices whilst also being realistic about cost and budget choices

Seeems my original feedback (for the second part) did not post for some reason, so here we go...

We bought the following products

Fresh products- Prawns, Lightly dusted Basa Fillets, Seafood sticks

Frozen poducts- JO fish fingers, JOfish cakes (all varieties available in a four pack), JO little ones fish pies (the pollock one and the salmon one). Youngs prawns, scampi, cod fillets, haddock fillets, fish in parsley sauce, fish in butter sauce and omega 3 fish fingers.

Out of the products you tried, which did you / your family like best? Why?
We really liked all the products we tried. I was suprised at the quality of the pre prepared childrens fish pies. They looked nice, smelt good and tasted delicious. Good size pieces of fish, and plenty of it. I liked the ingredients too and felt happy giving them to my children. We have actually bought them again since as they are really good on nights when they need a quick healthy meal after swimming during the week. They loved them and couldnt eat them quick enough! We also loved the Basa fillets (these we from the chiller, but the only store I found these in was Morrisons). I thought these were good value for money, they were a good size and tasted really good. My son said "You have to get these again mum!" and we have :)

Which didn't you / your family like? Why?
The only product I was not so keen on was the seafood sticks. They were a bit rubbery and over fishy (if that makes sense!). My sons again liked them though. I found them a bit better if broken up and put into a sandwich with salad, to dilute the taste a little.

Would you buy Young's products again? Why?
Definately! I have bought the occasional pack of frozen fish fillets in the past that I had used for fish pies and also the odd pack of prawns. I had never bought anything prepared (eg the JO little ones pies, fish fingers, fish in sauce) as was always concerned that the quality would be poor. I have been so suprised at how good it all was. It has meant that we are all eating more fish, 3 0r 4 times a week. I use prawns now instead of meat in curries I make.

If you didn't eat frozen fish before, have your opinions of frozen fish changed at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
As I said above, I was always worried that the quality would not be so good. I have seen that this is not the case and have enjoyed (with the slight exception of the seafood sticks ) all the things we have tried.

How easy / difficult did you find it to introduce fish into your family's diet? Why?
Not a problem at all. We all love fish, but our problem was we didnt eat enough as I was concerned that we did not have enough time to prpare it.

How convenient did you find the meals? Were they quicker than how you usually cook fish meals? If so, why? If not, why not?
Very convienient. The plain cod or haddock fish fillets I found really useful as they were there to use whenever I needed, no risk of them going off if I didnt cook them on they day I planned. The other products I found really good. The instructions were correct and the food cooked to how we liked it.

Going forward, do you think you will try to include fish at least twice a week in your families' diet?
Yes and we are eating it more like 3 or 4 times a week now :)

If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Young's range to your friends? Why?
Yes, good quality, easy to prepare and tastes good. I especially liked the childrens JO food and have already recommended these products to a friend who agreed they were good! :)

Is sustainability important when you?re choosing meals to feed your family?
Yes, because I would like to think that we can eat well without damaging the environment. However, I find the information in the media confusing and conflicting on this subject esp with the latest debate on limits of cod etc that can be caught vs the amount of cod thrown back and wasted. I did like the info that was included on the packs we bought.

I would like to say a really big thank you for opportunity for my family to take part in this product test. We all really enjoyed it. Appologies again for the late feedback, but as I said, it seems my original feedback did not seem to register on the thread.

Thanks very much for all the feedback - much appreciated!
marmitemad has been selected at random as the winner of the Jamie Oliver vouchers or kitchenware - I will email you now.
Watch out for the video coming soon(ish)
thanks. Ann