Northern Catch Chunk Light Tuna Pouches

I always keep a stash of canned tuna in the pantry. My family likes homemade tuna salad sandwiches and grilled cheese and tuna sandwiches. We often enjoy a simple lunch or snack of tuna salad and crackers.

I tend to stick with Aldi’s Northern Catch Sustainably Caught Skipjack Chunk Light Tuna in Water when I’m buying canned tuna. But when we’re on the go, I also sometimes buy some Aldi individual lunch/snack kits that contain a small can of tuna salad and a small pack of crackers.

I also noticed another ready-to-eat tuna option at Aldi: small single-serving pouches of tuna. They come in a few different flavor varieties: Original, Zesty Lemon Pepper, and Sweet and Spicy.

These are ready to serve and require no draining, making them perfect for eating as is, with crackers, on a lettuce salad, or however you like to eat tuna.

Northern Catch Chunk Light Tuna Pouches are Regular Buys. That means they’re at Aldi year round. You’ll find them among the canned tuna and other canned convenience foods like chili and sloppy joe sauce.

We buy Aldi products for review using our own funds. I paid $0.69 for each 2.5-ounce package at the time of writing. That comes out to about 28 cents per ounce.

The tuna in these was wild caught in Thailand in FAO 71, 77, and 61 in the Pacific Ocean. The catch method was purse seine or pole and line. It’s from a Marine Stewardship Council certified sustainable fishery. The tuna is also deemed dolphin safe by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

These are kosher. If you’re looking out for allergens, they naturally contain fish (skipjack tuna).

We tried each tuna flavor alongside Thin Wheat crackers. Our thoughts on each flavor, plus ingredients and nutrition information, are below.

Northern Catch Chunk Light Original Tuna:

Ingredients are skipjack tuna, water, vegetable broth, and salt.

If you want something fairly basic without a lot of added flavor, this is the pouch to go for. It’s a bit plain for our tastes if you’re just eating this with crackers, so we added a little mayo and some finely diced red onion to up the flavor. Some of our family members said they like regular canned tuna with mayo and onion added more than they like this pouch tuna. Your mileage may vary.

One serving (one pouch) has 70 calories, 0.5 grams of total fat (0% DV), no saturated fat, 290 mg of sodium (12% DV), and no carbs, fiber, or sugars. It has 16 grams of protein.

Northern Catch Chunk Light Zesty Lemon Pepper Tuna:

Ingredients are skipjack tuna, water, sugar, salt, black pepper, lemon juice concentrate, citric acid, lemon flavor, vegetable broth, and turmeric.

This has a noticeable lemon scent and flavor. It’s good if you like lemon, but this didn’t really appeal to us and was our least favorite among the flavors.

One pouch has 70 calories, 0.5 grams of total fat (0% DV), no saturated fat, 290 mg of sodium (12% DV), 2 grams of total carbohydrates (1% DV), less than 1 gram of dietary fiber (0% DV), less than 1 gram of total sugars, less than 1 gram of added sugars (0% DV), and 14 grams of protein.

Northern Catch Chunk Light Sweet and Spicy Tuna:

Ingredients are skipjack tuna, water, sugar, onion, red chili, vegetable broth, tomato paste, salt, garlic powder, white vinegar, chili powder, and paprika.

If you want something a little out of the ordinary, I feel like this is the best flavor among the three. It lives up to advertising and has a both a mild sweet flavor and a mild kick. It might not be for everyone, but I liked this one.

One pouch has 90 calories, 0.5 grams of total fat (1% DV), 290 mg of sodium (12% DV), 8 grams of total carbohydrates (3% DV), no dietary fiber, 6 grams of total sugars, 6 grams of added sugars (12% DV), and 12 grams of protein.

The Verdict:

Northern Catch Chunk Light Tuna Pouches are shelf stable and ready to eat, requiring no draining. So, they’re good to take for lunch or a snack on the the go. They come in three flavors: Original, Zesty Lemon Pepper, and Sweet and Spicy. What flavors you prefer may depend on individual preferences. We think the Original is okay, while the Zesty Lemon Pepper was our least favorite. We like the Sweet and Spicy version, which is mildly spicy.