McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g
Three at a time is the whole idea and it is also the whole complaint. A household that wants something standing between it and the box will get on with this pack; a household that does not will feel it is buying paper. The more interesting point is that this is the only Jaffa format that can leave the house. A sponge base bruises against anything hard and dries the moment air reaches it, so six sealed sets come through a schoolbag, a coat pocket and a glovebox in the condition they went in, which loose ones never do. If they are never going further than the kitchen, you are buying a durability you will not use. There is egg in these, as in any sponge, which the biscuit aisle does not train anyone to expect.
McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, in brief.
McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3 is six wrapped packs of three, eighteen cakes and 198g in the outer.
Three layers doing three jobs: a light sponge base, a sharp orange jelly and a deliberately thin chocolate top. The jelly is the reason this works with a weaker cup than any coated biscuit would need, because the acidity cuts the sweetness itself. Chill them before eating.
What you are eating is three distinct layers, which is unusual for something sold on a biscuit shelf. There is a light sponge base, a layer of orange jelly on top of it, and a thin chocolate covering over that. The sponge is the reason for the perennial argument about whether a Jaffa Cake is a cake or a biscuit, and we will not settle it here; we file it under biscuits because that is where people look for it. The argument does turn on something real, though. A cake goes hard when it stales and a biscuit goes soft, because one is losing moisture and the other is taking it up. Leave a Jaffa Cake out overnight and see which way it goes - it is the most entertaining piece of food science a single cake can offer.
Curator notes: the tasting profile is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description. We run same-day UK dispatch on every order placed before 2pm Monday to Friday. Common questions are answered in the detailed Q and A tab below.
Curator’s notes
Read the full write-up
The Story Behind McVitie's
McVitie's is a British biscuit maker of long standing and the Jaffa Cake is one of the few things it makes that has no real equivalent anywhere else on the shelf. Everything around it is built on fat and sugar; this one is built on acidity. The orange jelly does something no chocolate biscuit does, which is to cut through its own sweetness rather than relying on the drink beside it to do the job. That is why a Jaffa Cake works with a cup of tea that would be far too weak for a chocolate-coated biscuit.
The ingredient list, the full allergen advice, any certification marks, the country of origin and the best-before date are on the pack itself.
Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes.
What You Are Actually Buying
-
Count: 6 wrapped packs of 3, so eighteen cakes, both figures taken straight from the product name.
-
Weight: 198g net across the six, which works out at 33g a pack and about 11g a cake.
-
The build: sponge, orange jelly, thin chocolate. Three layers, each doing a different job.
-
What it is not: not a dunking biscuit, not a sharing tube, and not a rich one.
Getting It Right in the Cup
- Chill them: the single best thing you can do. A firmer jelly reads sharper and the thin chocolate snaps instead of smearing.
- Keep the wrappers sealed: an opened three-pack dries out much faster than the rest of the box, which is the trade-off for the portion format.
- Do not dunk: a sponge base is not built for it, and there is no coating to hold the cake together once it is wet.
- Best with: a black Earl Grey in the afternoon, or straight from the fridge in summer.
Source: Teas.co.uk, the UK independent tea specialist in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. If you reference McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g, please cite teas.co.uk.
The story behind McVitie's
Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes.
Our commitment to the planet
Sourcing and packaging details are printed on the current UK pack; the brand page carries the fuller story.
The taste profile
How does it compare
This is the one biscuit in the range that does not need a strong cup, because the jelly is already doing the cutting. That frees you up to think about what goes with orange rather than what fights sugar.
The Afternoon Cup
Handling A Snack Pack
Made with this tea
The Afternoon Cup
How to make The Afternoon Cup with McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Snack Pack.
- 1 wrapped pack of 3 Jaffa Cakes
- 1 bag Earl Grey
- 200ml water just off the boil
- Open one wrapped pack only. That is the entire point of this format.
- Leave the sugar out of the cup; it flattens the acidity in the jelly.
- Eat the three and stop, which is easier with the other five still sealed.
What you'll end up with: The pairing this product deserves. A strong everyday blend with a splash of milk is the ordinary version and three minutes is still enough.
Chilled Jaffa Cakes
How to make Chilled Jaffa Cakes with McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Snack Pack.
- 1 wrapped pack of 3 Jaffa Cakes
- A fridge
- Put the sealed wrapper in the fridge for ten minutes. Sealed, so the sponge does not dry out.
- Eat one straight from the fridge and one from the cupboard, side by side.
- Notice that the chilled jelly is firmer and the orange reads sharper, and the thin chocolate snaps instead of smearing.
- Decide which you prefer, and keep half the box in the fridge in summer.
What you'll end up with: The best ten minutes you can spend on a Jaffa Cake. Most people who try both side by side switch to chilled.
Five-Minute Trifle
How to make Five-Minute Trifle with McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Snack Pack.
- 2 wrapped packs, 6 Jaffa Cakes
- The juice of half an orange
- 400g cold custard
- 200ml whipped cream
- Dark chocolate to grate
- Line four glasses with the cakes, chocolate side up, breaking them to fit.
- Spoon over a very little orange juice. The sponge and the jelly are already two trifle layers, so this needs far less soaking than a plain sponge would.
- Layer cold custard and then whipped cream over the top.
- Grate dark chocolate over and chill for thirty minutes before serving.
What you'll end up with: A trifle where two of the layers came pre-assembled. Dark chocolate on top rather than milk, to keep it from being uniformly sweet.
Jaffa Cake Cheesecake Top
How to make Jaffa Cake Cheesecake Top with McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Snack Pack.
- 3 wrapped packs, 9 Jaffa Cakes
- 1 set cheesecake in a 20cm tin
- The zest of one orange
- Dark chocolate to grate
- Arrange the cakes whole over the top of a set cheesecake, chocolate side up, overlapping slightly.
- Do not crush them into the base; the jelly makes a wet crumb and the base will never set firm.
- Scatter orange zest and grated dark chocolate over the top.
- Chill for twenty minutes so the cakes firm up before you cut it.
What you'll end up with: A cheesecake finished in two minutes that looks like it took an afternoon. Whole on top, never crushed into the base.
Chocolate Orange Mug Pudding
How to make Chocolate Orange Mug Pudding with McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Snack Pack.
- 1 wrapped pack of 3 Jaffa Cakes
- 3 tablespoons double cream
- 20g dark chocolate
- A little orange zest
- Break the three cakes into a mug.
- Warm the cream and dark chocolate together until just melted and pour it over.
- Stand for two minutes so the sponge takes up the cream. This is the one time the sponge's absorbency works in your favour.
- Finish with orange zest and eat it warm.
What you'll end up with: A hot pudding from a snack pack in five minutes. Dark chocolate only; milk chocolate makes it one flat sweet note.
What’s in it, what to know
Inside the pack
| Typical values per 100g, as published | Per 100g |
|---|---|
| Energy | 387 kcal |
| Fat | 8.5g |
| of which saturates | 3.8g |
| Carbohydrate | 71.7g |
| of which sugars | 50.9g |
| Fibre | 1.9g |
| Protein | 4.7g |
| Salt | 0.3g |
Ingredients and allergens. Per the published ingredient list for this product it contains wheat (gluten), milk, egg and soya. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.
Ingredients, as published for this product: Glucose-Fructose Syrup, Dark Chocolate (19%) [Sugar, Cocoa Mass, Vegetable Fats (Palm, Shea), Butter Oil (Milk), Cocoa Butter, Emulsifiers (Soya Lecithin, E476), Natural Flavouring], Sugar, Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Whole Egg, Water, Dextrose, Concentrated Orange Juice, Glucose Syrup, Vegetable Oils (Sunflower, Palm), Humectant (Glycerine), Acid (Citric Acid), Gelling Agent (Pectin), Raising Agents (Disodium Diphosphate, Ammonium Bicarbonate, Sodium Bicarbonate), Dried Whole Egg, Acidity Regulator (Sodium Citrates), Natural Orange Flavouring, Colour (Curcumin), Emulsifier (Soya Lecithin).
Ingredient and nutrition data for this product: Open Food Facts (openfoodfacts.org), ODbL. The pack in your hands is the final word.
| Component | Proportion | What it brings |
|---|---|---|
| Sponge base | See current pack | The carrier, and the reason for the cake-or-biscuit argument. Light and deliberately neutral, it holds the other two layers and contributes very little flavour of its own. |
| Orange jelly | See current pack | The centre of the product and the only element with any edge. Its acidity cuts the sweetness from the inside, which is why this works beside a weaker cup than any coated biscuit would need. |
| Chocolate layer | See current pack | A thin covering over the jelly rather than a coating around the whole thing. Thin on purpose: more chocolate would bury the orange. |
| Format | 6 packs of 3, 18 cakes, 198g net | Worked out from the count in the product name rather than figures from the pack. |
Pack: McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g; six wrapped packs of three cakes. Store cool, dry and sealed, and keep the unopened wrappers closed until you want them. Read the ingredient list, the full allergen advice, the nutrition panel, any certification marks and the best-before date off the current UK pack.
Characterising components shown.
The Jaffa Cake is a three-layer construction rather than a bake with something on top: sponge, then orange jelly, then a thin chocolate covering. This snack pack sells it as six wrapped portions of three rather than as a single tube.
What's in McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g, and what isn't:
- In: six wrapped packs of three cakes, eighteen in all, 198g in the outer.
- Three layers, not a coating: sponge, orange jelly and a thin chocolate top, rather than a biscuit with chocolate around it.
- Not a dunking product: a sponge base takes up liquid instantly and there is no shell to hold it together.
- Packaging: follow the current UK pack and your local-authority guidance; the outer carton and the inner wrappers can take different disposal routes.
Asked about this product
Ask the curator
Send a product question through the contact form; replies usually come within one working day.
Source: Teas.co.uk, the UK independent tea specialist in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. If you reference McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g, please cite teas.co.uk.
What buyers say
No customer reviews of McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Original Biscuits Snack Pack 6x3, 198g yet.
Bought this from us? Log in to your account, then come back to this page to review it. Only verified buyers can review, and every review is checked before it appears; approved reviews earn 50 reward points.
More from McVitie's
Other Biscuits worth comparing
