Frozen meals have a bit of an image problem, but here's the thing: they're no longer guaranteed
to come with a side of regret.
Some are actually pretty good, and good for you!
Here are some of the best frozen food dinners available at your grocery store.
Carb-counting is the foundation for cauliflower's rise in popularity, and it now stands in as
a substitute for timeless but carbohydrate-heavy dishes like pasta and rice.
To give credit where it's due, this flowery-looking vegetable has served diners well in its essential
new role.
From sides like cauliflower wings to entrées like Sweet Earth's Cauliflower Mac, it isn't
just for salads anymore.
As far as comfort food goes, not much soothes the soul like a bowl of hot and gooey mac
and cheese, and this vegan, cauliflower-dominated version does not disappoint.
Chunky cauliflower florets are mixed with twisty pasta noodles in a cauliflower cream
sauce, made a bit more authentic with the addition of crispy breadcrumbs.
Its smoothness allows for a saucy bite each time.
If finding a healthy choice is your mission, this frozen meal is a pretty good option.
Chicken fried steak is a popular southern comfort food dish.
It's a piece of steak that is pounded flat, battered, fried, and served with gravy.
Sounds great?
Good news!
Marie Callender's Country Fried Chicken and Gravy offers basically that - only they go
with chicken fried… um… chicken.
It’s a white meat chicken cutlet that's been covered in breading and gravy.
Marie Callender's dine-in restaurants feature menus laden with homestyle options, and the
frozen meal portion of the business updated this meal a few years back according to reviewers,
taking away the separate gravy packet and making it even easier to prepare.
The chicken is tender, easy to cut, and together with the gravy, quite yummy.
However, the real hit in this meal is the mashed potatoes.
They're creamy and have a fresh-made taste.
The side of corn tastes like any standard offering, so to make them more exciting, combine
them with the chicken, gravy, and potatoes for a perfect mixed bite.
Truffles are edible fungi known for a few things, like their heady, musky scent, their
unique oaky taste, and often, their high price tag.
Given all that, they may not be the first thing you think of when shopping for frozen
meals.
However, the masterminds at Evol found a way to incorporate these mushroom-like entities
in their Truffle Parmesan Mac and Cheese.
For that, a thank you to the company is in order, especially for authenticity.
According to Evol, they get their truffles straight from the forests of Italy.
That sort of thoughtfulness pays off in this frozen meal.
Before you even cook this, you get a whiff of the truffles.
It's a surprise for frozen food, as scents usually don't come to life until the heat
starts to thaw the ingredients during cooking.
It's a little strong, but don't let that deter you.
The noodles blend with a creamy parmesan and cheddar cheese sauce, and, of course, the
truffles.
The pasta has a nice texture as well.
The whole meal all comes together for a robust taste experience.
Eggplant parmigiana is a gooey, goopy, vegetarian concoction that takes quite a bit of effort
to prepare.
But sometimes you need a quick fix.
Michael Angelo's is just the brand to reach for when you have a craving for eggplant parm
but not much time.
Michael Angelo's offers up a rich and hearty version of this meal, with well-seasoned and
crispy eggplant rounds.
The marinara sauce is a tasty lip-smacker.
And the cheese?
Forget about it.
The layer of mozzarella on top is thick and stretchy, not to mention delicious.
It's frozen food at its best, one that holds up to plenty of casual-restaurant versions,
is more cost-effective than heading to an eatery, and better than what our parents made.
"I'll eat it!"
"NO!"
Devour's version of enchiladas takes tender, pulled and seasoned chicken and stuffs it
into corn tortillas.
The enchiladas don't fly solo, as they sit atop beans with peppers and corn.
It's all covered with a smooth cheese and sour cream sauce.
The chicken, along with the beans, presents plenty of flavors.
The sauce cranks this already-tasty dish up a few notches.
In Devour's ads, they encourage you to, quote, "eat like an animal."
If that means tearing into a savory, saucy delight like this, so be it.
Their frozen meals all seem to have a focus on hearty eats, from loaded nacho fries covered
in cheese and chorizo to a buffalo chicken grilled cheese, they're definitely setting
out to trigger a primal urge.
Trader Joe's Chicken Tikka Masala often receives praise, and you don't have to go far past
the first bite to understand why.
The popular Indian curry sauce is full of spices like coriander, garlic, and paprika,
accompanied by other traditional Indian ingredients like tomato and yogurt.
Chunks of roasted chicken breast soak up the sauce.
The entrée includes a side of basmati rice, which is distinct from white rice.
This basmati is delicious and also nice and sticky for the sauce to cling to.
If you pick this up, do yourself a favor and grab a bowl to mix it all together, because
while the tray separates the two for cooking purposes, there's no need to keep these items
apart.
In fact, they're just meant to be together.
The singular description on the package of Amy's Cheese Enchilada may make it seem like
you only get one enchilada here, but don't fear.
You actually get two of these savory goodies in one box.
It's technically considered a two-serving entrée, but it's easy to down both of them
in one sitting.
First of all, they are totally cheesy, with a blend of white cheddar and Monterey jack
flecked with chopped peppers and olives, which give it a real tang.
The cheese gets a bit oily once it melts, though it's not hard to blot away the excess
oil if you choose.
The top layer is a kicky sauce full of onion, chiles, and garlic.
Like cauliflower, quinoa has become a substitute for carb-heavy staples like rice.
In Healthy's Choice's Korean-inspired Beef Bowl, you will find some red and brown rice
mixed in with the quinoa in this bowl, along with barley for plenty of texture.
The chunks of beef on top are tender and chewy, and this meal brings a blend of heat, sweetness,
and the salty bitterness of the soy, giving the end result plenty of depth.
The shiitake mushrooms in the bowl lend their own earthy richness, along with leafy greens
and sesame seeds.
It's also the perfect size for lunch, with a portion size that gives you energy without
weighing you down with a ton of food.
Decades after its introduction to shoppers, there's a reason that Stouffer's Lasagna with
Meat Sauce still lines supermarket shelves – it's really good.
This frozen food classic comes in individual and family sizes.
The former is hearty and satisfying enough for one person, even without any accompaniments.
However, to round it out, you could make some garlic bread to soak up the tomato sauce that
surrounds the layers of this classic dish.
Said sauce has a nice, tangy flavor.
The family-sized tray is a time-saver for a group meal and perfect for pairing with
a light side salad.
In this frozen meal, curly-edged noodles are layered with ricotta cheese and a beefy meat
sauce, making it a deep and dense pasta square.
The real hero of this frozen dinner is the mozzarella cheese covering.
It melts well, whether you microwave it or throw it in the oven.
If you have the time, though, the latter choice makes this lasagna even better, giving the
noodles a nice and crispy edge and making the cheese deliciously brown and bubbly.
Shepherd's pie is a classic British dish with ingredients that typically include a ground
lamb base which is covered with mashed potatoes and then baked to crusty perfection.
Oftentimes, vegetables like peas and carrots are added to the mix beneath the potatoes,
and just as often, beef is substituted for lamb (for a dish that's more appropriately
called cottage pie).
Still, it's the beef version that's more widely known in the US, and Blake's All Natural Shepherd's
Pie is so good that we won't mince words.
Sometimes the meat in frozen meals leaves a lot to be desired, but that's not the case
here.
It is indeed tender and tasty.
The corn has a good, bouncy bite and the fluffy mashed potatoes, which Blake's claims are
freshly made, do truly taste homemade and not boxed or frozen.
Lean Cuisine's Vermont White Cheddar Mac & Cheese is a great option if you're looking for a
meal that tastes richer than the mere 280 calories that it contains.
It's a great lunch option that takes away the hunger pangs and leaves you feeling satisfied
without feeling like you over-feasted.
Lean Cuisine's mac & cheese also has a nice bite that still holds up after it's heated.
The white cheddar sauce has a noticeable and crave-worthy sharpness.
That latter attribute is what cheddar cheese from Vermont is known for, with a kick makes
it intense and distinct.
The whole entrée has a light and buttery feel.
If it's not enough to fill you up, it goes well with a side of steamed broccoli or green
beans to add to the health factor.
If there's ever been a food that might make you feel a little guilty, it's stuffed shells.
They're sinfully good, cheesy, and filling.
Thanks to Trader Joe's, you can experience all the goodness of that dish while taking
in only 270 calories.
Inside the box, you'll find two shells plumped from the inside with thick and creamy ricotta
mixed with spinach.
There's enough spinach that you can taste it and it doesn't feel like a mere afterthought,
while every bite offers a nearly equal cheese-to-spinach ratio.
The sweet and tangy marinara sauce also has flavor that stands up to the other ingredients.
Let's not forget the mozzarella on top, which makes this a small but ultra-satisfying portion
of this usual gut-buster.
While Zatarain's chicken might not taste exactly like it just left a ferociously hot pan in
a New Orleans restaurant kitchen, it's a tasty nod to the classic, especially for a frozen
meal.
The white meat strips included in their Blackened Chicken Alfredo have an external crispness
and grill marks to give the dish sincerity.
When you bite in, you experience a little of that crust while the meat inside is on
the tender side.
The Cajun spice blend, which includes paprika, garlic, and cayenne, are present in the chicken
bites and take the whole meal to a newer, zestier level.
The cheese sauce blend is more creamy than gooey, so it doesn't weigh down the penne
pasta.
This is a good portion, filling and in no need of a side dish.
Breadsticks, though, certainly wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings.
Saffron Road says that their company is on a mission to make good food from different
world regions and stay focused on ethical processes, including sourcing meat with no
antibiotics, like the meat used in their Chicken Pad Thai.
This dish is a popular go-to at Thai restaurants.
Saffron Road's version of the stir-fry entrée features roasted white-meat chicken with carrots
and scallions over rice noodles that stays true to the original.
Peanut sauce is the highlight here, giving both the chicken and the noodles a rich flavor.
The noodles can be a little on the sticky side, so take a second to stir it right before
or immediately after the meal is cooked.
Frontera Foods' frozen meals are an offshoot of the Frontera empire, headed by Chef Rick
Bayless.
Frontera's products also include an array of tasty salsas, skillet meals, and cooking
sauces for home use.
This bowl brings pork chorizo sausage with its smoky taste together with chunks of chicken
breast for a two-meat party.
The chicken has a softer texture than the sausage, which has you sinking into more of
a juicy, toothy bite.
That combo is elevated by red peppers and potatoes and a tomato-chipotle sauce that
makes for a winning entrée.
If the yum-factor of this bowl isn't enough of a selling point, how about the fact that
it only has 290 calories?
"You know what I love about tacos?"
"What's that?"
"Everything!"
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