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Frozen TV Dinners
- Thread starter macfoshizzle
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Necromanti
Member
Y'all make it sound like mac doesn't routinely troll food threads.
way more
Member
Or you could do that. Why are people eating chemically loaded Banquet meals made by ConAgra when they could get Trader Joe's? They make salisbury steak that you can make in 15 minutes. Nearly as good as you can cook in the same time.
Stuofferer's mac and cheese is good and filling, it's premium mac and cheese, not the watery junk you get elsewhere. However, it's also obviously one of the biggest sodium/calorie bombs out there.
I like most if not all of Amy's stuff, especially their indian korma, it's even decently healthy but it's really expensive. $4 is a bit much for something that barely fills you up.
Otherwise, the only other luck I've had with random brands is chicken based things, usually nuggets. It's really hard to fuck up chicken nuggets.
I like most if not all of Amy's stuff, especially their indian korma, it's even decently healthy but it's really expensive. $4 is a bit much for something that barely fills you up.
Otherwise, the only other luck I've had with random brands is chicken based things, usually nuggets. It's really hard to fuck up chicken nuggets.
Langdon Alger
Banned
What's so unhealthy about frozen dinners? Honestly asking. Is it just the salt?
Ingredients too. Packaged stuff isnt fresh and not suitable for healthy living. You might get the required calories but you won't fill your macros - protein and stuff.
Is Frosta a thing outside of Germany? If so, you can buy all their stuff, because...
-they don't use flavor enhancers.
-they don't use flavoring.
-they don't use coloring.
-they only use fresh and natural ingredients and list exactly what's in the bag with additional information to most ingredients.
All in all their stuff tastes like freshly cooked and is healthy.
-they don't use flavor enhancers.
-they don't use flavoring.
-they don't use coloring.
-they only use fresh and natural ingredients and list exactly what's in the bag with additional information to most ingredients.
All in all their stuff tastes like freshly cooked and is healthy.
We keep some of these Bertolli soup things in the freezer:
Today I searched for pictures of frozen soup
Surprisingly legit (not really cheap though), and the tomato one is particularly banging. Guess they're not technically a "dinner," but they're hearty enough so I'm going to allow it!
You just dump it in a pan with some water and cook it for like five minutes. They make other things like pasta and what not, but I didn't think those held up quite as well.
Today I searched for pictures of frozen soup
Surprisingly legit (not really cheap though), and the tomato one is particularly banging. Guess they're not technically a "dinner," but they're hearty enough so I'm going to allow it!
You just dump it in a pan with some water and cook it for like five minutes. They make other things like pasta and what not, but I didn't think those held up quite as well.
CyclopsRock
Member
I have something to add - I have a friend that works for a company that makes ready-meals. I don't think they're all frozen but I guess it's the same process.
Basically a company will come to them (usually they're supermarkets who want an own-brand product) with a recipe, the product from which is effectively their target to hit. They are also given a price per unit budget that they have to stay within, as well as potentially some other stipulations (vegetarian, no glucose, low calorie, 10 days before it expires etc). So their job is to get as close to that target as possible within the budget and restrictions allowed. He said their budgets vary WILDLY and that this has huge implications on the quality of the ingredients - some budgets are literally 5 times more for the same "meal" so the ingredients would be better as a result.
He also said that the reason most have so much salt is purely that it's a preservative, rather than for taste (Though obviously it has implication for the taste that they need to balance). His argument was that they can take out the salt and replace it with other stuff, but most other stuff is actually worse for you than the extra salt. It means they can put "low salt" on the packaging, but really it depends what they've had to put in there in order to get there. He said there are some things that are better than salt for preserving but that they're so expensive that they're used very infrequently.
Basically a company will come to them (usually they're supermarkets who want an own-brand product) with a recipe, the product from which is effectively their target to hit. They are also given a price per unit budget that they have to stay within, as well as potentially some other stipulations (vegetarian, no glucose, low calorie, 10 days before it expires etc). So their job is to get as close to that target as possible within the budget and restrictions allowed. He said their budgets vary WILDLY and that this has huge implications on the quality of the ingredients - some budgets are literally 5 times more for the same "meal" so the ingredients would be better as a result.
He also said that the reason most have so much salt is purely that it's a preservative, rather than for taste (Though obviously it has implication for the taste that they need to balance). His argument was that they can take out the salt and replace it with other stuff, but most other stuff is actually worse for you than the extra salt. It means they can put "low salt" on the packaging, but really it depends what they've had to put in there in order to get there. He said there are some things that are better than salt for preserving but that they're so expensive that they're used very infrequently.
freenudemacusers
Member
people knock frozen dinners but IME there are legitimately great ones out there. fwiw walmart and sams club usually have the best selection of these, the other grocers are wayy too into the 'natural' trend to be of much use here.
pretty good, I'd recommend warming up the buns separately. not quite as tasty as five guys but better than in&out and better for you than either health-wise turkey isn't red meat and has much less of the super awful saturated fat.
lots of protein, cooks very well, eggs are nice and fluffly, only the edges are a bit rubbery but not bad, goes great with garlic texas toast
my current dinner go tos. the lasagna isn't quite to better restaurant standards from olive garden, macaroni grill etc, but still tasty.
marie callendars is the best tasting brand IMO. a little pricey, so I save them for special date nights at the house when we can get the grandparents to watch the kids.
chronic_archaic
Member
Hungry Man is edible. Any frozen chicken or pizza I pretty much love however.
Seraphis Cain
bad gameplay lol
Banquet tasted like crap a couple years back, I dunno if they changed anything.
I liked Hungry Man though. Apparently this existed! I stuck with the regular chicken meals though.
This was an Engadget April Fool's Day joke.
crazyrabbits
Banned
Take it from someone who ate that stuff multiple times when I was younger and didn't know any better - it's straight garbage. The sodium/cholesterol content in some of those are absurd.
freenudemacusers
Member
Mango The Magician
Banned
I most stick to Amy's and similar brands due to my lifestyle.
Isn't Trader Joe's cheap as fuck?
Necromanti
Member
Their frozen foods are pretty pricy, honestly, but they're good. (A lot of things are pretty expensive at TJ's, actually, with the exception of some items that are cheaper.)
CyclopsRock
Member
Lol. Tautological post of the day goes to Necromanti, for saying that it's quite expensive apart from the things that aren't.
Nero's Neptune
Member
The ONLY thing I can eat out of a microwave are these:
And actually, they're pretty damned good.
And actually, they're pretty damned good.
Necromanti
Member
A handful of items are cheaper at Trader Joe's than they are at other grocery stores compared to the vast majority that are pricier than average. I'm not seeing the controversy.
CyclopsRock
Member
Me neither, I just thought the way you phrased it was amusing.
I had no idea, lol. There must be a pretty big difference between Trader Joe's in Germany and in the US then. We don't have own Trader Joe's stores here, but the brand is used by Aldi for many products and those are just as cheap as the rest.
Necromanti
Member
I guess it depends on the region/city, too. Then again, a lot of people here find TJ's cheap on average with all their offerings, while I find it to be generally pricier except for some of their fresh vegetables. (And their delicious cheese.) Never knew they used the "Trader Joe's" label on products sold outside of the US, though.
Necromanti
Member
Be happy it's not a diet soda thread where the usual "just drink water" zealots emerge from the shadows.
I've never known Trader Joe's to be pricey ever. They sell 2 buck chuck for christ sake.
Seraphis Cain
bad gameplay lol
The ONLY thing I can eat out of a microwave are these:
And actually, they're pretty damned good.
They're not bad, but the chicken is a bit bland. Like, even compared to other frozen dinners. Still like 'em, though.
Nero's Neptune
Member
Really? I don't think so at all. I actually don't even like eating chicken from TV dinners because they're usually so tasteless, but those I like.
Also they aren't mushy. That's a huge plus for me.
Seraphis Cain
bad gameplay lol
Yeah, they're pretty crispy. Once I put the tenders in the oven instead of microwaving them. Tasted way better that way. Was a bit of a pain since I can't run my microwave and oven at the same time, though (well, actually, I just choose not to because I assume it'll blow a breaker and despite living here four years I have no idea where the breaker box is...should probably correct that).
PayOffWizard
Member
These are really good. That's if they sell them wherever you are.
Its been a while since I eaten one, but I really liked this one:
Ewwwwww! Out of all the frozen dinners available Banquet is the nastiest of the nasty.
I'm not even kidding.
Seraphis Cain
bad gameplay lol
I get Banquet every now and then, but I prefer Marie Calender's or Michelina's.
I'll give Banquet this though, their Swedish Meatballs are actually pretty damn good, and you get a lot of it for the price.
katsubento
Member
sixteen-bit
Member
check out robert dyer on youtube for tv dinner reveiws. hungr man seems like a good buy.
Pritchardo
Neo Member
Why don't you buy a big slow cooker make a huge batch of something like a curry or stew and freeze some for the rest of the week
burnside13
Member
Literally the only reason you would eat one of those things is if you actually wanted to. I don't know how anyone could get any satisfaction eating that crap.
My idea of hassle free, fast no clean up cooking.
- Wrap seasoned steaks in foil and place in a foil tray in the oven.
- Same thing with chat potatoes
- Freezer packs of steamed vegetables in the microwave
- Make or heat Instant Gravy Mix.
- Serve on paper/plastic plate
My idea of hassle free, fast no clean up cooking.
- Wrap seasoned steaks in foil and place in a foil tray in the oven.
- Same thing with chat potatoes
- Freezer packs of steamed vegetables in the microwave
- Make or heat Instant Gravy Mix.
- Serve on paper/plastic plate
Rollo Tomasi
Member
momo no oji
Neo Member
I don't like frozen dinners but if I had to pick I would go for Hungry Man, Healthy Choice and Marie Calendars and maybe a hot or lean pocket. Eggs are usually a good go to meal when you're lazy to cook anythying time consuming.
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