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Trader Joe's meal recs?
Okay, so. In a perfect world, I would cook ahead every week and package up healthy homemade meals for me to grab on the way to classes (3x a week). I do that when I can, but sadly, I do not yet live in that perfect world. Given that buying lunch on campus costs at least $5-8, the fact that Trader Joe's sells a huge variety of pre-packaged meals for ~$2 is a big money-saver, and it means that I can just dash to the freezer/cupboard and grab something on my way out the door.
That said, despite my love for many TJ's products, I've been underwhelmed thus far by the flavor/quality of these meals. I'd love any recommendations y'all have.
Requirements:
- Shelf or freezer-stable (i.e. not refrigerated/perishable)
- Can be made in under 5 minutes, using just a microwave (and perhaps an extra plate/bowl)
- A balanced meal, which to me requires decent quantities of protein, carbs, and vegetables
- No more than $3 or so per meal (b/c at that point I might as well buy lunch here!)
- A decent but not exorbitant number of calories per meal (somewhere in the 400-600 range is ideal)
- Tasty flavor!
What I've tried thus far (IIRC):
Favorites:
Frozen green chile tamales: these had a slight propensity to explode/ooze in the microwave, but they were really delicious, with generous amounts of cheese and green chili, and an honest masa flavor
Frozen vegetarian shu mai: disturbingly high in fat, but really really tasty, even prepared totally in the microwave
Frozen black bean enchiladas: savory and filling, honest, and actually pretty healthy!
Pretty okay:
Dry (shelf-stable) penne alla vodka pasta: sauce was not a powder and was pretty tasty; otherwise meh
Shelf-stable rice biryani with lentils: rice was a bit oily and smell was a bit odd, but overall fairly tasty and nutritionally balanced
Frozen kung pao chicken bowl: reasonably tasty, but not enough nuts, and the sauce was rather watery/meh
Frozen cheese canneloni with tomato sauce: liked the sauce, liked the ricotta-heavy cheese, didn't like the watery liquid that the cheese exuded when it was heated
Frozen chicken vegetable burrito: it was . . . fine. No strong distinct flavors or textures, but general moist tastiness with reasonable nutrition.
Will not eat again:
Any of their "tasty thai" meals, or the related Chinese shelf-stable boxes. I really wanted to like these -- the tom yum with rice had authentic tom yum ingredients -- but the flavors were just off, the textures were simultaneously dry and oily, and the meals were just boring without any significant protein or vegetables to break up the starch+sauce.
In conclusion, their Tex-Mex food appears to be reliably decent to tasty, anything shelf-stable is very suspect, and their yummiest food is generally also high in fat.
Also, none of their insta-meals (so far) really approach the sheer awesomeness of some of their non-meal foods, like their crack almonds. (Seriously. If you like a little salt with your chocolate, those things are utter and complete crack.) Any recommendations? Or should I just give up on meals from TJ's and put the time into making my own?
That said, despite my love for many TJ's products, I've been underwhelmed thus far by the flavor/quality of these meals. I'd love any recommendations y'all have.
Requirements:
- Shelf or freezer-stable (i.e. not refrigerated/perishable)
- Can be made in under 5 minutes, using just a microwave (and perhaps an extra plate/bowl)
- A balanced meal, which to me requires decent quantities of protein, carbs, and vegetables
- No more than $3 or so per meal (b/c at that point I might as well buy lunch here!)
- A decent but not exorbitant number of calories per meal (somewhere in the 400-600 range is ideal)
- Tasty flavor!
What I've tried thus far (IIRC):
Favorites:
Frozen green chile tamales: these had a slight propensity to explode/ooze in the microwave, but they were really delicious, with generous amounts of cheese and green chili, and an honest masa flavor
Frozen vegetarian shu mai: disturbingly high in fat, but really really tasty, even prepared totally in the microwave
Frozen black bean enchiladas: savory and filling, honest, and actually pretty healthy!
Pretty okay:
Dry (shelf-stable) penne alla vodka pasta: sauce was not a powder and was pretty tasty; otherwise meh
Shelf-stable rice biryani with lentils: rice was a bit oily and smell was a bit odd, but overall fairly tasty and nutritionally balanced
Frozen kung pao chicken bowl: reasonably tasty, but not enough nuts, and the sauce was rather watery/meh
Frozen cheese canneloni with tomato sauce: liked the sauce, liked the ricotta-heavy cheese, didn't like the watery liquid that the cheese exuded when it was heated
Frozen chicken vegetable burrito: it was . . . fine. No strong distinct flavors or textures, but general moist tastiness with reasonable nutrition.
Will not eat again:
Any of their "tasty thai" meals, or the related Chinese shelf-stable boxes. I really wanted to like these -- the tom yum with rice had authentic tom yum ingredients -- but the flavors were just off, the textures were simultaneously dry and oily, and the meals were just boring without any significant protein or vegetables to break up the starch+sauce.
In conclusion, their Tex-Mex food appears to be reliably decent to tasty, anything shelf-stable is very suspect, and their yummiest food is generally also high in fat.
Also, none of their insta-meals (so far) really approach the sheer awesomeness of some of their non-meal foods, like their crack almonds. (Seriously. If you like a little salt with your chocolate, those things are utter and complete crack.) Any recommendations? Or should I just give up on meals from TJ's and put the time into making my own?