Food

Heat and eat meals

Updated: 01 Oct 2009
Heat-and-eat-hero

Introduction

Heat-and-eat meals are quick and easy. But are they good for you?

We bought a selection of chilled, frozen and shelf-stable meals from supermarkets and compared their nutritional value.  We were looking for products that were low in fat (especially saturated fat) and not too high in sodium.

We also tasted the Thai chicken curries to see whether they were as good as the real thing, and provide a recipe for an easy home-made version.
 

What we found

A pile of heat-and-eat meals

Products that met our nutritional criteria contained less than 5g fat, less than 2g saturated fat and less than 300mg sodium per 100g.

We found plenty of lower fat and sodium choices: 13 meals met all 3 criteria and several more met 2 out of three criteria. Only three meals failed to meet at least one criterion, so from a nutrition point of view they’re not all bad news.

Fat

Fat is the most concentrated source of energy. It contains more than twice the energy per gram of protein or carbohydrates.

We found plenty of lower-fat options, but you do need to read the label rather than be guided by claims made on the packaging. Several lower-fat options aren’t labelled “low fat”.

The fat content can also vary widely between meals of the same brand. For example, Irvines SuperSnack Thai Chicken Curry and Lasagne Bake are low in both total and saturated fat. But Irvines SuperSnack Cottage Pie isn’t such a good choice: per 100g it contains more than 12g of fat, half of which is saturated.

Sodium

Some meals were high in sodium. The Ministry of Health recommends adults limit their daily sodium intake to less than 2300mg. Go higher and you increase your risk of high blood pressure. But 920mg is all that’s needed for good health.

One meal – Wishbone Nana’s Lamb Roast – contained 689mg per 100g. Eat the whole meal and you’ll be consuming close to one and a half times the Ministry of Health’s maximum daily limit in a single serving. At 480g the Wishbone meal was a far more generous serving than many other meals and looked the most “homemade” of the roast meals in our survey.

As long as they’re eaten only occasionally and in moderate-sized servings, a higher-sodium meal won’t ruin an otherwise balanced diet.

Serving size

Heat-and-eat meals are mostly sold as single serves which vary in size from 250g to over 500g. Watch out for larger serving sizes, and for meals which are intended to serve two: it might be low in fat and sodium per 100g but it’s easy to undo your good work by eating too much.

Contains "meat"

Manufacturers must state the percentage of meat in the product’s list of ingredients. This varied in the meals we surveyed from 6 to 40 percent, with 15 to 25 percent being typical.

The “meat” component of the frozen roast meals contained more than mere meat. The roast lamb in the Hungry? Gourmet Roast Lamb sported 13 ingredients and additives. If you’re after meat without the additives, the chilled options in our survey are a better choice – the meat is just meat.
 

Meals compared

 

Table comparing heat-and-eat meals

Guide to the table

Our survey was based on label information. Products are listed in alphabetical order within ratings.

  • A = product contains two servings.
  • Serving size shows the serving size stated on the label.
  • Price is the price we paid in August 2009.
  • Meat content is rounded to the nearest whole number.
  • Meal type C = chilled; F = frozen; S = shelf stable.

As good as the real thing?

Our tasters tried seven Thai chicken curries to see if they’re anything like the real thing. The curries were a mix of chilled, frozen and shelf-stable products.

Our tasters were ordinary consumers and they weren’t impressed by any of the curries. The most common complaint was “not enough chicken.”

They rated Wishbone Thai Chicken Curry and the Sun Rice Thai Green Curry with Chicken and Jasmine Rice as better than the rest.

A ready-to-eat curry will save you time but it won’t taste nearly as good as one you can make yourself.

Easy Thai chicken curry

This recipe serves four but if you’re cooking for one, freeze in individual portions for when you don’t feel like cooking.

  • Brown 500g of thinly sliced chicken in a little oil over a moderate heat.
  • Add 2-3 tablespoons of green or red Thai curry paste and cook a minute further. Pour in a can of light coconut milk or cream and add a teaspoon each of fish sauce and brown sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Add 2-3 cups of fresh or frozen vegetables (like peas, beans, capsicum and broccoli) for the last few minutes of cooking time.
  • Serve with steamed rice.

Our advice

    Waiter with a heat-and-eat meal
  • There are plenty of lower fat and sodium choices. Look for meals that have less than 5g fat, 2g saturated fat and 300mg sodium per 100g. Watch out for larger portions.
  • Check the ingredients list for the percentage of meat and vegetables, and whether the meat contains “extra” ingredients. 
  • Many meals come in reasonably small servings and are light on vegetables or contain no vegetables at all. For a more complete meal and to leave you feeling satisfied, serve with fresh or frozen vegetables you’ve cooked yourself.
  • Make your own frozen meals. Cook extra portions and freeze them for when you don’t feel like cooking.
     
More from consumer.org.nz

 

Report by Libby Manley.