The best thing about having a well stocked kitchen, is having something that you can pull out at a moment's notice, and make a meal. It isn't often that I will recommend a convenience food that is already prepared. I do have to say that Contessa World Cuisine is not your average frozen dinner.
I recently was asked to sample their freezer meals, and at first I wasn't going to bother. Finally, I looked over their website, and found that were much more impressive than the traditional frozen foods you find in convenient foods. It may come as a surprise that I actually enjoyed a convenience food, but these were both delicious and much healthier than you would expect.
After receiving a few meals to try, our family prepared each one exactly as written on the package; no easy task for this experimental cook. The bags are supposed to serve two, and this is accurate for a light eater, but not enough for my meat and potatoes husband. I found the serving size to be just right. Let's take a look at the varieties that I have tried so far:
Broccoli Beef - This meal was delicious! If I had to find a con, it was a bit too sweet for my taste, but I am not a sweet Asian lover. The vegetables were all recognizable and still had some texture to them. The beef was adequately portioned, not too much and certainly not too little. Almost a piece in every bite. Even the rice was perfectly cooked, fluffy with a little bite left to it-nothing mushy here. All in all, this was better than takeout. I would enjoy it again.
Italian Sausage Rigatoni - Plenty of tasty ingredients in this one as well. My only con is that it was a little too spicy for my taste. I loved the sausage flavor, and the sweet red peppers were a nice touch. Delicious!
Finally, my favorite of all, was the Shrimp Primavera. This one brought everyone to the kitchen, asking what the amazing smell was. What a jewel! The shrimp was fresh tasting and firm, the veggies were fully cooked without being mushy, and the noodles were perfectly cooked. This was such a great dish, it was hard to share. I served it with the recommended bread on the side and a side salad. It was fabulous.
All in all, these meals are definitely delicious in a fresh ingredient kind of way. If you are looking for a fast meal that isn't full of chemical and additives that you can't pronounce, try Contessa World Cuisine for a change of pace.
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