I quit cooking

October 27, 2008 2:05 AM

What do I need to know about frozen diet foods in Australia?

Mr b33j and I need to lose weight, hate cooking and like different types of foods than each other (I'm more adventurous, he's more meat and 3 vege). We’re thinking about trying the frozen diet foods route for while. What can you tell me about Lean Cuisine, McCain’s, Lite & Easy, Jenny Craig, the Diet Factory etc?

I've noticed not all have the Heart Foundation tick - is this important? If we have a high fibre cereal or toast for breaky, and a sanger for lunch, are we going to meet our nutritional requirements? By the way, we need to go shopping every week anyhow, for the offsprings' food (they cook their own) and cat food and toiletries and stuff.

Tips? Good or bad experiences?

posted by b33j to food & drink (6 comments total)

Companies have to pay for the Heart Foundation tick, so not having it doesn't mean it isn't as good as something that does - they just haven't paid to have their food assessed. I think the main thing about these sorts of meals is that they provide automatic portion control - you will probably be surprised at the size of the servings.

I think the Lean Cuisine meals are not bad (in that they are perhaps better than airline food and reasonably tasty for a frozen meal). There is quite a good range, covering your meat and 3 veg type stuff, and other things like pastas, 'Thai' curries etc. When I have been very busy with work, I have had short periods (two weeks?) of eating these for dinner regularly.

I haven't tried McCain's for a long time, because the last time I did, I really didn't like them. I thought that compared to Lean Cuisine, they seemed less interesting and blander in flavour and texture. I can't comment on the range these days, but they used to be more traditional (eg meat and three veg).

I think the supermarket ones (like Lean Cuisine) will work out a lot cheaper than Lite & Easy, especially if you look out for sales. Haven't tried any of the other ones you mention.

It is a few years old now, but Choice magazine did a test on these meals, see here.
posted by AnnaRat at 2:55 AM on October 27, 2008

I used to rely on the Lean Cuisine meals a few years ago when I worked a lot and didn't know how to cook. They were pretty good, not brilliant, but ok. The McCains' ones were ok on the vegetables, but the meat always seemed more like a textured meat-like substitute than the real deal.

A friend of mine tried one of those meal-plan things where you get a delivery of meals for the week - she thought the food was great but it was too expensive.

Your toast for brekkie, sandwich for lunch and frozen meal for dinner plan seems to me like you'd be getting all the nutrients you need, depending on what you have on your sandwich and toast. Obviously peanut butter isn't going to help you at all, but Vegemite or honey, and big salad sandwiches later with a bit of cheese or egg or ham would be good.

If you hate cooking, would it help if you were to make a big pot of soup or casserole on the weekend, then freeze it in batches to have for dinners later in the week? I'm thinking something that just cooks on the stove for ages, not needing your supervision. At least then your cooking is out of the way before your week gets hectic.
posted by harriet vane at 3:53 AM on October 27, 2008

A rellie used something similar to the Diet Factory last year (the name escapes me, but it's a national company if that helps - maybe Lite n' Easy?). It is rather pricey as I remember, but he was really pleased with the variety and quality of the food. His wife started using the program as well after a while, not because she needed to lose weight but because it was ridiculously convenient and the food really was yummy. Definitely nutritionally balanced and with plenty of variety.
posted by different at 10:33 AM on October 27, 2008

Thanks guys. Pretty much what I thought. Re: the soup, nice idea, but I really am over cooking, after doing it for the last 20 years+, and I'd be the one ending up with the same meal over and over, while Mr b33j ended up with tasty, yummy, frozen food.
posted by b33j at 6:45 PM on October 27, 2008

I don't really know... But seriously, give Lite and Easy a BIG miss. Their health and hygiene standards/practices are just shocking. If people aren't sick it's just dumb luck and not due to any kind of diligence on their part (And that's just the tip of the iceberg. But really, what more do you need to know!)
posted by mu~ha~ha~ha~har at 10:11 PM on October 27, 2008

I will buck the system and suggest you fork out the dosh for a dietician visit for you both.... do a food diary for two weeks before you go... it saves you an extra appointment when they tell you to go away and come back with one...

The money you will save will be because a dietician will give you specific advice that relates to specific brands and stop you buying garbage that harms your weight loss program. And they'll help you make super dooper menu choices when you go out to dinner or want to break out of diet mode and have a sugar hit.

Cannot recommend this highly enough. It's not that expensive to see one, ask your g.p. for a trusted local one.
posted by taff at 12:06 AM on October 28, 2008