Orange You Gonna Say You Love Me? (Contessa Orange Chicken)

Ian’s Natural Foods, based in Lawrence, Massachusetts, has launched a line of frozen meals designed strictly for kids. Free of artificial colors and flavors, preservatives and trans fats, Ian’s is promoting a program called “I’m a Superfit Kid,” which is supported by games on their website (iansnaturalfoods.com) and materials located on the product boxes themselves. Ian’s “snack” or entree line includes Mini Hamburgers, Mini Cheeseburgers, Mini Chicken Patty Sandwiches, Chicken Nuggets and Fish Sticks. The meals line matches the entrees with a potato dish called “Alphatots,” (allergen-free) a vegetable and a dessert, and features the Hamburger Meal, the Chicken Nugget Meal, Fish Stick Meal, and Pizza Meal. Specialty entrees and meals – all wheat and gluten-free – include the Chicken Nuggets, Fish Sticks and Popcorn Turkey Corn Dog entrees/snacks, and the Chicken Finger Meal and Popcorn Turkey Corn Dog Meals. For busy moms with kids who are sensitive or allergy-prone, check out Ian’s at your local supermarket.

Now, on to Contessa's Orange Chicken...

As you may recall, I tried out Contessa’s Kung Pao Shrimp some time back with mixed results. I loved the spiciness, the shrimp was surprisingly good, firm and sweet-fleshed, but I was a very unhappy about the inclusion of nearly a cup of onions to add cheap volume with few calories to the meal. Despite the purported 3 servings per bag, there wasn’t really enough to feed both me and my husband, and since we’re not big eaters, that’s saying something.

I viewed my next experiment with Contessa – the Orange Chicken - with some trepidation. In fairness to Contessa, they are hardly the first food company to tackle frozen “Chinese” cuisine with at-best lukewarm success, but I’m a New Yorker by birth if not by current residence, and I’m pretty spoiled when it comes to excellent “Chinese” food. So, hang on to your knickers when I tell you – this meal is really, really good.

Yep, outstanding. Not just “okay,” not just acceptable…tasty beyond all measure of what I had expected.

Having experienced some watery results with previous Contessa meals when microwaved, I prepared this meal in the skillet, and I was very glad I did. The meal comes with separate bags of white rice, battered/breaded chicken, vegetables, and the orange sauce. Note: do NOT follow Contessa’s stove-top instructions for the white rice, save yourself some brain damage and just follow the microwave instructions for that part of the meal. I followed their stovetop rice instructions and nearly burned the rice because I was busy preparing the chicken portion – so use the microwave, it works perfectly for the rice portion and you don’t have to watch it while you’re stirring the chicken and vegetables.

I followed the skillet instructions, using a cooking spray (Pam) for my trusty frying pan. I sautéed (fried) the battered chicken pieces for 5 minutes, then added the vegetables (consisting of broccoli, red peppers, baby corn, water chestnuts and shredded carrots) and sautéed for another 5 minutes. You then simply add the thawed bag of sauce, stir for 30 seconds or until heated through, and the meal is ready.

I expected the meal to be sweet- what I didn’t expect was that the chicken would be tender but the batter coating would be crispy, the vegetables would still have snap, and the sauce would not only be orange-y but also have some spicy bite, which is just about perfect for Orange Chicken (which can go so wrong at so many bad restaurants). The orange sauce had even caramelized on some of the chicken, which added to the impression of professionally-prepared Chinese food.

The bag claims to contain three servings, but I think that’s stretching it a mite. The two of us did not finish off the contents, but it’s more like 2½ servings than three. If you need to stretch it, I would suggest adding some rice or a complementary side dish, perhaps something savory (salty). Only 2 grams of fat per 8-ounce serving, (about 1¾ cups), 230 calories, 11 grams of protein and 41 grams of carbohydrate…this is a dish you should really try.

Do you have a product you want reviewed? A comment? A story to suggest? Email Auntie! We welcome any and all suggestions, comments and ideas.

Find Frozen Food, Prepared Meals and TV Dinner reviews along with complete nutritional product information at The Icebox Diner.