Critique: Marie Callender’s Herb Roasted Chicken

Whoa there partner! What we got here is perhaps the all American meal! Chicken with the bone in, corn and mashed pertaters! Wow! And, at only about four dollars per this could be a real steal. Or could it? Only way to find out will be to stick her in the microwave and see what’s up the old skirt.

Right off the bat, I’m a little confused when the box directions say to cut a slit over the vegetables. Are they talking just the corn or would that also include the pertaters? OK, then, I’m going to guess they mean just the corn since the mashed potatoes are in there together all cozy-like with them chicken parts.  Next, you  are instructed to nuke this baby on high for four minutes, then you stir them potatoes like there’s no tomorrow and then you reseal and give ‘er another go in the microwave for bout three minutes or so. Then, ya’ll get ready to eat!

Here I have a picture of the finished meal. Hmm. Maybe the arrangement could use some work. Well, who really cares…as long as it tastes good. (Remembering now, this whole shebang cost me four bucks, so you get what you pay for…)

So, how did it taste. That, after all, is the point of any food critique!

Nutritionally, you’re getting it in the old caboose with this dish. I’m sorry to have to report that the cholesterol is at 45% of your daily needs while the salt is almost a third. Not very good numbers if you’re watch either. The caloric content stands at 470, so that puts this offering pretty far up the scale for just one meal.

As to the taste! Well, that was a bit of a disappointment also. The taters looked and tasted like toothpaste (perhaps I didn’t stir them enough or more likely they were not very good to begin with)! The chicken was just OK while the corn was the only part of the meal I really did enjoy. Sorry to say, this one will not be revisiting my humble place in the near future. Scored only a 6 or less!

Update: March 27, 2013 - And yes, I decided to give this meal another chance. Call me crazy...

The meal (on sale) cost just $2.50! Wow! I'm guessing that's a good deal. Right?  I prepared it as before, but this time I made sure to add some butter to the mashed potatoes.

The results:  The chicken - just acceptable - still not sure where the 'thigh' portion originates on the chicken. The potatoes - well, any portion you don't eat could be used as bondo for your car, perhaps. The corn - great as it was last time! Bottom line, even at $2.50, this dish should get a pass.

Update: October 30, 2013 - No small amount of time has now passed since I last made the mistake of purchasing this meal from Marie Callender. But, as a testament to my short memory - I bought this sucker again! I figured that perhaps, since it's so close to Halloween I might be able to resurrect it from the dead. Well, it was a thought anyway.

Sadly, this meal was identical to the previous two, even down to the mysterious piece of chicken stuck firmly in the middle of the mashed taters....

Update: January 12, 2015 -  The cost of this mysterious meal was $2.99, but this time things had

changed! I was able to discern quite clearly what the chicken parts were! Swimming in a sluggish sea of mashed pertaters was a thigh and a leg! Clear, Marie C must be following my blog and mended their ways by offering real chicken parts! And, OK, perhaps it was the passage of time in that the meal had improved to some extent. Still, it will always remain a weird sort of duck as you have to fish around for the chicken in all them potatoes! A messy meal that requires lots of napkins for sure.