Sainsburys Rich and Creamy Indian Meal

...a quick shopping trip to sainsburys and decided to give it a try. At only £6.99 for two, it's a lot cheaper than my local Indian takeaway plus you get nectar points. The equivalent meal from the restaurant would cost me in excess of £28, there is usually a double portion of chicken korma though, but in comparison Sainsburys do save your pocket quite a few pounds.

There are Sainsbury supermarket stores everywhere so finding this product ...
...online delivery service at www.sainsburys.co.uk.


For those of you calorie counting, I have included the calories and the amount of fat in each category. For those not concerned, just by pass those lines and quickly!

>>>>How to recognise the product:>>>>>

The cardboard "take away" box measures approx 11 ½ inches across and 5 ¾ inches in length. The sides are ... more

I am not one to buy ready prepared dinners, tending to cook most meals myself. However, there does come an evening when even the most regular cooks amongst us want a night off from the oven.

This product was actually recommended to me by a friend who lives on ready-made foods. I noticed the box of tricks whilst on a quick shopping trip to sainsburys and decided to give it a try. At only £6.99 for two, it's a lot cheaper than my local Indian takeaway plus you get nectar points. The equivalent meal from the restaurant would cost me in excess of £28, there is usually a double portion of chicken korma though, but in comparison Sainsburys do save your pocket quite a few pounds.

There are Sainsbury supermarket stores everywhere so finding this product shouldn't be too hard. You can also order via Sainsbury's online delivery service at www.sainsburys.co.uk.

For those of you calorie counting, I have included the calories and the amount of fat in each category. For those not concerned, just by pass those lines and quickly!

>>>>How to recognise the product:>>>>>

The cardboard "take away" box measures approx 11 ½ inches across and 5 ¾ inches in length. The sides are sealed and you open the box by releasing the slits at the top which are locked through a cardboard handle. This is a similar design to the McDonalds Happy Meal container.

The colours are bright and predominantly fuchsia pink (don't let this put you off gentleman). On the front is a picture of a cooked version of the meal and on the left side. On the right side is a description of the nutritional qualities and the rear tells you how to cook your dinner.

Though quite bulky the box itself isn't that heavy and is easily opened. The contents are placed in a tidy order and are easy to remove. Once the box is used it can recycled.

>>>>The Contents:>>>>>
1 x tray butter chicken
1 x tray chicken Korma
1 x 3 colour pilau rice
2 x naan bread
6 x onion bhajia

Butter chicken and chicken korma

The oval shaped trays measure 6 inches across and 20 inches in length. To cook the dishes, simply pierce the plastic lid several times and place inside a hot oven on gas 5/ 190 c/ 375 F for 25 minutes. Both trays fit length ways quite adequately inside your oven. You can also microwave these for various times depending on your model of microwave. Refer to the rear of the box for full details as many types of times and wattage are listed here. For personal preference I prefer to oven cook.
The ingredients for the korma are 40 % chicken breast, vegetable oil, ginger, garlic, coconut milk, and yoghurt. The Korma is higher in calories, coming in at 355 cals per half tray and 24.2 g fat, ouch!
The butter chicken is also 40% chicken breast, coriander, tomato puree, paprika, turmeric, single cream and butter. Half of the tray equals 271 calories/ 16 g fat.

Pilau Rice
The rice comes in plastic tub with a sealed lid. The colours are purple and lilac and the tub is 4 inches long and weighs 500g. The three colours of the rice are orange, red and pink. The rice used is basmati, flavoured with cardamom, cloves, turmeric and cloves.

To cook, heat a small drop of oil in a pan and stir-fry for about 5 minutes on a low heat. The orange segments of the rice turn to a caramelised texture and the colour changes to a dark gold. You must stir the pan continuous but the aroma of the spices is well worth the standing time at the hob. As the rice cooks there is slight crackle, this is usually at the end of the cooking time, a good indication as to serve your dish. Try and judge the cooking time with the chicken so you can serve both dishes together and hot. For half the tub of rice (remember this is for two people) you will eat 360 calories and 4.6 grams of fat.

Onion Bhaji's:
There are six in total, quite small but almost perfectly round. I was shocked to see they have 90 calories in each and have 5.4 g of fat. If that doesn't deter you from eating then carry on and cut the sleeve off the plastic container and remove the bhaji's. Place them on a baking tray for around 10 minutes or till hot and crispy. Cook alongside the chicken dishes.
The bhajia ingredients are onion, ginger, garlic, cloves and turmeric.

Naan Bread:
Two of these delicious plain flat breads, not as big as the local tandori restaurants deliver but never the less quite adequate in size. Sealed in a plastic sleeve, please remove this before heating. The breads can be heated in the oven two minutes before you are ready to serve. They do not require cooking as the other dishes, just re-heat. I tend to place mine in the toaster drizzled with water so they puff up slightly. The bread is made from wheat flour and cows milk. Though not over large they still offer you 329 calories per bread. The fat content is 11.3 g which surprised me considerably, not enough to stop me consuming the product though.

>>>>Ready to eat:>>>>>>

Now for the taste test. The rice is by far the most aromatic of dishes. The combination of spices are quite over powering, especially during cooking. Lots of cardamom seeds present. The rice swells during cooking and the grains are quite misleading in that they actually double in portion size. Not sure if I was to blame for adding extra oil, but this time the grains felt greasy, still very edible but with more calories added unintentionally. If you find this, just lay a piece of kitchen tissue over the top once cooked and soak up any excess grease.

The bright yellow chicken korma is not over loaded with huge chunks of chicken, more watery sauce than pieces of meat. I counted 12 small chunks of fatless meat in the tray. The chicken consistency is rubbery and thick, hard to chew at first but then once mixed with the sauce, it slides down the gullet well. The sauce is not too sweet as most kormas usually are but the turmeric is quite pungent and over powering. During cooking I could hardly smell the aroma of herbs and spices, slightly disappointing as I was hoping to fill the kitchen with smells of the Punjab. Be careful not to spill any sauce on your clothes, the turmeric will stain and is very, very hard to remove.

The butter chicken has a bit of a kick to it, not mouth burning but enough spices to make your tongue tingle. The chicken chunks are the same size and the same amount as the korma but the meat seems to peel away in your mouth, rather than need chewing.

The dark red sauce is packed with spices and herbs and much thicker in consistency . I used the remainder of the sauce to dip my naan bread into and my fingers have regretted it. My nails and palms are now a smoker's shade of ginger and this stain lasted until the next day, fading slowly.
I had imagined this to feel greasy when eating but I was wrong, it was cooked to perfection and just the right amount of butter added. Out of the two dishes, I found this one the most moorish, which surprised me, as I tend to prefer the Korma based sauces.

Not so keen on the side dish of onion bharji's. I cannot eat anything grease based for fear of triggering off a stomach problem and these small balls of onion delight are packed full of oil. They smell exceptionally strong, not so much of onion but of the spices used. Once inside the colouring is very bright, almost yellow infact. The rusty brown outer shell of the bharji is not crispy enough, infact its rather soggy in appearance.

The spices are quite hot as you bite into the onion and the slices just crumble onto your tongue. It's at this point that the grease trickles down your throat. Sounds repulsive, well I think so and perhaps that's why I always place these on my husband's dish, he does have a cast iron stomach unlike me.

The naan has onion seeds as one of its ingredients and there are quite a few inside each bread. It adds a slight flavour of onion but not over powering. If it wasn't for the seeds the bread would be quite bland. A good size bread though and perfect for the last drops of sauce on your plate. Very easy to chew and soon fills you up to the point of feeling bloated, bliss …………

>>>To conclude:>>>>

Not as tasty as the local tandori and the chicken is not as high quality but then the prices between the two are quite considerable. The portions are a good size, enough for three persons at a push or for two as its states, quite comfortably.
As a once in a while treat I would definitely recommend it, especially at only £6.99. As it is quite high in calories and fat then I cannot stress enough for us calorie counters out there, just how fattening a Sainsbury's meal for two can be. However calories aside, it really is quite delicious and very filling.
As for cooking and preparing, I know you still have a small amount of re-heating to do but its not rocket science and once the containers have been used, just bin them, hence no mess.
Too much plastic for my liking though, Sainsbury's have over done it. Not so good for the environment as only the box the food comes in can be recycled.
If your taste buds are curious to try this meal for two, you can find it around the refrigeration section in the main stores or even at the petrol station where I found my box of edible delights.

>>>A warning to nut allergy sufferers:>>>>

Basically be very careful if you have an intolerance of any sort. The box does state that the meal contains milk, nuts, soya, egg and gluten and it is written in a red warning box near the ingredient listing. There are however no GM ingredients and the rice is naturally coloured.

>>>>Some additional extras:>>>>>

Thoroughly recommended to accompany your meal, one bottle minimum of any alcoholic white wine, and poppadoms with Sharwoods mango chutney to dip with.
If you are not completely stuffed to bursting point after your meal, then a tub of Hagen Daz cookies and cream ice cream goes down a treat and complements your meal perfectly.

Enjoy. X

Sainsbury helpline:

0800 636262

Sainsbury Supermarkets
33 Holburn
London EC1N 2HT.

 

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