Lean Cuisine Lemongrass Chicken

January 30, 2007 | Reviewer: Nicole

Price: $1.50 (sale)
Serving: 1 meal, 9 3/8 oz.
Calories: 250
Fat: 8%, 6g
Cholesterol: 9%, 30mg
Sodium: 25%, 610mg
Protein: 18g
Carbohydrates: 10%, 30g
Fiber: 16%, 4g
WW Points: 5 Points

Lean Cuisine says: Roasted Chicken tenderloins in a lemongrass coconut sauce served over brown rice with broccoli,carrots,baby corn and yellow carrots.

Nicole says: LC is trying really hard on presentation, it appears. Was that a pun? No really, youYs meal was something consumed on Iron Chef.

But seriously - they include carrots AND yellow carrots. Why? Color. And, though it’s not mentioned in the description, you can see in the picture and in your meal that a few pieces of red pepper are thrown into the veggie mix - so few and such small pieces that they cannot possibly exist for taste. The mix is fine, though - the broccoli is firm and tasty, the baby corn is the best baby corn I’ve ever had - seriously - and the carrots are okay.

This whole-grain-brown-rice business is interesting as well. It almost feels like they’re trying to compete with the seven grain pilaf from Kashi. They didn’t do a terrible job - the rice is appropriately moist, has a nice texture - but it’s not brown, actually. It’s the opposite, dyslexic vesion of “like white on rice” - it’s off-white rice.

The lemongrass coconut sauce is basically drowning the chicken. This is probably a good thing, because after cooking the chicken maintained a moist texture, and the (probably artificial) good chicken flavor is actually locked into the meat. This meal included three or four medium bouncy ball sized “tenderloins” and four or five smaller pieces of chicken (think jacks or smaller). The lemongrass coconut sauce has a lovely flavor - you do get a hint of fruit, but it concentrated on lemongrass, and it’s neither heavy nor light. There is plenty of sauce included if you are so inclined to soak your vegetables, but most veggies stayed separate from the meat and sauce during cooking, so it was optional.

This meal did not quite fill me up - I’d say I was maybe 3/4 full. Not bad. But I betcha $5 I’ll be hungry again in three hours. Luckily, I have a fruit cup in the work fridge.This is a tasty meal, and considering the low calorie count, reasonably filling.

comments

6 Responses to “Lean Cuisine Lemongrass Chicken”

Jenn on January 31st, 2007

I was scared to try this specifically because I’ve never had a good baby corn experience. Oddly enough, I too thought it was the best baby corn I’ve ever had.
Val! on February 28th, 2007

Ok so literally I am eating this right now. The Chicken is frighteningly processed tho! Reminds me of McDonalds Nuggets!! =( (but tastes way better, thank you over-powering and very flavorful sauce!) I only wish I hadnt been so starving upon arriving home that I ate chips n salsa, salad, a Goya cracker, and soem pieces of chicken from leftovers while this was heating up - id prolly have enjoyed it more ;>
Arg!!

I love this site
Anne on March 16th, 2007

I am no longer a meat-eater, but this was a rather nice entree when I was.

While the chicken is obviously processed, it’s not nearly as rubbery and fake as other brands. The sauce was very tasty for a frozen dinner, and the fresh veggies really pleased me. The rice wasn’t bad either, but I stirred it in the sauce to up the satisfaction. When it comes to your tastebuds, the mix of flavors and textures was really nice.
Nutrition wise, it’s not bad. This meal is low-carloie and easy in fat, and has whole-grain starches. It is processed, but less than several other choices. Yet what really impressed me is that this little tray packs 2 servings of veggies! Make it a meal with crisp water and some romaine salad with vinegarette, and you can feel full knowing you were eating right.

I’d give it 4, but only because I don’t eat meat anymore.
Trader Joe's Thai Style Lemon Grass Chicken | HeatEatReview.com on August 10th, 2007

[…] again but next time I’m at TJ’s, I might throw one in the basket OR I might just try one of the Lemongrass Chickens that Nicole already […]
Becky on December 11th, 2007

This is one of my FAVORITE Lean Cuisines - I just mix everything together into a giant chicken, veggie, rice, gravy pile and devour it. The rice is just too dry to eat on its own, in my opinion…but it’s got a cool texture…I like it!
Dave Ross on February 8th, 2008

Becky literally took the exact words out of my mouth: the only way to eat this meal is by mixing it all together into one dreamy curry-style meal - simply amazing.

I’ve bought these about once a week for the past few months, just to have in the house (i live in Fairbanks Alaska…), and they’ve consistently been great! The sauce is (as others have stated) quite light, but fairly complex, and the chicken is almost always moist and not chewy.

At any rate, I’m a 28 year old graduate student and I love this meal!