Smart Ones Swedish Meatballs

March 19, 2007 | Reviewer: Adina

Price: $2.00
Serving: 1 meal, 9.12 oz.
Calories: 270
Fat: 8%, 5g
Cholesterol: 10%, 30mg
Sodium: 30%, 730mg
Protein: 20g
Carbs: 12%, 35g
Fiber: 10%, 3g
WW Points: 5 Points

Smart Ones says: It’s comfort at its very best; flavorful meatballs tossed with waves of pasta and drenched in a rich sour cream sauce. So delicious, so satisfying, and another little way you can be good today.

Adina says: No matter how many times I eat this meal, I can never get it to cook all the way through on the first try. I always end up sticking it back in the microwave for at least another minute. And then the plastic starts to melt a little bit into the food, which is fine with me as long as it adds some kick to the otherwise bland sauce.

Which brings me to the sauce. I love how they describe it as a ‘rich sour cream sauce’. I don’t know what kind of sour cream sauce their grandma used to feed them, but the ones I have encountered usually make my arteries clog on sight. I mean that in a positive way. Smart Ones’ sauce is a watery excuse for gravy. Don’t get me wrong, I still make sure I get every drop of it into my belly, it’s just not that good.

I think the reason why I dislike most Smart Ones meals that feature meat is because I don’t like to chew on rubber. No matter how many microwave meals I eat, I will never get used to putting a meatball in my mouth and wondering, “Did I just accidentally eat a bouncy ball?” That is not natural or a comfortable office experience.

I think the saving grace of this meal is the noodles. They are not typical wide noodles but truly little waves of happiness and joy. They are thick and make the sauce almost taste like sauce. Maybe the starch thickens it or maybe they are magic noodles, I don’t know. All I know is that I don’t mind eating this meal so long as those thick ribbons of pasta are entering my body.

Overall, I like the Lean Cuisine Swedish Meatballs over the Smart Ones’. The Lean Cuisine noodles aren’t as thick, but you get six meatballs instead of five and I don’t think they can double as bouncy balls.

comments

6 Responses to “Smart Ones Swedish Meatballs”

Jessica on March 19th, 2007

Swedish Meatballs have always been my favorite frozen meal (some kind of childhood thing, I think), and I agree for a low fat/calorie meal LC are the best. But if you’re willing to spend all your daily fat and sodium calories on a not-so-filling frozen meal, then the original Stouffers is the way to go.
Ginia on March 20th, 2007

The Stouffers Swedish meatballs are AWESOME. The fat and calorie contents are off the charts, but damn, those are some good meatballs. I personally avoid Smart Ones — you can’t make anything taste good with one gram of fat.
Andrea on June 6th, 2007

I tried this for the first time yesterday and even after 3 stirs and over 5 minutes, I couldnt get it hot all the way through! I think its hysterical that I’m not the only one. I only stumbled across this review doing a search for Lean Cuisine. You’ve got some great information and great recommendations!
jo on January 1st, 2008

In Sweden you would never get meatballs with pasta. In that case, we’d call them Italian. It’s supposed to be potatoes and cream sauce and lingonberry jam!
Marie on January 31st, 2008

Stouffers Swedish meatballs are the absolute BEST. Why I continue to try others is beyond me. I tried the Smart Ones recently and they were the worst I have ever had. Unfortunately, I bought two - threw away the first one after a few bites, and then threw away the second one. AWFUL!
Nia on August 5th, 2008

i’m actually eating this meal as i’m reading this, and you’re totally right, i’ve just gotten into low calorie tv dinners and most of the ones i tried i liked until this one, i was thinking maybe they just didn’t like it but no, i can obviously see i’m not in the minority on this meal