Simply Enjoy Pad Thai with Chicken

July 18, 2007 | Reviewer: Nicole

Price: $2.50 (on sale)
Serving: 1 package, 10.58 oz.
Calories: 300
Fat: 11%, 7g
Sodium: 41%, 980mg
Protein: 13g
Carbs: 16%, 49g
Fiber: 8%, 2g
Sugar: 12g

Simply Enjoy says: Our Chicken Pad Thai is made with deliciously seasoned white chicken tenderloins that are simmered in authentic Thai-style peanut sauce. Served on a bed of traditional rice noodles this tangy-sweet Thai-style dish is destined to become a favorite with your friends and family

Nicole says: A great frozen Pad Thai is kind of like angels or wood nymphs. You maintain a secret, romantic hope that it/they is/are out there, but you know it’s a longer shot than Moses parting the Red Sea. So why was I excited about this meal?

Simply Enjoy has a pretty good track record here at HER headquarters. Their Indian entrees are pretty freaking amazing - nicely spiced sauces, good meat, and generous starch portions.

The Pad Thai with Chicken has a generous starch portion and I was excited that they actually used rice noodles rather than throwing peanuts and fish sauce over fettuccine. But the noodles didn’t come out great, instead they could only be described as rubbery. I suspect they were slightly overcooked, a likelihood since rice noodles do cook more quickly than wheat-based noodles. And speaking of overcooking, one section of sauce heavy noodles hardened in a slightly burned mass. I tried to eat it, but you try choking down burnt peanuts and hard noodles. It isn’t pretty.

This is a standard Simply Enjoy chicken portion - four medium large pieces of chicken (each slightly smaller than a stapler remover) and a couple of tiny pieces. The chicken’s got a decent texture and maintains some juiciness but little flavor - we depend on the sauce for that.

The sauce here is the real disappointment, though. Pad Thai? I should have known that “sweet-tangy” in the description wasn’t just a misprint. This meal tastes like sweet and sour sauce with peanuts thrown in. We have a few decent Thai restaurants in DC, so I fancy myself a decent judge of pad thai sauce. I’ve even made it once myself (surprisingly easy!). This is simply not Pad Thai sauce. There is the slightest hint of fish sauce, a heavy sweetness, and a tang (vinegar?). There are peanuts, but they are overcooked, robbing them of any crunch and most flavor.

I simply did not enjoy this meal, will not purchase again, and would not recommend to anyone. Unless you want mediocre, mislabeled sweet and sour chicken. Even then, I’m certain there are better mediocre sweet and sour chicken meals. And I suggest that those Canadians stick to Indian cuisine.

[For better mediocre sweet and sour chicken meals, check out Jess’s reviews of Lean Cuisine’s Sweet and Sour Chicken and Kashi’s Sweet and Sour Chicken. It appears that Jess is the Queen of all things Sweet and Sour at HeatEatReview.com -Ed.]

comments

7 Responses to “Simply Enjoy Pad Thai with Chicken”

Colleen on July 20th, 2007

I would like to know what happened to the healthy choice cafe steamers review. It it just me or did it dissapear? Please put it back. =(
Colleen on July 20th, 2007

Woops! My bad! I was thinking of something I read on the iateapie site. Disregaurd my comment. =)
Crow on July 20th, 2007

Disregaurd General Beauregard.
Crow on July 20th, 2007

Get it, cause there’s a reflective dichotomy based on the misspelling of the first.
MaryAnne on July 20th, 2007

Colleen, I read the Iateapie steamer review and confused it for being on this website as well. I’m waiting though to see what Abi and her crew think of them considering Healthy Choice doesn’t seem to be a favorite around here… or anywhere for the matter.
Simply Enjoy Pad Thai with Chicken 2 | HeatEatReview.com on August 8th, 2007

[…] also reviewed this meal, giving the Simply Enjoy Pad Thai only 1 star. I recommend that you check out past reviews by both Nicole and Jenn to figure out who […]
Becky on August 31st, 2007

I’m gonna have to go with Nicole on this one (sorry Jenn). This was actually the worst microwaved meal I’ve ever had. I am usually a bit of a garbage disposal, but I couldn’t even finish this, and it was all because of the sauce. I too belatedly saw the sweet/tangy description on the box, and that explained a lot since normal pad thai isn’t really sweet or tangy. My first two experiences with Simply Enjoy were this and the cashew (hardly any) chicken. I’m less than impressed.