Can you believe that I didn’t have real Indian or Thai food until I was in college? I’m still trying to get over the fact that these foods weren’t introduced into rural Oregon until the late 90’s. This list will guide you to the best pan-Asian frozen meals. And yes, that is a Panda. I’m taking the day off today and my mom and I are going to see Tai Shan. We’re also going to Mt. Vernon, but I think she’s more excited about the panda.

1. Trader Joe’s Jaipur Vegetables and Garlic Naan - Amy says: I could do this review in 3 words: “explosion of flavor”.
2. Curry Classics Chicken Tikka Masala - This meal, which is no longer available in the DC area, is one of the best frozen Indian meals I’ve ever consumed.
3. Green Guru Paneer Tikka Masala is also super-delicious. It isn’t available with rice anymore and is now produced under the ‘Tandoor Chef’ brand. So much for obvious vegetarian options.
4. Amy’s Kitchen Mattar Paneer - As Jess says “This is my ‘go to’ meal when I know I’m looking forward to rough waves on the sea of life. I know that this meal will at least guarantee a happy lunching experience and sometimes that’s enough of an incentive to keep on keeping on.” read the rest of this review…
5. Kashi Sweet and Sour Chicken - It’s like eating Chinese food in Arizona. Or like eating BBQ in a Chinese restaurant. Or perhaps like neither of these things. read the rest of this review…
6. Trader Joe’s Chicken Gyoza Potstickers - Yum. Yum. Yum. Yeah, they contain gray meat. I don’t care.
7. Green Guru Channa Masala - While Kate’s review is beautiful in its simplicity, the comment under the review is even better.
8. Lean Cuisine Sweet and Sour Chicken - Jess says “My mom has this ridiculous obsession with Americanized Chinese food. Literally this woman could eat Chinese -style food for every meal, every day of the week, and be completely content with her life.” read the rest of this review…
9. Trader Joe’s Chicken Tandoori with Spinach - I had another one of these the other day. It no longer contains peas and there was even more chicken. It isn’t a ton of food, but pair it with a piece of fruit and a chocolate bar and you’ve got a scrumptious lunch.
10. Lean Cuisine Chicken in Peanut Sauce - It was like running through a peanuty, wheat field on a sunny Spring day. At least, that’s what Jess claims.

These meals all contain rice. They are all tasty. Enjoy HeatEatReview’s list of the top-ten rice-containing meals of 2006 and take a moment to check out the website of the International Rice Research Institute. Nearly half of Earth’s population relies on rice, the third largest crop in the world.

1. Amy’s Kitchen Mattar Paneer
2. Lean Cuisine Chicken Portabello
3. Lean Cuisine Orange Peel Chicken
4. Amy’s Kitchen Santa Fe Enchilada Bowl
5. Curry Classics Chicken Biryani - now under the Tandoor Chef brand
6. Stouffer’s Chicken Monterey
7. Trader Ming’s (Joe’s) Spicy Kung Pao Chicken
8. Lean Cuisine Fiesta Grilled Chicken
9. Trader Joe’s Chicken Tandoori with Spinach
10. Lean Cuisine Vegetable Eggroll - very good rice, mushy egg roll

Thanks to Matt for the idea to make a rice-focused list.

Before you begin reading this entry, please check out this post from the Best of Craigslist. Don’t worry, we’ll wait for you. Back? Oh, you didn’t click on the link? Click on the link and read the social networking guidelines! Don’t worry, it is safe for work.

With those guidelines in mind, HeatEatReview.com has entered the social networking world. Yes, we have a MySpace page. Two things we have noticed:

1. Hmmm, there are some cute people in the HeatEatReview.com friend list.
2. I can’t think of a second part.
3. Oh yeah, we only have one guy friend. Hmmf.

So, check out our MySpace page and become friends with HeatEatReview.com. Really, I’d like to see who is out there, reading what we’ve been writing.

At HeatEatReview.com, we’re always on the hunt for the latest convenience foods. In fact, if ‘Eat’ wasn’t the middle name of this blog, it would be ‘Convenience’. Except that HeatConvenienceReview has issues as a name: A) It sounds dumb. B) Typing ‘convenience’ is pretty inconvenient. So, we stick with the darn cute name of HeatEatReview.com.

In the vein of convenience loving (aka laziness) on this site we’ll be taking part in National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) this November. What, you’ve never heard of NaBloPoMo? Well, it was inspired by National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). During NaNoWriMo, people all over the world try to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. While we’ve endured Hungry-Man dinners and taste-tested odoriferous noodles, we are not insane enough to try to write a novel in the month of November.

Instead of participating in that craziness, we’re doing NaBloPoMo and promising to feature a new post every day in November. Yes, that’s an increase of more than 100% in our posting (currently 3x a week) schedule. November will include breakfast foods (woo!) on weekends, a Trader Joe’s festival (2 weeks of TJ’s), the announcement of our contest winner, and some surprises that I’d tell you about, but then they wouldn’t be surprises.

We look forward to hearing from you during the month of November.

Sincerely,
Abi Jones
Editor, www.HeatEatReview.com

For more info about NaBloPoMo, check out Fussy.org. What, you’re not a regular reader of Fussy.org? Ok, start your addiction with these entries:

1. I gave birth in my own bathroom
2. I am a “crafter,” subcategory “beader.”
3. Mystery Bathroom Shoes