Price: $3.49
Serving: 1/2 package, 3 oz.
Calories: 270
Fat: 10%, 6g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0 mg
Sodium: 28%, 680mg
Protein: 5g
Carbs: 16%, 47g
Fiber: 15%, 3g

A Taste of India says: Enjoy real Indian cuisine anytime, anywhere. We’ve included all the ingredients and flavors. Just microwave and eat, in one container!

Amanda says: I should start off by saying that I am a huge fan of Indian food. I say this because some people simply aren’t, and therefore would dislike just about any heat and eat Indian style meal put in front of them. So I wanted to like this meal. I wanted to like it because finding a new favorite quick and easy lunch meal is like my own personal Eureka! moment where Archimedes comes out of his grave and we high five reveling in the discovery. This meal, however, is a disappointment.

The ingredients list includes (but is not limited to): jasmine rice, pink lentils, onion, ginger, garlic, garam masala, coriander, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, bay leaf, red chili and coconut milk powder. “Masala” in Indian foods refers to the spice blend used to flavor it, in other words, this box could read: Spiced Indian Rice and Lentils. So the “garam masala” on the ingredients list is essentially the most important when it comes to how this meal should taste. Thanks to our friend Wikipedia, I can tell you that Garam masala’s literal meaning is “hot (or warm) spice” and, interestingly enough, pretty much consists of all of the flavors listed separately on the package: cardamom, garlic, ginger, turmeric, bay leaves, cumin etc. So, assuming you are like me and really dig the blend of this seasoning, it sounds delicious!

But here’s the truth: the flavor is delicate, but boring, and completely devoid of any hint of warmth or intense spice. I got the feeling that while this company wants you to have a “Taste of India” they’re nervous that you won’t like it, so at the last minute they removed most of the Indian-ness from the meal and stuck with bland sweetness. There’s simply too much cinnamon and too much coconut milk powder. The rice fluffs up and fills the container a good bit- but is slightly dry and gritty. It’s a subtle fault for microwave instant rice; but because the rice comprises the entire meal, it’s sort of hard to get past. There was absolutely no discernable need for the lentils. There were maybe fifty tiny lentils in the entire meal and I couldn’t tell you anything about any of them. They were there, but I’m not sure why.

I also get really frustrated with companies whose meals consistently come as “2 servings” in one package. If this package of Masala Rice and Lentils is supposed to be shared between two people, why do we heat and eat out of the same box and advertise that as its great achievement? Typically when I come across a meal that’s really 2 in 1, I eat the entire thing because I’m not full otherwise. But this was a lot of rice. I got most of the way through it because I was hungry but towards the last 3/4 cup of rice I just kind of felt like letting it all fall out of my mouth right there onto my keyboard, and maybe moaning a little bit or whimpering pathetically because I was just tired of it- the grit, the sweetness, the mystery lentils. Since my office though, is right up front with two huge windows looking in on me, I instead opted to chew and swallow for the last time tossing the remained in the trash.

I give this meal 2 stars for trying to offer the heat and eat world something different, but hope they’ll go back to the drawing board and adjust the flavors. I mean, if you’re going to advertise yourself as giving us a Taste of India, let’s have it.

Thanks to Abi Jones for sending this meal my way.

Price: 0.69 Euros
Serving: 100g, about 1/4 of the can
Calories: 115
Fat: 6.3g
Sodium: 500mg
Protein: 4.5g

Amy says: Well folks, HeatEatReview.com has officially gone international and Abi has designated me your foreign correspondent. The Combino Macaroni Cheese (no, it is not macaroni and cheese) is available in Ireland, but I picked it up at a German market which leads me to believe that it may be available in Deutscheland as well. As I type this, Yanni the pug is keeping me company. Yanni was deeply covetous of the macaroni cheese, but I refused to succumb to her begging for HeatEatReview’s sake and consumed the entire can. Fortunately for me, there are no daily percentages on european products so while I knew what I was eating terrible for my mind, body and maybe even soul, I had no idea just how bad it was. Ignorance is bliss.

This is the second mac and cheese item I have reviewed for this site and let me tell you, this one came in second place. The sauce was runny and the noodles were mushy. The taste wasn’t terrible, but after partaking in some of my auntie’s homemade mac and cheese over the weekend I should have known better than to start my international reviews on this low note. Perhaps I am being overly critical, I did finish off the entire can, despite its’ recommendation that I eat only 1/4 of it. It reminded me of a crappy watered-down version of Chef Boy Ardee and Mr. Ardee would not get 5 stars on this HeatEatReview.com, unless maybe Nicole was reviewing the meal. She loves that junk. I would eat this meal again seeing as how it was under a dollar and I am incredibly broke at the moment, but if you have a euro or so to spare, I would recommend getting uhhh, a different European macaroni and cheese. I bid you foodies adieu until my next review.

(Curious abut what someone from the UK has to say about this product, check out the UK Macaroni Cheese blog.–Abi)