Supper Bakes or Supper Fakes? Sorry, This Looks Nothing Like The Picture.
Written: Nov 01 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Nice packaging, almost a whole meal in a box. Almost.
Cons: Come on folks, I only get 15 words to warn you.
The Bottom Line: I don't care if it's on sale, don't waste your time or your chicken on Campbell's Garlic Chicken With Pasta.
I wish someone had warned me!
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| Freak369's Full Review: Groceries |
In my on going quest to dip my feet into the culinary quickness of pre-prepared meals I let my guard down and succumbed to the Campbell’s Curse. And what exactly is the Campbell’s’ Curse? Some odd occurrence that happens when I buy and food related product that has the Campbell’s name on it; chicken noodle soup with no chicken, tomato soup that tastes like tin and my all time favorite – Spaghettios that were mushy. Call it bad luck or maybe I just have a finicky palette, but Campbell’s and I haven’t exactly had a pleasant food relationship so far.
When I came across the $1.00 off coupon in the Sunday paper a few weeks ago I immediately passed it by – how good can a meal be that comes subdivided in a box? Still, when Von’s had them on sale for $2.50 a box I found myself digging through the stack of recyclables on my patio for the coupon. How could I pass it up for .50 cents? [Remember, Von’s doubles coupons up to $1.00].
Since it was on sale and the “coupon people”* had already hit the store I was left with only one selection - Garlic Chicken With Pasta. While the picture on the box looked pretty appetizing this review will be solid proof that sometimes a picture isn’t worth a thousand words – just one – Y-U-C-K.
The first misleading thing is the picture on the box; the chicken breasts are crispy and resting on a bed of fluffy pasta springs. But wait a minute, the bowl isn’t included with this so I guess I’ll have to try and find a 13 x 9 baking dish in what can only be called “Hells Kitchen”. Some of these ‘one box meals’ provide you with a baking pan – my favorite is the scalloped potatoes [just add chicken] but my store no longer carries them for some reason. On the box there is a tagline that reads Campbell’s – Home-Cooked in One Dish, maybe it’s just me but I was under the impression that the baking dish came with it. I could have flipped the box over and read the instructions but didn’t. Bad me.
The Box
Campbell’s Supper Bakes - Garlic Chicken With Pasta comes in a pretty big box, maybe that’s just to give the consumer the illusion that they are getting a huge meal – who knows. Inside the box you get a can of the garlic sauce, pasta, seasoning and ‘crumb topping’. All are individually packaged and I must admit – the pasta was pretty much all intact [pretty amazing considering there is a metal can in the box]. I’m not a huge fan of pasta springs – I’m more of a spaghetti or fettuccini person in all honesty.
The box makes many claims, most of which I found stretch the truth to a whole new level. You are supposed to end up with 6 9-ounce portions when it is completely done cooking – this is not the case unless you exactly measure out the uncooked chicken breasts and take into consideration the size lost during cooking. As far as the Easy 5 Minute Prep - I’d like to know what they were using to tell time because it took me closer to fifteen minutes and let’s face it – this isn’t rocket science.
In addition to the pre-packaged ingredients you will also need 1 – 1 ½ pounds of skinless, boneless chicken breasts [approximately four to six pieces], 2 tablespoons of butter or margarine [cut up] and 2 ¼ cups of hot water. You might also want to have your aluminum foil handy as well since you will need to cover the baking pan during the first twenty minutes.
Your oven should be preheated to 400 degrees F but since I use an electric oven I usually drop my temperature by 25 degrees. In the baking dish add the pasta, water, seasoning and butter. Mix it well because it will clump while cooking which will leave you with a real mess under the chicken breasts. Toss the chicken breasts on top of the pasta and pour the baking sauce over them [this is the stuff that comes in the can]. Bake for twenty minutes then remove from the oven and peel back the foil. Sprinkle the crumb topping [glorified bread crumbs] over the breasts and stir the pasta around the edge of the baking dish. Bake for another ten minutes uncovered and make sure your chicken is cooked completely before serving.
Sounds like a breeze right? Well, it was pretty simple looking back on it but the end result is what counts here – there is no sense making a meal that no one will eat. On the same token you have to experiment every once in a while – what’s life without a little culinary experimentation? If only I could eat those words instead of this creation …
After following the steps on the box I paced in front of the oven, much like an expectant father minus the chewed down finger nails and pocket full of bubble gum cigars. I didn’t really have an aroma coming from the oven – somehow I expected the supposed garlic sauce to produce an aromatic bouquet resembling a home cooked meal. Guess again, no nice smell – not even a trace of it in the air.
Knowing all too well that my kids would not eat this – I had already fixed their dinner, served it and did the dishes before I set off on this experiment. So I paced and listened to my tummy grumble like Pooh waiting for the honey pot to tip over. DING went the timer and out came the baking dish. I stood, puzzled … “this looks nothing like the box”. In fact, mine looked like something you would see on the side of the road, with fur and entrails oozing from the carcass. Still, the proof is in the pudding [or so they say]. I stirred the pasta slop around and discovered that there were still clumps of the seasoning that didn’t get mixed properly [my fault] during the first step of the preparation. Again, I mixed it and threw it back in the oven for a few more minutes after I plucked the chicken from the dish [no pun]. [more pacing] Another DING of the timer and I was more than ready to try this meal out.
I sat at the table, by myself. Large glass of ice tea, napkin, chicken, pasta, bread. All utensils were present and accounted for. While the end result looked nothing like what the box suggested [no crunchy topping on the chicken breasts, pasta springs were rather soggy etc] I was still fully prepared to give this an honest try. After all – a creamy garlic sauce – how bad could it be? My dear friends, words simply cannot describe the offensive taste that shocked my poor little taste buds. There was no garlic taste but rather … how to put it as not to completely offend … rehydrated, reconstituted, processed baby vomit. Sorry for the visual but that is the only definition that completely describes Campbell’s Garlic Chicken With Pasta.
As I gulped down my entire glass of iced tea with the hopes of getting rid of the taste I did the unspeakable – I thought – “Maybe that was just the initial taste” followed by “It couldn’t have really been that bad, give it another go” Nope, the second bite was just as bad as the first. So I got up from the table, walked into the kitchen to make another glass of tea and started thinking – “It’s missing something” so I started looking for spices, seasoning and cheeses that might improve the taste. I re-read the box just to make sure I didn’t miss a step along the way – but after reading it several times and coming close to reenacting the assembly process – I followed each step correctly.
Call me crazy [crazy fool] but I just couldn’t accept the fact that something I waited over 45 minutes for turned out so bad. “One last bite – I swear one last bite” No matter what I added – it was still bland, looked disgusting and was missing some much needed ingredient to make it edible. It was then that the idea struck me – my little brother will eat anything – and I do mean anything. Rather than chuck it in the garbage I’d wrap it up and throw it in his refrigerator. I was feeling pretty smug until the container mystically transported itself to my refrigerator the next day with a small note attached to it. “What is this and why are you trying to pass it off as food? ”
Day Two
Since the container magically found it’s way back to my refrigerator I got to thinking. Some foods do taste better the next day – pizza, lasagna, meatloaf. I flipped off the lid, ignored the overbearing smell [think cold vomit] and pitched my fork into the now hardened mass of pasta and chicken. Not stopping to think, I took a bite and almost instantly regretted it. My eyes squinted as I convulsed my way to the garbage can. Ice tea no longer managed to rid my mouth of the taste – it was time to get hardcore and break out the Mentadent toothpaste with added flavor crystals.
I gave up, it was useless to think that time, temperature or location would change the taste of Campbell’s Garlic Chicken With Pasta. I offered my dear neighbor Jane some and she laughed at me. Sure, go right ahead and laugh
The Taste
I guess what most people really care about is the taste – no matter how long a meal takes to prepare – a few minutes or a few hours – you want something that you will enjoy. You may have thought I was joking about the taste of the Garlic Chicken With Pasta, but in all elements of the truth – that is the actual taste. Imagine a nice Alfredo sauce that’s thick, creamy and looks divine – until you taste it and the words Elmer’s School Glue comes to mind. [Hey, that almost rhymed]
The Details
Now, some people might think that it is a little overboard to give the nutritional details of food – I say this what can it hurt? One thing I will never understand is why they put the nutritional information for the uncooked ingredients on the box. Who in their right mind is going to sit there and eat these ingredients raw / uncooked?
All in all, the numbers don’t look too bad. But you have to keep in mind that this is for a 9-ounce serving – something I find totally misleading.
Calories: 370
Fat: 7 grams
Cholesterol: 75 mg
Sodium: 870 mg
Carbohydrate: 44 grams
Protein: 33 grams [mostly from the chicken]
Now, as I said, this is for a 9-ounce portion. If you manage to like the taste of it chances are your last name is Usher [Fall of the House of Usher] and you’ll eat more than the suggested amount. Keep in mind that if you add a slice of bread or vegetable that you’ll have to add on those calories and fat grams.
There is also an amazing shelf life for the product. The box I purchased a few weeks ago is stamped “Recommended Use By: June 2002” Now, if it was only edible.
Cost
When it’s not on sale Campbell’s Garlic Chicken With Pasta will set you back about $3.49 [plus the cost of the chicken breasts]. However, most places put it on sale for $2.50 and there are coupons that pop out of those annoying red blinky machines near the product display. Don’t forget the check the newspapers or shelves – we have coupon fairies that are nice enough to cut out the coupons they don’t use and put them on or near the products to help other save some cash.
Brothers and Sisters
In addition to the Garlic Chicken With Pasta, Campbell’s also offers the following varieties of Supper Bakes products. Herb Chicken With Rice, Savory Pork Chops With Herb Stuffing and Lemon Chicken With Herb Rice. I doubt I will try any of the other Supper Bake products since herb rice and herb stuffing rank at the bottom of my culinary wish list.
The Bottom Line
If you are daring enough give this a try – it might just be something that you will find enjoyable. But I doubt it. I am a huge fan of anything ‘creamy’ – Fettuccini Alfredo being at the top of the list with a nice Garlic Alfredo sauce coming in second. I’d much rather take the cost of the chicken and the cost of the Supper Bake and spend it on something else.
While the concept of a meal in a box [or it’s frozen cousins – just add meat] is ingenious, it lacks any real taste. I am not sure who they had doing the taste tests on this – but that person needs to be locked up for a few days and force-fed this slop.
So, I guess my Campbell’s Curse continues after all.
Thanks for the visit …
^V^ Freak ^V^
* = ‘coupon people’ – Obnoxious people that purchase mass quantities of products to resell in small stores or at local swap meets. Von's has since limited the double coupon redemptions from 3 per item per person to 1 coupon per person.
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