Hormel Compleats Meal Review

Hormel offers a line of fairly in-expensive microwavable meals called Compleats. They are packaged in a white plastic tub that is easy as pie to pop into a microwave. They heat up in as little as 90 seconds and are basically a complete meal just like their title suggests.

The meal we tried was the Home style beef with mashed potatoes and gravy. The packaging is tastefully done and the picture on the label covering the tub looks tantalizingly delicious. According to the nutrition facts contained on the label there are 220 calories per container, 6 grams of fat, 0 trans fat, 3 grams of fiber, 11 grams of protein, 30 grams of carbohydrate, 15 grams of cholesterol, and a kinda high 600 milligrams of sodium. The meal weighs in at a hearty 10 ounces. It is touted by Hormel as Created for a healthy lifestyle. It does not have to be refrigerated until opened. Just store it at room temperature.

The package is easy to open and prepare. Just tear off the paper wrapping and poke a few holes in several spots through the thin plastic covering on top of the tub. The perforations are to help the heating process and save your microwave from a messy beef and gravy explosion. Next place the tub in a microwave and heat in on high for 90 seconds or until it feels warm to the touch. Let it stand for 1 minute before opening as the contents can be steaming hot after being nuked. Obviously since this dish is in a plastic container it should NEVER be heated up in a conventional or toaster oven or their ilk. According to the package instructions this meal can be heated up by simmering it in a large saucepan for about 10 minutes. Still quick and easy.

Now for the taste test!

Four of us heated up this meal for lunch after a hard day of painting the basement walls. Following is the unanimous reportage; Very easy to heat up. When opening the container the food looked tasty with the mashed potatoes on one side of the tub and the beef, gravy, and some darn good tasting plump mushrooms on the other. The beef part was enjoyed the most. The potatoes were a bit dense but tasted O.K. not bad at all. There was about an equal portion of beef to potato ratio. My friend Serena said it tasted good. She also stated that it would be a good meal to take on camping or hunting trips.

"If I was a Marine I would eat this like candy" She stated flatly. And Serena knows what she likes.

"I am a great fan of Hormel," my sister Blair said, "I could eat this product every day."

My dad liked it too. He is miserly with money and he liked the low cost of this meal. He is a great fan of packaged, processed food.

"I would use my special fork to eat this," he stated after eating his meal.

The food provided by Hormel in this Compleat meal tastes good, as well or better than similarly priced complete microwave meals.

When compared to similar products available at our Albertson's grocery store this Hormel offering tasted every bit as good.

Serena, who works in a kitchen, gave a big thumbs up to this meal.

I concur.