Sriracha Chicken - Deal of the Day Review

My latest Deal of the Day is a 5 alarm fire hot bowl of deliciousness. If you can take the heat, then stay in my kitchen and check out my review of  Sriracha Chicken Bowl by evol. 

Sriracha is a red, spicy sauce first found in Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. You use it like any American regional hot sauce. The flavor is similar to red chili based hot sauces. It was popularized here by the California purveyor, Huy Fong Foods. Locals call it Rooster Sauce because of the cock on the bottle label.

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I guess it ended up at my local 99c only Store is because of the firey heat. Not everyone can handle it. But if you live on the spicy side of life, you will like this chicken, rice and veggie bowl.

The chicken pieces are on the small side, but I think real chicken was used, not processed loaf type. The white meat chicken was moist and flavorful.

I especially liked the baby corn and sugar snap peas. The veggie pieces are whole and still had a little fresh snap. There is also broccoli, carrot and onion, too. I enjoyed the veggie medley evol. has come up with.

This is a tasty stir fry made with brown rice. Often rice in frozen fare is mushy and can go from watery to dry - not the case here. The rice kernels had a slight chew, with a nice nutty flavor, you expect from brown rice. I would have liked more brown rice, evol., don't be so skimpy next time. This is a light and small meal at 9 ounces.

As expected evol. uses fresh ingredients without chemical enhancements. I've bought their meals before and have always enjoyed them.

If there is a problem with the Sriracha Chicken Bowl, it's the namesake, Sriracha. Hey, I pour on the hot sauce for Cajun meals and breakfast tacos are loaded with salsa, so I'm no hot sauce wimp. But even my calloused taste buds were put to the test.

It was hard to taste the full veggie and chicken flavors when smothered in fiery Sriracha sauce. Whew, I had to take a breather halfway through the meal. But it was good going down. Although it is a hot dining experience, the heat quickly faded, so all is good, ultimately.

                                                    frozen                zapped

At 9 ounces, it's nice light lunch or dinner, but not enough for hearty eaters. I like the all natural ingredients list.

While I liked my latest Deal of the Day, not everyone will be able to take the heat, especially youngsters, so be judicious with who you serve the Sriracha Chicken Bowl too.

So, on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Sriracha Chicken Bowl by evol. a...strong 7!

When I need a blast of hot flavor, I would get this Deal of the Day again.

Orange Sesame Chicken Bowl - Deal of the Day Review

This is one sweet Deal of the Day. And it's a delish Orange Sesame Chicken Bowl by Smart Ones, under the banner of SMARTMADE.

I am a fan of Smart Ones by Weight Watchers, and this frozen entree lives up to their tasty reputation.

 Frozen & Zapped

You first taste the sweet orange sauce. It is flavored with pineapple juice too. There is a slight hint of soy sauce that's listed as low sodium. It is sticky and thick, so make sure you stir the defrosted ingredients to get it on all the chicken, veggies and quinoa. I would like more sauce, but what's there is good enough.

This bowl had 4 or 5 huge pieces of white meat chicken. It remained moist when zapped in the microwave - the sauce helps steam the meat. And it is real chicken, not sliced from a processed poultry loaf. The photo shows sesame seeds covering the chicken. I could not taste the sesame seeds as the quinoa was so similar - not that it matters much.

I liked the large veggie pieces of broccoli. The whole snap peas remain firm and fresh tasting. And small squares of red bell pepper add the right amount of pungent flavor. This is one well balanced bowl of savory and sweet.

This oriental-style stir fry is made with quinoa instead of white rice and that's a good thing. I prefer rice, but am starting to warm up to tapioca-like pearls of quinoa. If you have not tried quinoa it is usually steamed, and when done the tiny round seeds pop when bitten. The taste is a grain flavor, with a very mild oats taste. If you are eating glutten-free, this is for you. Quinoa comes from a flowering plant that originates in South America.

At 9 ounces this is a light lunch, but with the addition of quinoa, it is quite filling for it's small package. The ingredient list is small with mainly real ingredients and no fillers or chemicals.

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Once again Smart Ones have come up with a real winner of a frozen meal. So on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give SMARTMADE Orange Sesame Chicken Bowl by Smart Ones a perfect 9 !

This is one delish Deal of the Day made with fresh and real ingredients, so get a few of them if they still carry them in the 99c only Stores - hey, get a few from any grocery store at full price, it's worth every penny.

Mac & Cheese with Caramelized Onion & Herb - Deal of the Day

This a one rich and very creamy macaroni and cheese meal. And they pack a lot into the container, so I was full when I reached the bottom. I liked my latest Deal of the Day find: Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese with Caramelized Onion & Herb.

If you are looking for diet food, keep moving - you can see an oil slick when this meal is bubbling hot. And the cheese is not low fat either. Carbs? Yep, and plenty of gluten, too.

The taste leans towards the sharp flavors of cheddar and Parmesan cheeses. Herbs are listed, but they are barely there, at least in taste.

The cooked macaroni is a little on the mushy side. I microwaved in one minute increments, so as not to overcook it, knowing that typical frozen pasta is notorious for being too well done in the factory processing stage.

While a little soggy, the mac still had a little resistance when bitten. There is a nice chewy hard band of cheese on top that usually comes with oven baking.

Now, for caramelize onion? Hmmm....not very much really. The package shows crispy brown onions on top, as you can see they are not there. When I found them, they were minuscule and mixed into the macaroni and cheese.

You could detect an under-taste of cooked onion the more you ate the meal.

I would have liked bigger bites of sweet caramelized onion - that's why I bought this frozen meal.

A microscopic piece of caramelized onion. 

The ingredient list is small for typical frozen fare and this meal is not over-processed.

Now I'm not complaining too much. While a tasty version of homemade mac and cheese, it just falls short of what's described on the package. But I would still get this frozen fare anytime. It could have scored a perfect 9 if the tease of package advertising was truthful.

So on the Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese with Caramelized Onion & Herb a hearty 7 ! Well worth the price of 99.99 cents.

 Shooting Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese with Caramelized Onion & Herb.

Atkins Beef Fiesta Taco Bowl - Deal of the Day

For 99.99 cents I'm willing to drink the Kool-Aid from the cult of diet guru Dr. Atkins. Well, not Kool-Aid, but a frozen low-carb Fiesta Taco Bowl made with real ground beef. This has the makings of a delish Deal of the Day.

This Taco Bowl  is like Texas-style chili made with a package of taco seasoning and tomato sauce. It's spicy hot, but I can take it.

Bell pepper and onions are sliced small but recognizable in taste.

Meat and chili sauce are the main ingredients. Ground beef is crumbled small, but that's fine as there is real beefy flavor and it's the main ingredient.

You get a gooey, cheesy topping to break through for the first spoonful.

After a meaty, rich and spicy bowl of chili I often need a Tums -- well, Atkins Beef Fiesta Taco Bowl is Tums worthy -- in a good way. And like most frozen fare, the sodium is off the chart at 55% -- oh, well you can't have everything; and it's not like I would eat this every week. But at least the ingredient list is small.

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I liked the Fiesta Taco Bowl a lot, and I wanted more. So if you are on a weight loss schedule this will keep you in check, but if you are just plain hungry this will not satisfy. To heck with it, I would recommend adding some carbs like rice, grain or pasta.

Pasta not included.

Here we go - that's more like it.

So for my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Atkins Beef Fiesta Taco Bowl (without pasta) a strong 8 ! On my next trip to the 99c only Store I'm stocking up for sure.

I like frozen entrees from Dr. Atkins. While the servings are usually small, they make up for it in flavor and tasty ingredients. Hey, I can't complain about a meal that only costs a buck!

Lean Cuisine's Spaghetti with Meat Sauce - Deal of the Day

I can heartily recommend this latest Deal of the Day. It's nothing fancy or unusual, just spaghetti in a tomato sauce with ground beef and mushrooms. I am a fan of Lean Cuisine and they have a simply delicious one with their Spaghetti with Meat Sauce.

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At eleven and a half ounces, this is a filling work lunch entree. And it's loaded. There is plenty of spaghetti and meat sauce.

There are just a few mushroom pieces, but they are thickly sliced.

I especially liked the thick and chunky tomato sauce. It has a nice hint of herbs and the tomato sauce is mildly sweet with real pieces of tomato.

The beef ground meat hits the spot as there are plenty of large pieces throughout. It's a generous serving.

Cheese is listed in the ingredients, but it's a pretty minimal flavor. And the weak link is the spaghetti. As with most frozen Italian frozen pasta dishes, microwaving leaves the noodles overcooked and slightly mushy.

I like my spaghetti al dente, with a slight chewiness. I guess Lean Cuisine is going for the middle of the road here. While a flaw, the other flavorful ingredients save the day.

Sometimes I like a simple meal with a minimum of ingredients. This one fits the bill, deliciously.

So on my cheap$kate dining scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Lean Cuisine's Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, an 8! This is a great Deal of the Day I stock up on when it shows up at my local 99c only Store.

Teriyaki Chicken - Deal of the Day

The Great Wall of China should surround my latest Deal of the Day. And the reason why? To keep any sucker from trying Yu Sing Asian Style Cuisine's Teriyaki Chicken.

My latest sad excuse for a Deal of the Day has the two worse aspects of frozen fare: over-cooked veggies and mystery meat.

First, the veggies are steamed to blandness. I detected a few stands of carrot, and the broccoli was overcooked and  tasteless. I didn't think they could find such tiny, fingernail-sized, pieces of broccoli. (In this case that's a good thing, as I usually complain on the portion size when veggies are included.)

Pineapple is of the canned type and  mushy. It's the only ingredient that stands out, but just barely.

The teriyaki sauce was not too sweet, and the rice is okay - those are the only two good things to mention about this sad Deal of the Day. The rice grains are not glued together, like some defrosted fare.

Chicken is from a processed loaf. Is it white meat or dark meat? I couldn't figure it out. It's just like biting into a chicken-flavored makeup sponge wedge.

I can see why this cheap$kate frozen meal castoff finally ended up in a Dollar Tree - too bad they are extending the shelf life.

Well, I think you can can guess my Deal of the Day rating of Yu Sing Asian Style Cuisine's Teriyaki Chicken, from 1 to 9, 9 being best. This frozen entree gets a generous 2. Mainly for the rice and teriyaki sauce.

If President Nixon during his China trip had brought any of this back, he would have been forced to resign even earlier. So, I recommend a food blockade of  Yu Sing Asian Style Cuisine's Teriyaki Chicken!

Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta - Deal of the Day

For once the cover photo is not an exaggeration. My latest Deal of the Day is off to a great start!

See the plump shrimp, they're really inside the box. While not large shrimp, they're so much better than typical teeny bay shrimp used in frozen seafood fare. Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta by Lean Cuisine is not a perfect meal, but pretty darn close.

And I'm glad the shrimp are frozen raw. They have a great texture when fresh cooked firm. 

I got a few boxes of Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta by Lean Cuisine at my local 99c only Store. I was nervous when examining the crinkled and crumbled packages they had in the frozen deli case. But, when I was at work the next day and opened the box, the cellophane was still sealed on the black microwave bowl. So all was well with this steal of a deal.

Click on photo to read ingredient list.

The best parts of this cheap meal are the shrimp. I got 5 nice sized ones, peeled and deveined. They are raw, so you need to turn them halfway through microwaving to cook all the way through. Look for a pink color, that's means they are done.

If you like bell pepper there is plenty here, and it doesn't take much to overpower an entree. The amount in this meal skates right up to the edge for me. There are also welcome matchstick slices of carrot, and not too well done. I like some crunchy veggies in my pasta.

The pasta is peppered with fine chopped herbs, but what they are is a mystery, as there is no mention in the ingredient list. -- kinda strange.

The weakest link is the too light and watery cream sauce. It's mainly flavored with skim milk, cheese, garlic and sherry wine. Now I enjoyed the sauce, I just wish it was a little richer with cream, but that's to be expected when an entree is made by Lean Cuisine. But this is a quibble.

The angel hair pasta is fine. A bit overcooked, but I know it's difficult to microwave cooked pasta. It can easily become mushy if steamed too long, especially thin angel hair. The pasta strands were chopped - I like my noodles left long. But the pasta mixes well with all the shrimp, veggies and sauce.

So how does Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta by Lean Cuisine rate on my cheaps$kate scale of 1-9, 9 being best? Even with a couple of small flaws, this Deal of the Day still gets a perfect 9 !

If you are lucky enough to run across this small and tasty entree, make sure to pick up a few packages. Even for low calorie fare, I can highly recommend it for taste and quality cooking.