Safeway’s “Eating Right”: Are You Really Eating Right?
I recently tried Safeway’s line of frozen entrees, specifically “Eating Right Baked Turkey“, and I must say that I was disappointed in the quality and the nutritional profile. I had been a big fan of many Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice entrees, so I thought that Safeway’s line of healthy frozen entrees would match up to the other’s. I was sadly mistaken.
Taste and Quality
Taste profile–failed
Quality profile–failed
The carrots were mushy, the croutons were very water-laden, and the turkey tasted like processed turkey and not roasted turkey (like you’d have for Thanksgiving). Overall, I was very disappointed. I don’t like to waste calories on something that was not good.
The Nutrient Profile:
Calorie profile–passed
Nutritional Value: 320 calories, 9 gm fat, 40 gm carbohydrate, and 21 gm protein
This means 25% of calories came from fat, 50% from carbohydrate and 25% from protein. This isn’t a bad ratio, as we want about 50% of our meal to be from carbohydrate and <30% from fat.
Sodium profile–failed
This product had 790 mg of sodium! Our goal sodium for the day is less than 2400 mg or less than 800 mg of sodium per meal. Yes, this entree meets that, but you would need to eat relatively low sodium the rest of the day. If you are on a sodium restricted diet for high blood pressure (which means that you need less than 2000 mg of sodium each day), this entree would not be the best choice for you, unless you watched what you ate the rest of the day in terms of sodium content.
Another way of looking at the sodium amount: if you are supposed to eat 1800 calories a day and 2400 mg of sodium, although only 18% of your calories come from this meal, 33% of your sodium allotment does. That doesn’t sound like a good thing to me!
Overall, I was displeased with this entree. I have not tried other entrees, so I cannot judge all Safeway Eating Right products based on this one dish, but if you are looking for a good turkey entree, I would choose Healthy Choice Turkey Medalions instead(which has 300 calories and only 550 mg of sodium–and great taste!!).
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Seems to me that that is the issue with most packaged, frozen foods – sodium! Not to mention all of the preservatives. Ick! I’m not a fan of packaged foods at all, but when I do reach for something quick like a frozen entree, I go for Kashi. Have you tried Kashi? They are supposed to be natural.
I suppose it’s fair to say that I’m more into eating clean than anything. I hate the idea of introducing chemicals and preservatives into my body. Do you practice clean eating or just moderate eating?
Jess, thanks for commenting! I have not yet tried Kashi’s frozen entree line, but have eaten MANY Kashi products. In response to your other question, I usually practice moderate eating; the most frequent “prepackaged foods” I eat are cereal and granola-bar-type products. Hope this answers your question!
I’ve tried many of the Eating right line entree… I try to stay away from Frozen turkey dinners in general, turkey is one of those meats that’s hard to do right while frozen (as it beef), but i stick to the Chicken and shrimp and have had much success… I also just like to spruce them up, like adding more veggies to the stir fries and chicken breast to the pasta meals. just as a tip, i’ve discovered the zip-lock steam fresh bags… now i’d NEVER think to STEAM chicken… but it goes from freezer to cooked in the bag in 8min for 2 breasts… then you can add what you want, or grill/sear in a pan for added flavor. I cook a couple @ a time and keep them in the fridge to add to my “packaged” meals, or sauces, or salad… it’s a easy/tasty way to add lean protein to your meals! good luck!
Unbelievable. I am actually really enjoying these. I am in San Francisco for a special assignment from Chicago. These are so tasty. I think they are much better than lean cuisine. I also think they are not that bad nutrition wise. If you eat a healthy diet, these fit in just fine. I eat one for lunch EVERY day and I am below 2400g of sodium every day. I keep track of all I eat on Caloriecount.about.com and so far in the past 2 weeks, I have not gone over 2400g of sodium. It is not hard to stay below, just make sure this is your only frozen entree of the day.
I love these Eating right brands…sorry to say but of course you aren’t gunna get thanksgiving turkey from a $2.00 frozen dinner. I lost 20 pounds in one month by just eating this brand and it was so easy because it tastes so good.
i’ve tried several of these and most are actually quite good for the price ($2.00). the enchiladas are pretty good! i think i tried the turkey and it wasn’t as good as the others…
The Eating Right Entree (Chicken Enchilada) was the best frozen entree I have ever had. It was so good that I can’t stop Raving about it. I was however concerned with the 550mg of sodium and 43g of carbs, other than that It was really good.
I cannot believe how awful the Safeway “Eating Right” frozen products are. I tried the below:
Lasagna with Meat Sauce: watery, tasteless and rubbery pasta with little “rabbit pellets” of meat. They’re attempting to match Lean Cuisine’s product and it just doesn’t cut it.
Turkey, Broccoli & Cheese “Sandwich”: so awful I dumped it into the garbage. It’s an insult to their customer base.
Butternut Squash Ravioli: Watery, touch pasta and tough snap peas and with “one” walnut. Another insult to the customer. Into the garbage also.
The Chicken penne (not sure of the name) …so bad.. I tried to mix it with fresh pasta, red pepper and olive oil. I had to dump it also. So very watery too. Take this off the market!!!
i just ate roasted turkey and this product tasted like a piece of processed fish got mixed into the turkey the box says turkey most was turkey but the last piece tasted like fish
I just had their Sesame Chicken and thought it was wonderful. I’ve been accused of being a “foodie” so it’s not that my standards are very low.
I have tried the turkey meatloaf and both myself and my husband enjoyed the meal. we live in florida and we can not buy them here.
Like many of these a lot.
I began trying them about a year ago. I have to admit that the packaging suggested economy as well as relative health. These have replaced my “standby” lunches when at work (when I don’t have leftovers).
A couple of my favorites are the Turkey Lasagne, and Chicken Enchilada.
Hello , Just a note on your eating right whole wheat penne rigate.I some times wonder if anyone actually try’s the product out before it is put out on the shelf for customers like myself to try.It was unsatisfactory as far as i’m concerned .Tastless and hard even after 20 minutes of boiling it trying to softn enough to digest .
Thanks Fred Hare
Safeway’s Eating Right products are miserably awful. The biggest problem I have with them is the sugar. Sugar is for desserts, not entrees. Three grams of sugar in this Chicken Pomodoro. No thanks on this product and oh how I miss the Lean Cuisine’s from 30 years ago!!
I like them just wished whole grain for pasta and brown rice was used.
I have been using the eating right frozen entree’s for about nine months. I used to buy the lean cuisine, but I decided to try the eating right because of the price, and now I won’t go back. They are not all good as others have mentioned. I like the tamale, turkey meatloaf, chicken enchilada, sesame chicken, cashew chicken, and recently the chicken methi malai is my new favorite (must try)! They have a lot of sodium, I just up my water intake, and I’m down 30 pounds. Give these a chance!!!
I disagree I thought these meals were great. I work evenings and they are great for my 30 minute break that leave me feeling satisfied because it doesn’t taste like “diet food”. They enchiladas are by far my favorite! Followed closely by mac n cheese. Not to mention they are $2?! Man, there are some harsh critics here. As far as the sodium level being high maybe a little but its not difficult to make adjustments to other meals to make up for this. Delish, cheap, and low cal… LOVE!