Preparing dinner for everyone here can become hard at times because no, one matter what I purchase there is someone that doesn’t want what we have for dinner which is okay because it leave lfet overs for me for lunch.
Charlie is the pickest one of all of us and he doesn’t like any kind of meat on a bone while Gerald and David prefer Chicken and Pork Chops on the bone but unlike Charlie they will eat meat either way.
To keep fights done in our home I always keep Pizza’s for Charie when we’ve made something I’m not sure he would eat. With Charlie working now that means he not only needs dinner but lunches as well and he was beginning to get tired of Hot Dogs nd Pizza.
But he will eat Chicken Alfredo a lot of times. When David and I were at Winco they other day Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo Review: A Freezer Dinner Charlie Wants Again
But he will eat Chicken Alfredo a lot of times. When David and I were at Winco they other day David saw Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo in the freezer department and picked up 2 boxes to show me.
David thought this was a new freezer dish but I had seen it at Walmart’s before but because he was excited to find something new Charlie might I didn’t say anything I just let David put the boxes in the buggy.
Sometimes I buy something because I think it might be worth trying and sometimes I buy it because I know somebody in my family is going to eat it. And sometimes we discover that the person who tried it already wants you to buy it again.
That’s what happened with Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo. The other night Charlie, came in from work and I fixed both boxes for him because he is a growing young man. and I haven’t tried it myself yet, Charlie has, and he has already given me his review.
And apparently, we’ve got a winner. Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo is a 10.5-ounce frozen single-serve dinner with penne pasta which is one of Charlie’s favorite pasta’s. Along with blackened-seasoned white meat chicken that Charlie said didn’t become rubbery when cooked in the microwave, and a creamy cheese sauce that Charlie said was so good and he liked how it comes with a little New Orleans-style flavor.
The package says it can be prepared in the microwave in about five minutes, or with oven preparation also available. In our microwave we made 2 boxes at once so it took longer to prepare them but that was okay as it gave Charlie time to get something to drink while they cooked.
For our family, the biggest attraction is simple: It’s easy. Sometimes you need a meal you can pull out of the freezer, cook, and have ready without turning the kitchen upside down. That’s exactly the kind of dinner this is.
This frozen food meal was purchased specifically for Charlie. And because Charlie is still young and apparently has a teenager-sized appetite, one serving doesn’t always qualify as a full meal for him. He likes to eat two of these at a time.
Now, for someone like me, one might be enough. For Charlie? Apparently two is the starting point. But the important part is that he really liked it. After telling David how much he liked it David is also wanting to try it but with the name Zatarain’s and New Orleans in the title I’m afraid it might be a little bit spicy so I don’t plan on trying it because I can’t have spicy foods but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try it.
Charlie specifically liked the way the blackened chicken tasted. That’s important because the chicken is what gives this Alfredo a little something different from a traditional frozen chicken Alfredo. I asked Charlie if it had enough Chicken and he says it does have.
The blackened seasoning gives it that extra flavor without making Charlie feel like he needed to add a bunch of other ingredients. He told me the chicken had enough flavor that he really enjoyed it just as it came but for a different taste he said in the future he might add Cheese or Hot Sauce to the meal.
Charlie also really liked the creamy cheese sauce. Which I was worried about because sometimes Cheese bother’s Charlie but this time it didn’t. He said there was enough sauce to coat the pasta well, so he didn’t feel like he was eating dry noodles with a little sauce hiding at the bottom.
And that matters with an Alfredo. Nobody wants dry pasta. He said the sauce was creamy, flavorful, and stuck to the penne noodles well. That’s actually one of the details I was glad he mentioned.
Frozen pasta can be tricky. Sometimes you microwave it and end up with noodles that are too soft. Other times they can become strangely chewy or hard. Charlie said the penne in this one came out well.
Even after being cooked in the microwave, the noodles weren’t overcooked, mushy, or hard. They held up well with the sauce. For a frozen dinner, that’s a pretty important win when it comes to anything Charlie eats.
I asked Charlie if we needed to add anything to the dish and according to Charlie he said no, which is a Godsend for a mom who has to put her life on hold more times than not to make him dinner. For me with Charlie liking it exactly as it came is a Godsend.
Again, Charlie said there was enough sauce and flavor that he didn’t feel like he needed to add anything. But he did say that one day we might try adding a different flavor of cheese just to see what kind of flavor he could create.
And that’s exactly the kind of thing I like about these little frozen meals. You can eat them exactly as they’re prepared, or you can experiment. Maybe extra cheese. Maybe a little seasoning. Maybe a side salad. Maybe a piece of bread. Maybe nothing at all. Sometimes you just need to get dinner on the table quick, fast and in a hurry and with this dinner you can do just that.
This is technically a product review, but because I haven’t personally tasted it yet, I don’t want to pretend otherwise making this Charlie’s review. And his review was simple: He wants it again.
That’s probably one of the strongest endorsements you can get from somebody in your family. You can buy something and have them say, “It was okay.” You can have them say, “I didn’t like it.” Or you can hear: “You need to get this again.” That’s what Charlie said.
The product description notes that Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo is a single-serve frozen meal designed for convenient preparation, with microwave and oven cooking options.
The microwave instructions call for cooking it in stages and stirring between cooking periods, while the oven method takes longer. For us, the microwave is the obvious choice. When Charlie is hungry and wants something quick, a meal that can go from freezer to table in minutes is convenient.
And when you’re keeping an eye on your grocery budget, having a few freezer meals available can also keep you from ordering takeout simply because nobody wants to cook. I can’t wait to purchase other varieties for my family to try just remember I can’t have them.
I picked this frozen meal or in my mind TV Dinner up at WinCo, which I had said earlier but it’s also available through Walmart and I bet we can also find it at Kroger’s the next time we go shopping.
And that’s another reason I like trying products like this. You don’t necessarily have to go searching for some specialty store. You may be able to find them in the regular grocery freezer section. I want to check at Sam’s Club to see if they have it in a family size meal.
The most important question is would we buy it again? According to Charlie: Yes. And I believe him. He liked the blackened chicken. He liked the creamy sauce. He liked how well the sauce coated the noodles.
He liked that the penne didn’t turn to mush in the microwave. And he liked it enough that he wants it again. Those are some pretty solid reasons to put it back on the grocery list especially when David says he want’s to try it as well.
The package calls this a single-serve meal. For Charlie? That’s apparently a suggestion. But you have to remember he is a growing young man and he likes two at a time. For me, one might be plenty.
And that’s something to remember when you’re comparing the cost of individual frozen meals. A package may be labeled “single serve,” but whether it actually serves one person depends on the person. Charlie is proof of that.
I wanted to remind you I haven’t tasted this one myself yet, so I’m not going to pretend to give you my personal rating because if its spicy David and Charlie wouldn’t let me try it because they know it would bother me and neither one of them wants to stay up all night with me.
But based on Charlie’s experience, this is a repeat purchase in our house. And that’s enough for me to put it on our Greatful Moments shopping list of products worth talking about.
Sometimes a product review isn’t about whether everyone in the family loves it. It’s about finding out: Will somebody eat it? Did they enjoy it? Was it convenient? Would they want it again?
For Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo, Charlie’s answers were: Yes. Yes. Yes. And most importantly: “Mom, get it again.” Just don’t let
For Zatarain’s Blackened Chicken Alfredo, Charlie’s answers were: Yes. Yes. Yes. And most importantly: “Mom, get it again.” Just don’t let dad eat it because I need it for lunch. I think that’s a pretty good review.
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates