Maybe it’s because of my upbringing, but I never could understand the concept of a meal in a box.
Once in a great while, I’ll wander down the “box dinner” section of the store, and pick up something that’s “super easy to make and ready in 30 mins or less”. However, I still have failed to see the real purpose of them, other than cleaver marketing.
We made a hamburger helper beef stroganoff only once. After having to cook the hamburger and add a few other ingredients, I stood scratching my head as to WHY I bought basically the pasta and seasoning in a pretty box when I could have spent the same amount of money (or less) and time doing it from scratch. (Which we have ever since – see our Hamburger Beef Stroganoff recipe here)
Just a month or two ago, I got curious again about the boxes. As you may already know, we have a bread machine that is used on a very regular basis. A box for a wheat bread mix jumped out at me in the store, so I thought I’d give it a shot. Again, I was quite disappointed as I had to add a few of my own ingredients and it was nothing really special (we’ve had better bread from our own recipe collection).
So what about you? Do you use box dinners at all, or are you like me and questioned their purposes?
Related posts:
- Beef Stroganoff Made with Ground Beef
- Easy Dinner Ideas with Ground Beef
- Hamburger Mac & Cheese
- What's for Dinner?
- Homemade Hot Beef Weekend Meal
October 15th, 2009 at 9:58 am
I’m like you and have been disappointed by the box meals. They usually take just as long as homemade and don’t taste as good. I am striving to get better at organizing my recipes so I can do the 30 minute meals.
February 20th, 2010 at 9:36 am
Sometimes you just have to use the quickness of a boxed meal. But I agree, the quality just doesn’t compare to a home cooked meal.