860g, $17.95

Available in gourmet & specialty food stores in Ontario
For more information visit www.thevillagekitchen.ca

When you think about it, products like these have to be good. The people who make frozen meals have their work cut out for them, because their competition is not necessarily homemade versions of same (who’s got the time?) but local takeout menus. For a few dollars more, hungry shoppers can grab dinner with a restaurant edge – so it’s game on for the frozen meal. This particular dish gets most things right. For a reasonable price, it serves four – add your own rice, and you’ve got a feast. The spices don’t taste heavy, strange, or timid; the balance is just about right. There’s a generous number of plump pieces of chicken. Certainly it could use more vegetables, but this is true for almost everything; the ones that are present and accounted for, especially the carrots, taste fresh and give good chunk. What is most striking about this dish is the amount of sauce, which is almost lavish, and its slightly soupy texture. Big picture? This is a tasty, satisfying meal, not too hard on the wallet, but not so crazy-good that your local Bangkok Thai Kitchen outlet will feel the heat.

THREE AND A HALF STARS ***1/2