Is there such a thing as a decent ready meal?

Cook aren't cheap but they do a good selection of ready meals, also Charlie Bighams if you live near a sainsburys or waitrose?

Tesco do Charley Bighams too but I think they are so much expensive.

They always seem to turn to mush in my mouth, maybe I buy them too cheap. Fortunately I'm still enjoying cooking.

If you wanted to use M&S, if you live in an Ocado delivery area, you can get M&S through them.
I second COOK but it is expensive.
When I am only cooking for me, I do very simple things such as a piece of fish or chicken cooked in microwave or oven, with salad potatoes and green veg all cooked in one pot. Would that type of meal suit you?
When I had a new kitchen fitted, we lived off ready meals and take aways but did not much enjoy it.

If you think they are bad here, never buy one in Australia! We arrived very late into Melbourne and I just picked up a couple of ready meals to heat up in our apartment. I have never tasted anything so vile! One spoonful of each and they went in the bin. A friend explained the next day that ready meals are just not a thing over there and there are no good ones.

I second JaneJudge on Cooks.

Yes, there are decent ones, but you only find out which ones are OK (and which you like) by trying them. That takes time, but other people's recommendations are not always what you like yourself.

One that I had half of yesterday, and will have the other half today, is Iceland's "Hunters' Chicken" It is a pack of 2 chicken pieces in a very tasty sauce, exclusive to Iceland from Slimming World. There is no potato or veg with it, so you have to also bake a potato, or microwave frozen mash (Aunt Bessie, M&S or other supermarket, very easy and pretty good) and some frozen peas or similar.

You don't have to go to the pricey websites like Cook. Most meals from M&S are excellent value for money. Tesco have meals at varying prices and qualities (their "Finest" range are the best) so do Waitrose and Morrisons. Iceland have some really nice things, and also some budget meals (for instance, bangers and mash)

Neither do you have to get whole meals - the supermarkets have things that save you time and work, but can be used with your own vegetables, or the pre-prepared veggie packs and microwaveable frozen rice or potatoes or steak-cut oven chips.

Experiment a bit - and keep a note of what works. You think you'll remember, but you forget weeks later when standing in the aisle with your empty trolley.

I second that there are no good ready made meals here in Australia. I’m quite glad ,though, people tend to cook for themselves or keep the restaurants in business. Since Covid home delivery of restaurant meals has become popular.

I meant to add - the 2 pieces of Hunters' Chicken cost £4 and took 45 minutes in the oven. The spuds could be added at a suitable point, and the other veg microwaved or cooked on the hob. The meal would cost about £5 - £5.50 for two (or for two days if you are on your own) and take minimal effort.

Google the content of cheaper ready meals. Guaranteed to put you off! Every time I’m tempted, I walk on!! I very occasionally buy from Cook & also Charlie Bigham. Could you find a local business who make from scratch? We have a couple of local ladies who run such a business alongside their catering/cookery school. Not particularly cheap but good, wholesome food.

I personally don't eat ready meals but shopped for our few elderly relatives weekly. They all had ready meals Iceland was the company of choice for taste and for good value.

The ingredients are listed on the packets, so you don't even need to Google! You will probably need your specs, though, to read them. They seem to think we all have 20/20 vision.

Charlie Bingham is a good make and Sainsburys Finest. Perhaps look in your local butchers too - ours does various things ready to cook like Moroccan stir fry and other types of stir fries, homemade individual pies. Also a local bakery/coffee shop offers the same type of things. All more expensive of course but the quality is great and certainly make a change.

Thank you for your suggestions. Cook looks good but expensive. I’ll have to see if any of my friends shop at Iceland Elegran, that Hunters Chicken sounds good. I’ll try a Charlie Bigham or two, I have a Waitrose delivery booked this week, though I usually use Tesco. One of the things that put me off ready meals Marmight, was the list of unrecognisable ingredients, but I need to achieve a balance between nutrition, cost and time and, if my sight gets worse, I may have to rely on them.

Iceland do free delivery if you spend over £35 and they do fresh food too. I like their hunters chicken too Elegran!

I like their crusty part-baked rolls, they are just like the ones that we had on holiday in Austria. They are not sold frozen, but you can freeze them yourself, and just take out and bake a couple at a time, so you can have freshly baked rolls in a few minutes whenever you want.

I find Tesco's own Moussaka delicious.

Why not batch cook so you have enough for two or three days at a time? Some chicken in a nice sauce that will keep in the fridge or freezer? Some soup to do you for a few days? A lot depends on what you like to eat, of course. I make enough of our favourite pasta sauce so two lots go in the freezer and all I have to do is boil up some pasta, reheat the sauce and sprikle some parmesan.

Aldi Specially Selected range.

I’ve tried them all, they are very nice and tasty, equivalent in quality to marks and Spencer’s but half the price.

I usually cook from scratch, but we all have days when we can’t be bothered.

I have tried most supermarket ready meals but really do not like them so even though I get fed up of cooking, I tend to avoid them. Sometimes I will buy a pie or Cornish pasty and have it with half a tin of mushy peas and a slice of crusty bread. I often eat cold food, making myself a ploughman’s type platter with plenty of salad things, I think that kind of thing is nutritious? An open sandwich is another favourite of mine, perhaps with prawns or a couple of slices of quality ham.

I eat plenty of fruit and raw vegetables such a peppers, tomatoes and carrots which I hope will help provide a balanced diet for a lazy cook!

teabagwoman I’m also someone who always cooks from scratch, I have rarely found a decent ready meal either!
However last year a dear friend was really poorly and asked me to stock her freezer with ready meals she could eat whenever she fancied as the chemo affected her appetite.

Like me she was very particular about what she ate .

The firm favourites were Waitrose risotto ( this comes frozen in a big bag, you just heat what you need) and Morrisons luxury/ best range fish pie.

Thank you Sago, I shall add the risotto to my order and my neighbour goes to Morrisons so that’s two I can try.

I order the parsley box meals for my Mother in law I just get the ten meal offer which usually includes a couple of free desserts .They can be kept in the cupboard which is such a boon for her . She always says how good they are and I ask if she has a favourite but she likes them all !

We were visiting friends, one of whom is clinically vulnerable and wasn’t feeling well enough to come out to dinner so we decided to go to M&S and buy something in.
We bought Chicken Kiev, not those disgusting mechanically reformed meat things but a whole breast of chicken with a lovely crispy coating, it was delicious with roasties and lots of vegetables. It certainly made me reassess my attitude to ready meals.