Enjoying steamed veggies with a push of a button
Have you seen these newly packaged frozen veggies that actually cook in the microwave in their own bag? The busy mom in me watched the commercials for the new line of Steamfresh ™ Birds-Eye® frozen vegetables with anticipation. The Mama Bear in me watched with caution and concern. I have longed stayed away from using most plastic in the microwave for fear imparting my food with deadly toxins seeping in from the degrading plastics. (I’m sometimes more reactive than rational, I admit. But if there’s a chance it could damage little brains or cause cancer, why risk it?, I say.) But, since this bag is specially designed for the microwave and FDA approved for that very purpose, I overcame my fear of the possible toxins and took the plunge.
I bought a 5-pack of the Broccoli, Carrots, Sugar Snap Peas, and Water Chestnuts at my local warehouse club. Each 16-ounce package comes ready to cook in its own bag. Just pop the entire bag, as is, (meaning DO NOT puncture it) into the microwave and 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 minutes later, plus one minute of standing, you have freshly steamed previously-frozen vegetables. Check out their website for a demo of how this technology works. I give the product a solid 7, not the best vegetables ever, but certainly acceptable for a weeknight dinner. The flavor and texture were decent, (in fact they needed very little seasoning), but the appearance was fairly lackluster. The peas looked way more limp than they tasted, but the broccoli, carrots and water chestnuts fared fairly well.
Have you tried these yet? What varieties do you like/don’t like?
Comments
On May 30 at 10:17 AM Lee Summerall said:
I am leery about using a plastic pouch in a microwave simply because the composition of the plastic itself has never been vetted by the FDA. Nuking plastic particles into my green beans doesn't appeal...plus I like the simple 5 minute steaming of fresh beans. I like the idea of staying connected with my food, so I won't be using those little plastic bags...ever. It's a short cut that doesn't add to my life quality.
On Jun 10 at 08:17 PM Carole Lewis said:
I personally have tried them all and found them to be very good quality and tasty.
My husband actually ate the brocolli, cauliflower blend, and nearly licked the plate. It saves me a few extra minutes and goes from bag to serving dish. A winner as far as my family thinks.
On Oct 10 at 02:50 PM Lori said:
I love these and buy them almost exclusively. I make a solid effort to make a balanced meal everynight, however, with two professional adults, 2 preschoolers, and quite a commute home every evening, dinner preparation starts when most families sit down to eat. These save time and my family loves them. And since they have a variety of vegetables to offer prepackaged like this, I can provide a variety of vegetable exposure to the family.
On Jun 2 at 08:51 PM Beatrice said:
I have tried a few varieties and have liked them all very much. There so quick and easy (and tasty!) there's no reason to neglect veggies at the dinner table anymore.
On Jan 14 at 10:44 PM Mike said:
I have used these vegies sence they first came out I think they are great for me and my family and my grand son will eat these were other kinds he will not. These tast fresh like just taken out of the garden not like other that taste like out of the garden for a week and so flat in flavor.
On May 24 at 03:57 PM Kellie said:
I did try them...the broccoli was good; I however did not nuke quite as long as you did...I think 7 may have been too long.
I also tried the green beans...so-so. But then I have never found that any green beans are tender after being nuked. The leftovers I sauteed in butter in a skillet were good however. That is my only complaint actually...I would like a bag 1/2 that size as we are only 2 most times for dinner.