I was getting a bag of ice from QFC after a positively atrocious day at work. I had used up my last brain cell and couldn’t begin to decipher what I wanted for dinner. I glanced in the case to my left and was drawn in by all these pretty black and beige “Grace’s Kitchen” boxes with a slew of reduced price stickers. I grabbed the one that said Duck Leg Confit and headed home.
I opened the package to find that for $18.99 ($16.99 on sale), you got a shrink wrapped package of two duck legs from Grimaud Farms, a pouch of mashed sweet potatoes and a container of cranberry sauce. I was immediately dismayed and thought, what a rip-off.
I defrosted all the packages, seared the duck legs until very crisp, tossed them into the oven to finish cooking, then microwaved the mashed sweet potatoes until hot. Dinner was seriously on the table in about 15 minutes. And it looked gorgeous.
I sat down and ate. The seared duck leg was juicy on the inside, with a perfect layer of crisped fat on the outside. The sweet potatoes were kind of bland, but not bad and the cranberry chutney was great—and I don’t even like cranberries. The combination of duck, sweet potatoes and chutney in one forkful was incredible. I couldn’t believe that something so good could come from the freezer and be prepared in such a short time.
After dinner, I really started thinking about (i.e. justifying) the price. The dinner served two generously, so that meant the normal cost was about $9.50 per serving. Easily what you’d pay for a much simpler meal out. When I found out that the Grimaud duck legs alone retailed for $15, I realized that it actually was a great deal (especially when on sale!).
It’s definitely not cheaper than cooking, say, top ramen, but for a meal of that quality—and total ease, it’s worth the splurge once and a while. I’ll definitely be trying more of Grace’s Kitchen’s entrees.
Grace’s Kitchen products are amazing. Hard to believe it’s frozen food. Why can’t Stouffer’s do anything like this. I’m a hero at home now, cooking Grace’s a couple of times a week. It’s easy, delicious and there’s no menu planning or extra shopping to do. Why didn’t anyone think of this before these guys?
I agree–it doesn’t seem like frozen food at all. Although I wonder if they’ll last. I hope they do, but it seems like a small target market. I hate to say it, but most people probably take one look at the price and opt for the cheaper frozen food–and don’t understand the value of Grace’s.
After hearing about this, and reading the blogs, I bought several meals at a litte place near my office. White Toque carries a line of nice french frozen food, so I was surprised to find Grace’s Kitchen on the shelf. The store manager raved about the food, so I ended up buying more than I otherwise would have.
Grace’s Kitchen is on to something with these meals. It’s not cheap, but a lot easier and faster than shopping for all the food – sort of like “Martha in a Box”. I have tried several and am keeping more on hand for those days when I can;t bear to cook but don’t want to go out or order out. How much Amy;s can you eat after all? With these meals I get a nice pork loin or chicken breast or even steak in the Mekong Beef stir-fry. Love the meat.
Brandi,
“Martha in a Box” is right on. Ha ha!
My local store stopped carrying most of the selections, so now I have to search them out. I haven’t tried the Mokong beef yet, but I’ll have to check that out.
Sadly, Grace’s Kitchen has closed. I just read it online while searching for some nutrition information. I was just ordering from spud.com and I think I’ll pop one of their entrees in my order. They’re on sale, and since they just closed, still well before pull date.