Stouffer's Sides - Cheddar Bacon Potatoes

The idea of this doesn't appeal to me overmuch, but that's probably because most "bacon" of this type is just soy protein. According to the ingredos, this product is soy free, and it's just normie bacon in there. This is also a brick of 4.5 servings (to that I say: lol, but it is probably 2-3). The reviews are weirdly high. You cook it in the microwave, so you know it's haute cuisine. 

The taste is mainly breadcrumb, which is fine, I like breadcrumb. Some small bacos, some cheese crust, and yeah, theoretically, potato cubes. High goop factor. I don't know if it's worth raving about, but it's unobjectionable. I wouldn't serve it at a party but I'd eat it. 

Overall
Cost: 3/10 [8$]
Taste: 6/10 

Stouffer's Signature Sides - Scalloped Potatoes

This might seem like a crazy thing to buy when you can get a box of au gratin potatoes for way way cheaper, but turns out, those boxes contain soy protein/pea protein now. What the heck! So, OK, we'll give the freezer variety a try. Stouffer's is good for allergy stuff in my experience, and this only has milk and wheat. It's basically just potato and parm with a few seasonings. This is 4 servings (in theory; feels like 2 in practice) and you cook it in the microwave. Doesn't sound like the peak of food culture, but it tastes good. More cheese than potato, which is a definite plus. Then again, parm is an aged cheese, so maybe I shouldn't go too hard on this. There are some chewy bits (i.e. pure cheese) in addition to the more milky sauce, but not a lot of "gratin" to speak of. (I guess that's why they went with "scalloped" for the name). When cooking it smelled a bit like canned tomato soup, which is nasty, but the taste was overall "solid". Very similar to their vegetable lasagna sauce actually. Hm. 

Overall
Cost: 4/10 [9$?!]
Taste: 7/10

Idahoan Mashed Potatoes - Hidden Valley Ranch

There sure are a lot of Ranch flavored things. As a noted Ranch disliker, it's weird that I keep buying them, I know. But they usually don't taste that much like ranch! Anyway, these smelled a bit bad in the package, which made me nervous, but they smelled more normal once mixed with the hot water. This makes a generous amount, and it's quite tedious to eat it plain, but I wanted to get a true sense of the flavor. Which is: vaguely ranchy, I suppose. Mostly tastes like cream and typical onion/garlic potato seasoning. Salty. It's fine, but not noticeably distinct from most of the other Idahoan flavors I've had. 

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Idahoan Chicken Broth Mashed Potatoes

These are mostly just fine. They are potatoes with a slight salty/brothy vibe, I guess. Pretty boring on their own, but definitely quick and filling. The cooking instructions (Boil water, add potatoes) weirded me out since they say to add to a bowl straightaway rather than to boil in a pot as I'm used to. Makes it seem less food-like somehow!

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Idahoan Buttery Homestyle Mashed Potatoes

I assume the cup version tastes similar to this bag version, but the bag feels much classier, anyway. So I got this because it was 8 servings and I wanted a backup for Thanksgiving in case the real potatoes didn't pan out. But they did, so I made this all for myself at home with turkey/corn leftovers. It was way too much potato. It actually went well with greens + jalepenos, so that's a good option for a starchy meal for quar times (or post-quar times, even). They do have a buttery taste but it isn't overwhelming or fatty tasting. They do also have a bit of artificialness to them, but it doesn't bother me much, although it is noticeable, especially without gravy. All the more reason to gravy boat! These are so cheap/fast to make that I can't knock 'em too much. And whatever labelling issues I had with the cups wasn't present here!

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 6/10

Arby's Seasoned Curly Fries [Frozen]

I'm thinkin' Arby's....did a smart thing making these available in my local grocery. They're really not bad! Not quite as greasy as the OG restaurant version (which is probably a good thing), but otherwise pretty authentic of a match. They cooked properly, had a nice curl to 'em, and are way better than a regular oven fry. Thanks, Arby's. If only they sold Arby's Sauce in the bottle, too. (Update: they do!) 

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

Idahoan Cheddar Broccoli Hearty Soup

So, Idahoan never got back to me about their contradictory allergy labelling, which isn't great. Yet I decided to support them by buying a bunch of soup. Oops. But in my defense, you only need water to make these, this supposedly doesn't have soy protein in it, and I like soup. I like soup! Sue me! :D:

This is pretty solid, anyway. It's a pot of warm, filling, potatoey mush. I admit it was weirdly salty and sugary for a soup, and it had an aftertaste of sugar cookies, which was very very weird. But, I like it. It's cheap, easy to cook, didn't make me itchy, and isn't super calorific even though the salt/sugar stats are no bueno. Not a ton of brocco (or cheese) flavor, mostly sweet + potato, which sounds kind bad, but it's really not bad. Pleasant soup. I will try adding veg to it at some point, because that seems like it might be an upgrade.

Overall
Cost: 6/10 [2.50$ at Walmart.com]
Taste: 7/10

Idahoan Buttery Homestyle Mashed Potatoes Cup

During this corona holiday season, I'm a moper without my traditional foods. Sure, it wasn't my first Thanksgiving alone (and probably not my last), but I couldn't even go to the store and buy snacks! So I appreciate the convenience and shippability of this Mashed Potato Easy Mac Cup. It is super easy and fast to prepare (less than 2 minutes), decently filling, and not too calorific. It tastes just like mashed potatoes, which normally I am "eh" on, but they fit the winter bill. So what's not to like? 

Well, I'll tell you what. On the outer box, these say "Contains Milk." but then on the individual cup (with no actual ingredients or nutritional info on it), it says "Contains Milk and Soy". What??! If that were peanut instead of soy I'd be crying furiously. Why are they different?! The best case scenario is that they don't actually have soy, but even just seeing that disparity is so terrifying. I emailed them, so we'll see what happens. 

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10
Labelling: 1/10

Betty Crocker Au Gratin Potatoes

These are good! Sadly they require milk and butter to make, which is super unrealistic during this no-leaving-the-house time for me, but I had to pick up a prescription at the pharmacy recently and so I've had a few crazy days of dairy in my life. So these were exciting and good. The potatoes themselves were oddly firm, as in they didn't feel totally cooked even though they surely were, which I actually kind of liked as long as it doesn't signify they were old or bad or something. This has a nice nostalgic taste, fatty and distinct, almost like a hearty potato soup with cheese in it. No soy in here so no allergy worries. I made this in the oven because I didn't even realise there were other options like stovetop, but I think the oven worked well because they weren't too runny and had just a tinge of brown on top. Makes a solid 2 servings for me personally, even though it says it's 4.5 servings. Lol.

Overall

Cost: 6/10

Taste: 8/10

Idahoan Smokey Cheese & Bacon Mashed Potatoes

OK, the main thing to note about these potatoes for me is that the "bacon" in this flavor isn't real bacon at all, but bacon flavored soy protein. Normally I don't care about fake meat/cheese/flavoring, but I'm mildly allergic to soy protein, so this made me really anxious. I tried to eat around the bacon bits in here, but there are quite a lot of them and it still made me itchy. A scary experience. Other than that, I didn't think this tasted very different from the other cheese flavored varieties anyway. So I'd recommend you just get one of those instead, unless you really love bacon flavor. There is a light smoky bacon flavor here for sure, as well as some plain mild cheddar. Even ignoring the soy thing, I wasn't a big fan of this flavor. Easy to cook & cheap though!


Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste: 4/10

Idahoan Cheddar & Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

This was fine. Standard. As always, Idahoan potatoes are super fast and easy to cook, plus they are a filling meal and fairly low-cal compared to pasta or rice. The taste of these was really nothing special, though, even with added veg. Tastes like cheesy potato, which is totally serviceable but very boring after a few spoonfuls. A monotonous eating experience. But if you like plain pizza, plain bagels, plain donuts, and sauceless meats, you might love this (I do not).

Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste: 5/10

Idahoan Roasted Garlic & Parmesan Baby Reds Mashed Potatoes

I actually got potatoes again! They're so cheap and easy and filling, how could I resist. This sounded like the tastiest flavor to me, because I thought it might be lumpy and garlicy like the best mashed potatoes are. However, I failed to realise that fake mashed potatoes probably wouldn't (shouldn't) be lumpy. So they were smooth and not with skin in them, the picture is a bit misleading. The flavor was fine, garlicy and buttery and I guess cheesy. Honestly I could do without the cheese and if I get more potatoes, I will get a cheeseless variety. I put in some mixed steamed veg to make it more healthful, and it worked out pretty decently. 2 meals worth!

Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste: 7/10

Mrs. T's Mozzarella, Tomato & Basil Pierogies

Honestly, I had very low expectations for this flavor of pierogie, because they look a little gross. Why is it red inside? Is this ravioli or pierogie?!? (Of course ravioli is more delicious....) But I like mozz, tomato, and basil, so even when they're mixed with mashed potato and pepper inside of a noodle, the taste is still good. It really is like an italian pasta inside, just mixed with potato. I don't LOVE it, but these are so cheap and easy to make that I'm gonna keep playing the pierogie roulette.



Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 7/10

Idahoan Four Cheese Mashed Potatoes

So, I've had the flu this week (still do, bleh) and when I ate this, I was at the apex of sickness (or at least I hope so) and therefore couldn't really taste them enough to give an accurate review. From what I could perceive, they were not amazing but they were fine. I still paired them with brocco and they were still suuuuper filling for the calories. I think I liked the original flavor better, although it's hard to tell what I really thought of these. I hate bleu cheese, so the fact that that is one of the included cheeses makes me nervous, although I couldn't tell it was included. But maybe if I had control of my senses I would have noticed and disliked it. Anyway, this company seems pretty cool - they have a lot of products, everything is cheap, and they have a nice website with allergy info and recipes and pictures. I'm on board.

Overall
Cost: 9/10
Taste: 6/10

Idahoan Classic Mashed Potatoes

I wasn't sure what to except with these, as I find plain potatoes a little boring, and people talk crap on box (or bag) mashed potatoes. But actually, I thought these were really good, especially for the price and convenience factor. The taste was nice and buttery, with a nice creamy texture, and overall a fun experience. They were super easy to make, and I paired it with brocco for a full mean. I ate them all! But it was still less calories than a noodle pack, woohoo.






Overall
Cost: 9/10 [1$]
Taste: 7/10

Grown In Idaho - Hand Cut Fries

Finally, I'm finishing off the trifecta of frozen potato products from this company! In all, these really are convenient and a big calorie bang for your buck. Unfortunately, I don't LOVE potato or fries that much; they're more of a conveyor for cheese/gravy/meat for me, which I never have at home and so I'm inevitably unimpressed. My main issue is that these are too thing and too oily/sweet, with not enough (any?) salt or pre-seasoning. Sure, I can add my own, and sure, I can mix up some mustard and ketchup and mayo and pretend I'm at a West-Coast Burger chain, but in the end we're all just staring into the void.

What?

These are fine. They are soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside. They are very easy to cook (although it does take like 30min, I could fall asleep by then). They are a little too funnel cakey, but overall decent, and certainly not worse than any other frozen fry I've had.

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 6/10

Grown in Idaho - Crispy Hash Brown Dices

I'm not sure if I was just hungry, or if I jazzed these up particularly well, but I found these potato wedges a lot tastier than the steak fries from the same brand! Plus, they're super fast to cook -- just 4 minutes in a frying pan with a little oil. I also added green pepper, cheese, and egg, but I feel like these are super versatile and could go with a lot of things. The taste is  basically just pure potato, and unlike the fries these are all basically the same size/shape (little cubes). Mine weren't super crispy, but that's fine with me (maybe because I used less oil than prescribed). Plus they are super filling. I know I should try another variety next, but part of me just wants to get these again!


Overall
Cost: 6/10 (about 3.50)
Taste: 7/10