Kashi - Southwest Style Chicken (7/10)

Summary

• Price: ~$3.00
• Overall: 7/10.   Cheap, mostly healthy, low calorie way to stay full for 4-5 hours.  However, the full feeling comes from the brown rice which is a little dry and can feel like a lead ball in your stomach. Borderline bland, keep a bottle of hot sauce or other flavoring nearby. 
• Healthfulness: 8/10.  Great protein (16g) and fiber (6g), but a little too high in carbs (49g).  Not good if you're on a low carb/sugar diet.
• Portion Size/Filling:  9/10.  Despite the small portion size and calorie count (310), this meal will give you that lump in your stomach feeling for 4-5 hours, because of the high fiber, heavy grains.
• Flavor: 5/10 (Spiciness: 0/10).  Very mild flavors, borderline bland.  Although it is difficult to strongly flavor brown rice.
• Texture: 6/10. Not bad for brown rice, but there are better options such as Amy's.

Beer Pairing - Blue Moon, Corona


Numbers

• Calories: 310
• Fat: 5g (0g Trans Fat)
• Carbs: 49g
• Fiber: 6g
• Protein: 16g
• Sodium: 680mg

Details
Healthfulness:  Kashi frozen meals are a decent option for healthy frozen food eaters, but even if you like brown rice, this version is a little too dry and can feel like lead in your stomach. Rare for frozen meals, the dish is loaded with protein (16g) and fiber (6g), although a little high in carbs (49g) and low in fat (5g) for my preference.  I'd prefer to feel full from healthy fats versus heavy, high fiber grains.  The good people at Kashi don't agree.  It is a good option for a mid-day meal followed by some serious web surfing or a light dinner followed by a TV marathon.  Not a good option if you're limiting carbs and sugars.   (8 out of 10, almost perfect balance including fiber)
Portion Size/Filling:  Despite the small portion size and calorie count (310 calories; slightly higher than a 6" turkey sandwich from subway), this meal keeps you "full" for 4-5 hours.  This "full" is the lump-in-the-bottom-of-your-stomach type of full that you get from eating heavy, high fiber grains. It probably won't supply you with enough calories for your daily spinning class though.  (9 out of 10, small portion but long-lasting full feeling)
Flavor:  The intensity of flavor is below mild. The rice is covered in brown sauce which looks as though it is abundant with flavor, but the sauce barely pushes the flavor level above bland. This may be because it is naturally difficult to flavor healthy ingredients such as brown rice and barley. I imagine this is what tex-mex would taste like in England. (5 out of 10, not bland but definitely not licking my lips.  0 out of 10 for spiciness.)
Texture:  Similar texture to brown rice, bulgar wheat, quinoa, barley, etc. I'm not sure if those are the actual ingredients, but the texture is similar. These textures overpower the chicken and definitely the barely noticable vegetables (black beans, corn and green and red bell peppers). The chicken is slightly tough, which is normal for all frozen meals, and the quality is very good. The chicken seems like all white meat with little to no fat, cartlidge, etc.  The beans, corn and bell peppers add very little to the overall texture. Similar feel as the Kashi cereals and granola bars. (6 out of 10 because I like brown rice)