The 10 Best Supermarket Dinners

When you’re in the supermarket, everything seems harmless. Food labels don’t advertise a day’s worth of fat or a candy bar’s weight in sugar, but they’re quick to tell you when you can get “7 essential vitamins!” Don’t be fooled. The truth is, supermarket foods have just as much waistline-expanding potential as anything else that lands on your plate. But by that same token, honing in on healthy fare—foods that are low in calories but high in protein and flavor—can have a monumental impact on your body weight, especially when you pair them with nutrient-rich sides. And that’s exactly what we’ve done here.
 

#1: Best Bagged Beef Meal

Bertolli Tuscan-Style Braised Beef with Gold Potatoes (1/2 package)

310 calories
11 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
920 mg sodium
35 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Green peas (½ cup)
60 calories
0.5 g fat (0 g saturated)
5 mg sodium
10.5 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Red wine (4 oz)
100 calories
0 g fat (0 g saturated)
5 mg sodium
3 g carbohydrates

Is any meal more comforting than steak and potatoes? We think not. Yet despite the air of indulgence, it’s actually a perfectly healthy dinner—loaded with protein and energy-producing B vitamins. Add a serving of peas to boost your intake of more than a dozen vital nutrients and pour yourself a glass of red wine. Yes, there’s room for alcohol in this “diet,” especially when it comes with red wine’s huge dose of antioxidants.
 

= Best Dinner

470 calories

11.5 g fat (2.5 g saturated)

930 mg sodium

48.5 g carbohydrates

22.5 g protein
8 g fiber

#2: Best Instant Barbecue

Lloyd’s Shredded Beef in Original BBQ Sauce (1/2 cup)

160 calories
4 g fat (2 g saturated)
720 mg sodium
18 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Pepperidge Farm Classic Whole Grain White Hamburger Bun
100 calories
1 g fat (0 g saturated)
150 mg sodium
18 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Cascadian Farm Crinkle Cut French Fries (about 18 pieces)
110 calories
4 g fat (1 g saturated)
10 mg sodium
17 g carbohydrates

Wait, Eat This, Not That! permits barbecued beef sandwiches and french fries? Well, yeah. We encourage it. The beef is lean and loaded with zinc, iron, and B vitamins; the bun draws in whole grains to help battle belly fat; and the fries are the perfect barbecue side dish. Just stick with the spuds cut by Cascadian Farm; they’re prepared with a thin coat of canola oil and apple juice, just enough to turn them brown and crispy in your oven.

= Best Dinner

370 calories

9 g fat (3 g saturated)

920 mg sodium

53 g carbohydrates

20 g protein
4 g fiber

#3: Best Bagged Seafood Meal

Bertolli Garlic Shrimp, Penne & Cherry Tomatoes (1/2 package)

340 calories
11 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
750 mg sodium
42 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Chopped cauliflower (1 cup)
25 calories
0.5 g fat (0 g saturated)
30 mg sodium
5.5 g carbohydrates

The shrimp in this bag is small in stature only. In nutritional terms, it’s gargantuan. Each crustacean loads your body with selenium, a mineral that reduces joint pain; tryptophan, an amino acid that promotes a calm mind; and vitamin D, a nutrient that battles fatigue and helps your body absorb calcium. And unlike some of Bertolli’s other bagged meals, this one manages to deliver the goods while keeping the fat toll in check.
 

= Best Dinner

365 calories

11.5 g fat (1 g saturated)

770 mg sodium

47.5 g carbohydrates

15 g protein
7 g fiber

#4: Best Add-Meat Meal

Annie’s Homegrown Organic Creamy Tuna Spirals (1 cup, prepared with tuna, butter, and milk)

320 calories
8.5 g fat (5 g saturated)
835 mg sodium
39 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Nature’s Own Double Fiber Wheat Bread (1 slice toasted, with a pat of butter and a pinch of garlic salt)
85 calories
4.5 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
290 mg sodium
13 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Chopped broccoli (1 cup)
30 calories
0 g fat (0 g saturated)
30 mg sodium
6 g carbohydrates

This box bests the competition by avoiding nefarious ingredients like hydrogenated oil and MSG (we’re looking at you, Tuna Helper). That said, it isn’t exactly a complete meal—it suffers from a serious lack of green. That’s where the broccoli comes in. Steam a cup and stir it into the Spirals. Your portion not only doubles, but also develops 2 days’ worth of vitamins C and K, half a day’s vitamin A, and a quarter of your folate.

= Best Dinner

#5: Best Quick Seafood Dinner

SeaPak Salmon Burger

110 calories
3 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
380 mg sodium
1 g carbohydrates

Add This!
Arnold Select 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins
100 calories
1 g fat (0 g saturated)
170 mg sodium
21 g carbohydrates

Add This!
Sargento Reduced Fat Swiss Cheese (1 slice)
60 calories
4 g fat (2 g saturated)
30 mg sodium
1 g carbohydrates

Add This!
Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil (1 Tbsp)
45 calories
4 g fat (0 g saturated)
95 mg sodium
2 g carbohydrates

Never had a salmon burger? You don’t know what you’re missing. Not only is it the most hassle-free vehicle for delivering seafood to your belly, but it’s also surprisingly tender and rich. Plus, each burger earns you 680 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids, and that goes a long way toward keeping your skin, brain, joints, and heart healthy. Melt cheese over the patty and it will taste as indulgent as those beef burgers you crave.
 

= Best Dinner

315 calories

12 g fat (2.5 g saturated)

735 mg sodium

25 g carbohydrates

30 g protein

5 g fiber435 calories

13 g fat

(7.5 g saturated)

1,155 mg sodium

58 g carbohydrates

27.5 g protein
9.5 g fiber

#6: Best Frozen Pizza

Kashi Stone-Fired Thin Crust Margherita Pizza (1/3 pizza)

260 calories
9 g fat (4 g saturated)
630 mg sodium
29 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
ETNT Simple Side Salad
170 calories
14 g fat (2 g saturated)
95 mg sodium
10 g carbohydrates 

The popular image of pizza in America involves crust as thick as the Bible and so greasy that you need to towel it down before you eat. This pie is the antithesis of that image; the crust is thin and made with whole grains, and the topping consists of little more than tomatoes, cheese, and seasoning. With one of these pies and a big batch of salad, you have 3 days of lean dinners (or 1 lean dinner for 3 people) laid out before you.

= Best Dinner

430 calories

23 g fat (6 g saturated)

725 mg sodium

39 g carbohydrates

17 g protein
6 g fiber

#7: Best Chicken Stir-Fry

Contessa On the Stove Meal Chicken Stir-Fry (1 1/2 cups with sauce)

170 calories
3 g fat (1 g saturated)
690 mg sodium
23 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Uncle Ben’s Whole Grain Brown Ready Rice (½ cup)
95 calories
1.5 g fat (0 g saturated)
8 mg sodium
19 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Milk (1%, 1 cup)
110 calories
2.5 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
108 mg sodium
13 g carbohydrates

This meal, before you add the sauce that comes with it, has exactly eight ingredients: chicken plus seven different vegetables. That gives you complete protein, complex carbohydrates, and nearly half a day’s vision-protecting, skin-smoothing vitamin A. Make it even healthier by replacing the sauce in the bag (it has 12 grams of sugar) with a few splashes of soy sauce, a handful of chopped scallions, and a few twists of black pepper.
 

= Best Dinner

375 calories
7 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
806 mg sodium
55 g carbohydrates
23.5 g protein
5 g fiber

#8: Best Tex-Mex Meal

T.G.I. Friday’s Skillet Meals Sizzling Chicken Fajitas (1/3 package)

300 calories
7 g fat (3 g saturated)
780 mg sodium
38 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Eden Organic Black Beans (½ cup)
110 calories
1 g fat (0 g saturated)
15 mg sodium
18 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Wholly Guacamole (2 Tbsp)
60 calories
5 g fat (1 g saturated)
170 mg sodium
3 g carbohydrates

If you made fajitas from scratch, they’d probably turn out quite similar to the blend in this bag: chicken, onion, and bell peppers tossed in little oil and served with tortillas. It’s a perfectly simple recipe, and we applaud Friday’s for resisting the urge to ruin it with some sort of cream-based fusion sauce. Add black beans to boost your fiber and protein intake and a big spoon of creamy, heart-healthy guacamole. You deserve it.

= Best Dinner

470 calories
13 g fat (4 g saturated)
965 mg sodium
59 g carbohydrates
26 g protein
9 g fiber

#9: Best Supermarket Seafood

Supermarket-prepared salmon (3 oz)

120 calories
5 g fat (1 g saturated)
250 mg sodium
0 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Bob’s Red Mill Organic Quinoa (¼ cup dry)
170 calories
2.5 g fat (0 g saturated)
0 mg sodium
30 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Asparagus (12 spears)
40 calories
0 g fat
25 mg sodium
7 g carbohydrates

Precooked seafood from the supermarket deli is just as nutritious as (and a heck of a lot cheaper than) the fish you buy at your local seafood joint. Salmon is ideal, but rainbow trout, mackerel, and striped bass all work well, too. If the fillet looks dry, rub it down with olive oil before warming it in the oven. Then serve it over a bed of quinoa with asparagus for a perfect balance of protein, produce, and complex carbohydrates.
 

= Best Dinner

330 calories
7.5 g fat (1 g saturated)
275 mg sodium
37 g carbohydrates
28 g protein
7 g fiber

#10: Best Supermarket-Prepared Meal

Rotisserie chicken (skin-on breast, 147 grams)

270 calories
12 g fat (3 g saturated)
510 mg sodium
0 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que Roasted Garlic Honey BBQ Sauce or your favorite barbecue sauce (2 Tbsp)
25 calories
0 g fat
155 mg sodium
6 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Chopped broccoli (1 ½ cups)
45 calories
0.5 g fat (0 g saturated)
45 mg sodium
9 g carbohydrates

Plus This!
Cascadian Farm Crinkle Cut French Fries (about 18 pieces)
110 calories
4 g fat (1 g saturated)
10 mg sodium
17 g carbohydrates 

Typical diet advice mandates that eaters always remove chicken skin before eating, but this isn’t your typical diet advice. Sure, you’ll save 50 calories by nixing the skin, but most of those calories come from oleic acid, the same heart-healthy, hunger-squashing fat found in olive oil. Skin or no, supermarket rotisserie chickens are valuable allies in the battle of the bulge: Inexpensive, delicious, and always available during a busy work week. 
 

= Best Dinner

450 calories
16.5 g fat (2 g saturated)
720 mg sodium
32 g carbohydrates
49 g protein
5.5 g fiber