The new lineup features of the moment dishes like tomato and spinach egg bites, cauliflower crust pizza, and protein forward, low carb bowls. Winners included longstanding Lean Cuisine classics like glazed chicken in a lemon tarragon sauce and newcomers along the lines of a chicken ranch flatbread.
Among the losers were nutritionally bankrupt dishes such as cheddar potatoes with broccoli and ricotta and spinach ravioli. The takeaway from reviewing these take out alternatives basically comes down to the fact that Lean Cuisines are not meant to be complete meals. Adding a side of fruit or veggies will boost the good for you value and even out the nutritional ups and downs of the microwavable meals. But there's one question that remains throughout the brand's nearly 40 year history, are these supposedly healthy meals really good for you?
The folks at Live Strong dug deep into the topic and the verdict is hardly cut and dry. You eat it and you still feel hungry. Last summer, Lean Cuisine launched its ItAll campaign , which was about women having it all. Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment: to empower through understanding. Financial contributions from our readers are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive work and help us keep our journalism free for all.
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To see which Lean Cuisine you should pair with your produce, check out our ranking of the best-selling Lean Cuisines. And while we're on the topic of frozen foods, don't forget to check out our exclusive list to the worst frozen foods in America. We normally rank products based on calories, but because Lean Cuisine's calorie counts are on the low end for "meals," we chose to rank on satiating macronutrients instead: healthy fats, fiber, and protein.
These macros are what's going to help you feel full. The more protein, fiber, and fats in a meal, the better. Points were awarded for a cleaner ingredient list and deducted for meals with more than 10 grams of sugar per serving. Here are the best Lean Cuisines ranked from "O. Nutrition per package: calories, 6 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 44 g carbs 2 g fiber, 3 g sugar , 16 g protein. Everyone's favorite IKEA meal ranks as one of our best dishes—it's just at the bottom of the list because it's lacking in the veggie department.
Nutrition per package: calories, 6 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 43 g carbs 2 g fiber, 3 g sugar , 17 g protein. Even though the ingredient list reads like a recipe you could make at home with ingredients like scrambled whole eggs, carrots, peas, and ginger , we had to dock this dish for pumping up the protein content with isolated soy protein rather than real chicken. Nutrition per package: calories, 5 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 25 g carbs 1 g fiber, 4 g sugar , 17 g protein.
Boost the protein content of this balanced dish with an extra serving of peas. You won't just be getting extra greens and 4 grams of protein — peas are also one of the foods with more fiber than an apple — serving up nearly 4 grams of fiber per half cup for only 60 extra calories! Nutrition per package: calories, 4 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 45 g carbs 2 g fiber, 4 g sugar , 17 g protein.
For being a pasta-centered dish, we were pleasantly surprised to see such a high protein content for this meal. Nutrition per package: calories, 4 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 18 g carbs 3 g fiber, 11 g sugar , 15 g protein. It's absurdly low in calories, but this meal still packs in four grams of healthy fats from the beef and butter, a whopping 15 grams of protein, and three different veggies!
Plus, who doesn't love Sriracha? Nutrition per package: calories, 8 g fat 3 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 33 g carbs 3 g fiber, 14 g sugar , 20 g protein. We knocked this dish back significantly because of its high sugar count—it contains more of the sweet stuff than two Oreo cookies. Nutrition per package: calories, 4 g fat 1 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 31 g carbs 5 g fiber, 6 g sugar , 16 g protein.
Nutrition per package: calories, 6 g fat 1 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 29 g carbs 2 g fiber, 4 g sugar , 18 g protein. Although a classic carbonara doesn't contain asparagus, we're not complaining that this meal packs in some extra veggies when it can. Nutrition per package: calories, 7 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 50 g carbs 3 g fiber, 11 g sugar , 20 g protein. It may be high in protein, but this barbecue-inspired pizza is a little high in sugar and carbs while being nearly devoid of anything that grows out of the ground.
Nutrition per package: calories, 5 g fat 2 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 33 g carbs 3 g fiber, 6 g sugar , 19 g protein. Although we've cautioned against choosing meals just for sake of eating "Gluten Free," in this case, Lean Cuisine doesn't steer you wrong.
With carbs to give you fast-acting energy and enough protein and fat to keep you going long after, this dish can certainly act as a meal replacement. Speaking of meal replacements, if you've started working out early in the morning, consider adding on of these protein shake recipes to your meal plan rather than just skipping breakfast.
Nutrition per package: calories, 7 g fat 3 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 25 g carbs 3 g fiber, 4 g sugar , 20 g protein. All that's missing from this homestyle meal is a side of peas and carrots. Please, go get a serving of peas and carrots. Nutrition per package: calories, 5 g fat 1 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 38 g carbs 6 g fiber, 13 g sugar , 21 g protein. Not only are you getting three different veggies, chicken, and noodles in this dish, but even for the small serving size, this meal could help you fill up because it looks like a variety of food: Cornell researchers have found that when your food fills up more of your plate, dieters will perceive themselves as feeling fuller than those whose less diverse meals only took up a small portion of the plate.
Nutrition per package: calories, 9 g fat 3 g saturated fat , mg sodium, 56 g carbs 3 g fiber, 6 g sugar , 22 g protein. Yes, a pizza may actually be one of your best Lean Cuisine options.
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