Rating Low-Cal Frozen Entrees

Dear Eating Right: I don’t really want to spend the extra money to join one of the diet centers that sells expensive frozen and freeze-dried food. Instead, I’m considering building a diet of frozen entrees in the supermarket. Which brand is the lowest in fat?

--ALICE

Dear Alice: First, if you’re going to begin a diet based upon frozen supermarket entrees, be aware that products labeled low-fat can indeed be higher in fat than the non-dietetic versions of the dish. It’s best to ignore the claims on the front package label such as “95% fat-free” and “less than 300 calories” and instead read labels carefully. This is the only way you can be sure you are getting the entire fat-content story.

To hasten label reading time, avoid dishes prepared with methods that require added fat, such as those in butter-based sauces or dishes that are breaded or fried. Choose instead herb-roasted chicken and vegetables, spaghetti and meat sauce, vegetable lasagne or fish fillets.

Keep in mind that a healthy frozen entree should derive about 30% of its calories from fat, which means a 300-calorie dish should contain no more than 10 grams of fat. It should offer less than 1,000 milligrams per serving.

Also, bear in mind that eating lots of frozen entrees will inevitably become quite boring. This may cause you to resort to old eating patterns; in that case, you may regain any weight you have lost.

A better plan is to use the frozen entrees to supplement a healthier, low-fat eating program. Rely upon frozen entrees when you don’t have time to prepare a low-fat meal from scratch. And round out the meal with a salad or vegetables and a piece of whole-grain bread. This will help you feel full with fewer calories and will help you meet your body’s needs for vitamins and minerals.

The Times conducted an informal taste test of some of the leading entrees from Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, Le Menu LightStyle, the Budget Gourmet Light and Weight Watchers. We sampled lasagne with meat sauce and Chinese chicken with rice and discovered that the entrees differ greatly in both taste and texture. Budget Gourmet Light fared well in both categories. Le Menu LightStyle was voted worst.

Unlike other varieties, whose vegetables don’t hold up after microwaving, those in Healthy Choice Mandarin Chicken with Rice and Broccoli remain crisp and bright. There is a distinctive taste of ginger that packs a wallop. Budget Gourmet Mandarin Chicken tastes unnecessarily sweet, while Lean Cuisine’s Chicken Chow Mein reminded tasters of canned chow mein. Le Menu was voted unacceptable: The vegetables were soggy, the chicken was dry, the sauce was tasteless.

In all cases the pasta in the lasagne was moderately cooked--not al dente but not soggy either. Budget Gourmet Light’s sauce tasted as if it had actually been simmered from fresh ingredients, while Weight Watchers’ sauce reminded tasters of tomato paste spiked with dried oregano. Lean Cuisine was OK. But Healthy Choice, which boasts a lower fat and sodium content in most entrees, was dry and yellowish in color, “. . . as if the sauce had been washed off,” one taster observed. Le Menu LightStyle tasted of citrus.

Another problem: Some frozen entrees require more than 15 minutes preparation time.

As an alternative, prepared spaghetti sauces, part-skim mozzarella cheese and pasta can be tossed together quickly. Or, check the produce section of your supermarket for cut-up vegetables, which grocers are packaging now with Japanese noodles and seasonings (yakisoba) for a fast stir-fry. You can toss in your favorite lean meat, fish or poultry and, in some cases, have a meal on the table faster than you can microwave a frozen entree.

Ground turkey, low-fat cottage cheese and part-skim mozzarella cheese reduce the fat content and uncooked lasagn a noodles cut the cooking time in Easy Oven Lasagn a , from “The New American Diet,” by Sonja L. Connor and William E. Connor (Simon & Schuster: $12.95). EASY OVEN LASAGNE

1/4 pound ground turkey

3/4 cup water

4 cups Marinara Sauce

1/2 pound uncooked lasagna noodles

1 cup low-fat cottage cheese

3/4 cup sliced part-skim mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Brown ground turkey in non-stick skillet and drain. Add water and Marinara Sauce. Bring to boil. Remove from heat.

In 13x9-inch baking dish, layer sauce, uncooked noodles, cottage cheese and mozzarella cheese, repeating layers until all ingredients are used. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Sauce will be thin.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees 1 hour. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into squares. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Marinara Sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 (16-ounce) cans unsalted tomatoes

2 (8-ounce) cans unsalted tomato sauce

1 teaspoon oregano leaves

1 tablespoon chopped or dried parsley

Saute garlic in olive oil until garlic is tender. Slowly add tomatoes and tomato sauce. Stir in oregano and parsley. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, 20 minutes or up to 2 hours. Break up tomatoes with potato masher and stir sauce occasionally.

ANALYSIS FOR ONE-SERVING FROZEN ENTREES

Calories Fat Cholesterol Sodium Grams Milligrams Milligrams Chinese Chicken With Rice Healthy Choice (11 ounces) 260 2 50 400 Le Menu LightStyle (8 1/4 ounces) 210 5 30 690 Budget Gourmet Light (10 ounces) 300 7 40 670 Lean Cuisine (11 1/4 ounces) 250 5 35 980 Lasagna With Meat Sauce Healthy Choice (9 ounces) 250 4 20 420 Le Menu LightStyle (10 ounces) 290 8 30 510 Budget Gourmet Light (9.4 ounces) 300 13 40 760 Lean Cuisine (10 1/4 ounces) 270 8 60 970 Weight Watchers (11 ounces) 330 11 60 990

Source: Product Labels