I happened to come across some "ready to eat" meals in a grocery store a few days ago, and decided to try two of them: MTR's "Dal Fry", and a packet of "Aloo Mattar" from Ashirvaad (each in the region of INR35).
I ate them with rice for dinner today. Both packets claim to "serve 3" (small children, I assume). When I poured them into saucepans to heat, I found them swimming in oil (which I'd expected). I use so little oil at home that most things seem oily to me, but I'm not above indulging in the occasional sinfully delicious and oily meal outside. But the "delicious" part is a necessary prerequisite, and both packets failed to deliver in that regard. Those "carefully selected and mixed" spices made the dal taste just short of horrid. The potatoes and peas tasted completely unlike the gravy they were forced to share a packet with, and had a curious tinny aftertaste. Everything's sitting in one solid lump somewhere inside me right now. Never again. -- ams
