What's for dinner?

When Harmons opened a new grocery store last spring at 125 E. 13800 South, it devoted one-third of its space to freshly prepared foods, including an Asian wok station and prime-rib carving station. Chefs prepare 30-45 entrees, salads and side dishes daily for takeout or to eat in an upper mezzanine area that overlooks the store.

Home delivery

Winder Farms, known for home delivery of milk, recently added Meal Solutions to its order forms. Dishes such as Cajun Stuffed Pork Chops, Chicken Breasts With Red Thai Curry Sauce, and Tilapia With Mango Salsa come frozen and are ready to eat in 20 minutes or less. Most offer more exotic flavors than basic home cooking. Price for a four-serving package is $14.99-$24.99, depending on the entree. The company also offers burritos, tamales and salsas from Salt Lake City-based Rico Mexican Market and Italian pastas and sauces from another local company, R.C. Rossi.

A survey indicated that customers wanted Winder to offer prepared dinners, said Mike Winder, vice president of sales. "Our customers listed all-natural ingredients, great taste, quick preparation, easy cleanup and value as high priorities."

Meal assembly

Earlier this year, Utah's oldest meal-assembly company, My Girlfriend's Kitchen, was sold to Dinner A'Fare, a Georgia-based chain (www.dinnerafare.com). It kept the locations in American Fork and Layton, and the South Jordan store became an independent store, Dinner Market (www.dinnermarket.com).

The Dream Dinners chain has stores in North Logan, Kaysville, Orem, St. George, Salt Lake City and Sandy (dreamdinners.com); while St. George has Signature Suppers (www.signaturesuppers.com).

They all operate in a similar fashion. Home cooks order meals, usually six to 12 at a time, and sign up for a two-hour "cooking" session in the commercial-style kitchen. They rotate to different work stations, assemble the already-prepped ingredients into meals and take them home to freeze. The price is around $21-$25 for a six-to-eight-serving meal; $11-$15 for two-to-three servings. There's often a price break for ordering more meals.

You don't have to find recipes, buy groceries or do the chopping and slicing. But you do need to find a two-hour block of time to assemble the meals, although most companies offer assembly service.