The dinners can serve as "training wheels" for those who are just learning to cook. But if your goal is having a quick, convenient meal on hand, check the at-home cooking instructions when ordering. Some entrees can be popped directly into the oven, but others require stir-frying chicken, boiling pasta, etc. So you can end up with quite a few dirty pans. And if the pork roast requires 60-90 minutes in the oven, and you don't get home until 5:30 p.m., it's a long wait until dinner.

Frozen food aisle

The "Joy of Cooking" cookbook, which has been around since 1931, last month lent its name to a line of 22 frozen main dishes, side dishes, vegetables and breads. Partner Bellisio Foods Inc. says the the products deliver "the taste of homemade without all of the work."

The products are touted as inspired by recipes from the "Joy of Cooking" books, and each package has a suggestion for "customizing" the meal. For instance, making the Roasted Herb Chicken into a chicken pot pie by topping it with a pie crust, or adding pancetta to the Scalloped Potatoes. Or tossing a half-cup of cherry tomatoes to the Creamy Chicken Florentine, which is fettuccine Alfredo studded with chicken chunks and spinach bits. A three-serving entree is about $8.99.

In September, T.G.I Fridays partnered with the Heinz Co. to offer frozen entrees. The Firecracker Sesame Chicken is a meal kit with separate packets of sauce, chicken, veggies, noodles and sesame seeds. There are a few directions, such as stir-frying the chicken for a few minutes, but it all comes together in one skillet and takes about 15 minutes total. The entrees are $6.99-$7.99 for about 2 1/2 servings.

General Mills launched Romano's Macaroni Grill boxed meal kits last week, a step up from its Hamburger Helper line. A five-to-six-serving box retails at around $4.79, but you have to supply the chicken.

Stouffers' familiar red-box entrees, such as lasagne — which usually takes an hour to cook in the oven — now come in an Easy Express version that microwaves in less than 20 minutes. Bertolli's, meanwhile, has taken its frozen pasta dinners in the opposite direction with a line of Oven Bake Meals.

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E-mail: vphillips@desnews.com