South Beach entrees tasty but have some oddities

South Beach Diet Asian Inspired Frozen Entrees. Kung Pao Chicken, Szechwan Style Pork, Garlic Sesame Beef, and Orange Beef. $3.79 per 10- to 11.2-ounce entree.

Bonnie: Kraft supposedly recently reformulated its South Beach frozen entrees to contain less sodium, and also introduced four Asian-inspired entrees with comparatively modest sodium levels. These new entrees have less than 1,000 milligrams sodium each. (That's true for only two of the originals: Even after their purported reformulation, the older entrees still have up to a whopping 1,350 milligrams of sodium.) These new Asian entrees contain 300 or fewer calories, a modest 8 to 11 grams of fat, 4 to (a hefty) 9 grams of fiber, and 19 to 32 grams of protein.

But what about taste? The flavor of the sauces and accompaniments are fine. But the pork and beef are sinewy and gristly, with half the meat inedible. That's pretty ironic, considering that South Beach is a high-protein diet. I suggest Kraft reformulate these yet again, using better-quality meats.

Carolyn: These four entrees bring the number of South Beach frozen meals influenced by Asian cuisine up to six, or more than half of the line. Perhaps someone should rename it South Asia instead of South Beach.

Like many of the originals, these are tasty and different to the point of oddness. They are odd in the way of a product that has an ulterior (although far from hidden) agenda — in this case, to meet the requirements of the South Beach Diet. For example, the Kung Pao Chicken and Garlic Sesame Beef beg for a starch to spread out their delicious, intensely flavored sauces, but starches are a no-no in the first phase of the diet.

The peanuts seem to be in the Kung Pao Chicken mainly for their protein, because they don't really integrate with the sauce in this version of the dish (although I don't have a South Beach Diet explanation for why the Garlic Sesame Beef tastes so little like sesame). The Orange Beef is almost as flavorful as the discontinued Lean Cuisine entree I used to love. It comes with both brown rice and the most authentic Chinese vegetable side dish I've ever tasted in a big-brand frozen entree (although I'll agree with Bonnie that its meat could be better).

It goes without saying that these would be convenient for anyone on the South Beach Diet. Should anyone else buy them? Yes, if you're not afraid of flavor, nutrition that falls somewhere between Marie Callender and Lean Cuisine, or taking out a pan to cook up some rice alongside your TV dinner.

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