Customer Reviews

Tasty Bite Madras Lentils Entree, Heat & Eat, 10-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 6)

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

From the time we discovered this product 2 or 3 years ago at a local store (Costco) we loved the product. Then discovered Amazon, and the Tasty Bite Lentils was one of their Subscribe & Save items, allowing us to set up a purchase schedule and receive a 15% discount and free shipping, making the full purchase price around $26.

Then, earlier this year Amazon removed it from the Subscribe and Save and the prices went completely nuts. The lowest price on Amazon is now close to $37, and believe it or not, you can pay as much as $89 on Amazon for the identical package! Is that crazy??

Costco stocks it regularly in their stores for $6.99 for a package of 4 10oz envelopes. So for 12 envelopes (the same ones that you can buy here for $37), you can purchase 3 boxes of 4 at Costco for $21. That is 44% Cheaper than Amazon, I won't bother to compare with the $89 price on the linked product! Make up your own mind.

Tasty Bite Madras Lentils Entree, Heat & Eat, 10-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 12)

Add a can of red kidney beans to get the most out of this entree.

I've been eating various Indian retorted veggie entrees for a while now -- we use them as side dishes when I cook main dishes that may be, but aren't always, Indian. The Madras Lentils remind me a lot of really good Louisiana Red Beans (as in Red Beans & Rice--with or without sausage). Very flavorful and actually a bit meaty in taste. I first encountered them at Trader Joe's but it seems that they are going over to their own labels and they wouldn't admit that they were using TastyBite (see someone else's review of Punjabi Eggplant)so I'll stick with the original. I've also tried, and liked, the Punjabi Eggplant.

Perfect one portion size. Quick and easy to make. Great source of fiber and protein and low in fat. Great and spicy tasting!!

I tried a demo of Tasty Bite Entree Madras Lentils in a supermarket, and absolutely fell in love with it. Everything in it is healthy stuff, and it's a wonderful thing to use as a topping for baked potatoes or rice.

Use your imagination! Add sliced chicken, top it with cheese, mix-in tofu -- the world is yours!

Every Tasty Bite Entree I've purchased was really good and worth the price and can add amazing variety to your meals.

I must reiterate what another reviewer said. Tasty Bite Madras lentils do taste an awful lot like beef chili, a perfect alternative for those who love chili but want a vegetarian alternative. They also have a similar mouth feel and a nice hearty spiciness. What they do not have is a lot of excess calories. One can eat the whole pouch (2 servings worth) and only ingest a mere 240 calories. That can't be beat!

Madras Lentils are my #2 favorite Tasty Bite entree. Compared to some of the others, it's a little more soupy; I add one GoGo Organic Brown Rice bowl to the mix and put it all in the microwave together for a very filling, very satisfying meal. It does rank on the medium spicy range so if you are averse to a little heat with your meal I would suggest one of the other more benign Tasty Bite meals (such as Agras Peas and Greens). I like that the sodium content is not too high (34% of the RDV if you consume the entire packet yourself) and that the taste is so interesting and complex, given that it is an "instant" item. A friend who hails from south India tried this at my urging and was absolutely delighted by it - she and her Morrocan husband both really enjoyed it and went on Amazon to buy their own stash! I whole-heartedly endorse this particular meal on the merits of its simplicity, too - no crazy preservatives or chemical ingredients.

As with many other Amazon offerings, the price they give is not entirely representative of a good deal - the Tasty Bite website offers 1 package for $1.99 each. Where you make out well is when you combine the purchase of several with free shipping here on Amazon and the occasional sale.

One last note of caution - be careful of a bit of splatter when opening the vacuum sealed pouch for the first time.

Once sampling this wonderfully flavored lentil bean entree at Costco, I had to buy a package. Once that was consumed, I had to find more packages, which I found on Amazon.com.

This very tasty entree is sooooooo easy to store, fix (microwave 1 to 2 mins) and serve up.

Serve:

1. Alone as a bowl of beans or soup

2. Over a bed of white rice

Campers and backpackers...this would work very well for you.

[ASIN:B0007R9L4MTasty Bite Entree, Madras Lentils, 10-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 12)]]

While visiting my family, my sister gave me a bunch of food, and shoved a box of madras lentils in my hands. Indian food is good and all, but I was never a big fan of beans. I went ahead and took it anyway. One night I had nothing in my cupboard, so I went ahead and gave it a try. Boy was I glad that actually I had. As soon as I took my first bite I was flabbergasted that I was actually eating beans--and loving every bite of it. It has just the right amount of spices. It's so creamy and scrumptious. Tasty bite is quite a good description of how delicious this meal truly is. If you like Indian food and lentils, I would recommend this dish. You don't have to be a vegetarian to enjoy this. This Indian food does not mess around. Hell, it tastes better than meals I've tried at authentic Indian restaurants. Buy it! You won't regret it.

The Madras Lentils may dethrone Tasty Bite Entree, Punjab Eggplant, 10-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 12) as my favorite Tasty Bite meal. Just finished eating it for dinner and it was perfect for the winter storm weather because it tastes exactly like chili. I served it over a little rice to soak up the excess gravy and topped it with fresh chopped jalapeño and a dab of sour cream with corn tortilla chips to eat with it. Yummy! Instead of serving it over rice, you could also add some leftover beans or lentils of any kind.

The flavor is excellent and the lentils and red beans retain their texture. I have finally figured out that Tasty Bite does a passable job with beans and lentils as opposed to softer vegetables that end up mushy and flavorless and swimming in sweet sauce.

Also, Tasty Bite has finally moved towards eliminating the cardboard boxes that the flexible retort pouches have been packaged in, saving trees and lots of energy in package production and shipping. Thank you Tasty Bite!

Nutrition Facts from label

Net weight 10oz

NOTE: Double values if you serve the entire pouch as a single meal for one because:

Serving size 1/2 pack / 5oz / 142.5g

Amount per serving:

Calories 120
Fat calories 40

Total fat 5g
Saturated fat 3g
Trans fat 0g
Cholesterol 3mg
Sodium 450mg
Total carbohydrates 14g
Dietary fiber 5g
Sugars 2g
Protein 6g

Vitamin A 6% of Recommended Daily Allowance
Calcium 4%
Vitamin C 4%
Iron 16%

While it is relatively high in sodium, there is also a good bit of fiber and iron present in this meal.

Another good vegetarian substitute for chili is Kitchens Of India Ready To Eat Rajma Masala, Red Kidney Bean Currry, 10-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 6).