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Best frozen meal brands in Australia

Consumers have picked their favourite frozen meal brands when it comes to taste, value for money, quality and ease of preparation.

Ericka Pingol
Ericka Pingol

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Best Frozen meals

Best-rated frozen meals brand: Super Nature

Top rated for taste, quality and ease of preparation, Super Nature has taken the Finder Award for frozen meals. The brand beat out competitors such as Weight Watchers, McCain, Woolworths and Lean Cuisine.

The best frozen meal brands in Australia

How did we choose the winners?

The 2020 Finder Retail Awards recognise brand sentiment from customer feedback on different retail product categories. Finder worked with leading data, insights and consulting company Kantar to conduct thousands of customer interviews around their product purchasing history and satisfaction with their purchased products.

Check out our full methodology.

Top-rated frozen meal brand: Super Nature

Super Nature

  • Wide range of frozen meal options
  • Packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals
  • Vegan and vegetarian options available
Aussies picked Super Nature as the top-rated frozen meal brand in the country. It scored 8.02 out of 10, beating On The Menu and International Cuisine (ALDI), which have scores of 7.81 out of 10 and 7.57 out of 10, respectively.

Super Nature offers a wide range of frozen meal options with their Wellness Bowls, Superfood Meals and Super Pulses lines. The brand also has frozen meals inspired by Australian Native Superfoods. Super Nature's frozen meals are packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals as well.

The brand aims to bring healthy ingredients to Australians in the easiest yet tastiest way possible. Super Nature crafts recipes free from artificial flavours, colours or preservatives. The frozen meals are made in Australia and immediately snap-frozen to seal in the taste and quality of the ingredients.

Best frozen meal brand for value for money: International Cuisine (ALDI)

International Cuisine (Aldi)

  • Wide range of frozen meal choices
  • Some dishes have no artificial colours or flavouring
  • Low-calorie options available
  • Made in Australia
ALDI's International Cuisine is the best frozen meal brand in terms of value for money, according to consumers. It has a score of 4.32 out of 5, beating On The Menu and Coles, which have scores of 4.26 out of 5 and 4.18 out of 5, respectively.

International Cuisine offers a wide range of frozen meal choices, including beef lasagne, Indian style butter chicken, pizza, chicken parmigiana and vegetable spring rolls. The brand also has a Healthy and Vitality line, which has healthier options like green chicken curry, sun-dried tomato and chicken pasta, chilli con carne and beef stroganoff. The frozen meals from the line have no artificial colours or flavouring. Some of the meals also have low cholesterol and are good sources of protein and dietary fibre.

ALDI opened its first store in Sydney in 2001. The company recycles 96% of all plastic packaging used in its chains. ALDI products are also not tested on animals. Additionally, fresh beef, lamb and pork from ALDI comply with the Australian Livestock Processing Industry Animal Welfare Certification Scheme to ensure animal welfare practices.

Best-tasting frozen meal brand: Super Nature

Super Nature

  • Free from artificial flavours, colours or preservatives
  • Made in Australia
  • Dessert options available
For the best-tasting frozen meal brand in Australia, consumers chose Super Nature. It has a score of 4.20 out of 5. On The Menu came in second with a 4.12 out of 5 score, while Coles was at third, scoring 4.04 out of 5.

Super Nature's frozen meals are available in most supermarkets across Australia. Vegan and dessert options are also available. Some of the brand's tasty dishes include braised beef cheek and truffle lasagne, manuka honey and balsamic chicken with roasted chips, super vegan green chickpea curry with quinoa and brown rice and vegan spinach gnocchi in romesco sauce.

The brand prides itself on using 100% Aussie meat in all its frozen meals. Super Nature is also committed to finding the best ingredients nature has to offer. It sources ingredients from all over the world and here in Australia.

Best frozen meal brand for ease of preparation: Super Nature

Super Nature

  • Snap-frozen to seal in the taste and freshness of the ingredients
  • Ready in minutes
  • Pre-portioned to reduce waste
For ease of preparation, Aussies picked Super Nature as the best frozen meal brand. For this category, Super Nature and Lean Cuisine tied with scores of 4.60 out of 5. However, Super Nature was the winner because it received a higher overall rating. The third highest scoring brand in this category was On The Menu, scoring 4.58 out of 5.

Super Nature harvests its frozen produce at its peak. These are then snap-frozen to preserve the freshness and flavour until you're ready to eat them.

The brand pre-portions its frozen meals to reduce food waste that would typically end up in a landfill. The meals are also ready within minutes, making them convenient. However, you need to cook and consume your Super Nature frozen meal within 24 hours once you take it out of the freezer.

Best frozen meal brand for quality: Super Nature

Super Nature

  • Freshly harvested ingredients
  • Recycle packaging
  • Low-calorie meals available
Aussies chose Super Nature as the best frozen meal brand for quality, scoring 4.33 out of 5. It won over On the Menu with a score of 4.14 out of 5 and Lean Cuisine and Woolworths, which scored 4.08 out of 5 and 4.04 out of 5, respectively.

Super Nature offers frozen meals with superfoods. These are naturally dense foods rich in minerals, antioxidants and vitamins. They can help fuel your body and keep you energised. The brand also offers low-calorie options such as slow-cooked beef in shiraz with artichoke mash, super protein slow-cooked lamb with chickpea, amaranth and sweet potato mash and Thai green chicken curry.

The packaging of Super Nature frozen meals is recyclable. The paper sleeves, boxes and plastic trays are kerbside recyclable, while the plastic films can be recycled in REDcycle bins at most local supermarkets

Methodology

The 2020 Finder Retail Awards recognise brand sentiment from customer feedback on different retail product categories. Finder worked with leading data, insights and consulting company Kantar to conduct thousands of customer interviews around their product purchasing history and satisfaction with their purchased products.

Disclaimer: Please refer to our methodology for more information on how we scored and judged Finder Retail Awards candidates. While we endeavour to assess the majority of product providers in the market, this is not always possible and it may be that not every brand in the market was included for judging.

Best rated frozen meal brand award breakdown

Overall rating Value for money Taste Ease of preparation Quality
Coles 3.98 4.18 4.04 4.42 3.98
International Cuisine (Aldi) 4.04 4.32 3.98 4.48 3.98
Lean Cuisine 3.98 3.74 4.02 4.60 4.08
McCain 3.82 3.92 3.86 4.48 3.90
On The Menu 4.18 4.26 4.12 4.58 4.14
Super Nature 4.40 3.93 4.20 4.60 4.33
Weight Watchers 3.76 3.76 3.84 4.36 3.96
Woolworths 4.04 4.04 3.96 4.39 4.04
Other 4.19 4.10 4.29 4.52 4.13
Data: Finder Retail Brand Survey, 2020, Kantar. Metric out of 5 stars unless indicated. Methodology and more info. Kantar logo

What are the benefits of buying frozen meals?

Frozen meals are undoubtedly convenient. You can have a tasty and nutritious meal within minutes. Since you don't have to do any prep, frozen meals help save you time and energy. They are quite easy to carry, making them ideal as a quick work lunch when you're in a hurry. You can also choose from a wide range of dishes and cuisine available in the market. There are healthy options as well.

Frozen meals are good value for money, especially for people who would otherwise cook for just one or two individuals. Preparing a meal for a single person often leads to food wastage as some ingredients can only be bought in larger quantities.

Buying frozen meals can help minimise wastage because you're getting the exact ingredients required for a single-person meal. You also don't have to worry about ingredients getting spoiled.

What to consider when choosing healthy frozen meals

When purchasing frozen meals, consider the following factors:

  • Think about your calorie requirements when shopping for frozen meals. A 350-calorie meal may be ideal for most people, but this still depends on your personal needs. If you're trying to lose weight, you may gravitate towards frozen meals with lower calories. However, meals with calories below 200 may not keep you full for longer.
  • Think about how much time you have when choosing frozen meals. If you're in a hurry and want a quick snack, you may want to opt for meals with less than five minutes of cooking time. But since frozen meals are convenient, you can get more filling options that have a cooking time of fewer than ten minutes.
  • Most frozen meals are made to serve one person, but it's better to double-check. Read the nutrition facts on the packaging to see if the meal is only for one serving or not.
  • Some frozen meals are labelled as gluten-free, low-calorie or vegetarian. Read the ingredient list and nutrition facts, so you'll know what exactly you're buying.

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