Our Favorite Boston Market Frozen Meal Is So Good We'd Buy It On Repeat

Boston Market may have shrunk to a fraction of the locations it once had during its heyday, but the company still makes a wealth of comfort food classics you can find in the frozen section of your local grocery store. We tasted and ranked nine Boston Market frozen meals according to flavor, texture, cohesion, and standout features. Surprisingly, our favorite frozen meal is far from the classic American comfort food you would find on the traditional menu. We ranked the sweet and sour chicken as our winning frozen meal from Boston Market, beating out classics like meatloaf and mashed potatoes and country fried steak and mashed potatoes. 

The breaded hunks of fried chicken were smothered in a generous portion of delicious sweet and sour sauce. The sauce was as sugary as you would expect from any Chinese American takeout restaurant, but it was perfectly balanced by the sour element. While the breading may not have remained crispy after its stint in the microwave, the flavor of the sauce coupled with the savory of the chicken more than made up for it. While the saucy protein could have easily been served with a side of plain white rice, Boston Market went above and beyond with vegetable fried rice instead. The umami-rich grain was fluffy and plentiful, not to mention the added veggies that really made this a well-rounded meal.

Customers from Walmart and Safeway were as pleasantly surprised by Boston Market's sweet and sour chicken as we were. One Safeway review was especially complimentary of the protein, stating, "nice bug chucks of battered chicken in a thick tasty sauce." Some naysayers were not impressed with the chicken, opining that it was overly breaded and soggy. But, others loved the way the breading and chicken soaked up all that sugary sauce. Customers were also impressed with the quantity of food, with a large portion of rice and plenty of extra sauce to drizzle over it when you're done with the chicken. One Walmart customer was impressed with how well Boston Market executed its classic Chinese American flavor profile by saying, "craving takeout? Go to your freezer instead!"

Unfortunately, not all chicken dishes from Boston Market are winners. We thought the chicken Alfredo was one of the worst frozen chicken dinners we've sampled. Boston Market's salisbury steak was also a loser in our ranking of frozen steak dinners. While Italian American and American comfort food from Boston Market seems to be hit or miss, they sure nailed Chinese American food with sweet and sour chicken. If you want to round out the sugary tartness of the sweet and sour sauce, you can always drizzle your favorite brand of chili crisp over the chicken and rice.