Aldi Inspired Cuisine Protein Paella – Product Review

Craving a protein-packed paella but short on time?

You might be tempted to reach for a convenient frozen option, but are these store-bought alternatives truly delicious and nutritious?

In this review, I deep dive into Aldi’s Inspired Cuisine Protein Paella, analysing its ingredients, taste, and nutritional value.

We’ll compare it to a traditional paella recipe to see if it lives up to its “protein-packed” claim and discover if it’s a worthy contender for your busy weeknight dinner.

Aldi Inspired Cuisine Protein Paella – Product Review

On a recent visit to Aldi something in the frozen isle caught my eye. While my freezer holds lots of my own home made ‘ready meals’ from my batch cooking escapades, I wanted to try something different for those times when I’ve not been able to batch cook. A popty ping meal if you like.

I spotted the Inspired Cuisine Protein range which is available in three different varieties. I put one of each into my trolley for my freezer, so today we’re going to focus on the Protein Paella.

First Impressions

When I removed the card sleeve, the pot within seemed quite small. After the initial cooking period of 5 minutes, I peeled back the wrapping to discover the pot was only two thirds full. Luckily I still had another 2 minutes of cooking time to go, so I used that time well by making a salad to bulk it out.

The Look

As you would expect with a microwave meal, the cooking was very straight forward. After the maximum 7 minutes of cooking, the meal looked a bit watery. A good stir sorted that out but that’s quite different to the impression given by the photography on the packaging. I was expecting something a bit drier, but the meal was coated in a thick tomato sauce. I’d describe this as more of a Spanish chicken than a Paella.

Plating my Protein Paella into a bowl, there doesn’t seem to be much to it, so I’m glad I made that salad!

There were some recognisable elements to the meal. A good amount of peas, some peppers too, but I didn’t feel that there was much chicken in the meal. I estimated there to be only 10-12 small chicken cubes at most! Where’s the 34.6g of protein per pack actually coming from?

The Taste

I was expecting a smoky sweet flavour to permeate through the thick tomato sauce, but the overriding flavour was oregano. It was as though I’d come across a pocket of oregano that hadn’t been mixed in well, but this was a ready meal. This meal has gone through a process of manufacture where everything is meticulously incorporated. The entire meal was dominated by the oregano and I found this quite off-putting.

Two bites into the meal and there was something within that briefly took my mind off the oregano dominance, and that was the texture of the chicken cubes. While the chicken didn’t seem dry, it was tough and there was a texture to the meat that made me feel as though the chicken wasn’t quite cooked enough, but with manufacturing processes involved plus another 7 minutes of reheating, I know this isn’t the case.

As I continued eating, I was glad that I had a salad with this ready meal. If I was pushed for time and just had the paella pot, the meal would have been over quickly, but my saviour was the salad. When meals are brief in nature its easy to justify having an extra snack to fill the gap left by the meal.

High protein identity check

It’s time to do a deep dive into the nutritional panel and ingredients list.

We know from the name of the product that the intention is to convey that this meal is high in protein, but where the protein is coming from is the interesting part.

So we know that ingredients on a product label are listed in descending order by weight, with the ingredient that weighs the most listed first, and the ingredient that weighs the least listed last.

At the top of the list is chicken, but its stated at only 26%. Cast your eye half way down the ingredients list and you’ll come across Soya in bold because it’s listed as an allergen, but the ingredient in full is Soya Protein Isolate. Adding this ingredient will keep the costs down while helping it to meet it’s higher protein requirement.

The Cost

A 350g pack is £1.79.

Putting my nutritionist hat on for a moment

The food industry constantly evolves to take advantage of our every changing eating habits. Not only do we want food that is quick to make, we want it cheaper too!

Now we want to eat more protein and that may be because we’ve read about the benefits of a higher protein diet, but whatever the reason, you can’t escape the fact that this product has attained it’s status through means that you’d never look to replicate in the kitchen.

Never have I made dinner only to take out half of the chicken to replace it with a scoop or two of my preferred choice of protein isolate.

Earlier I touched upon the disappointing size of the meal and how I decided to bulk the meal out with a salad. Meals that are over quickly can be a dangerous thing, but here’s how I explain it to my young sons. When we eat, the action of chewing starts a chain reaction. Enzymes are released in the mouth to start the process of digestion, our stomach gets ready for the influx of food and our brain waits for the ‘I’m full’ signal.

If a meal is quick, our bodies can keep sending out the signals for more food by releasing the hunger hormone Ghrelin. If that meal was high in calories to start with, it’s highly likely that you’ll end up eating more calories than you need, so by adding a salad to my meal I extended the length of time it took to eat the meal as well as adding some fibre too.

Fibre slows down digestion, making you feel full for longer. It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to signal fullness, so eating more slowly gives your brain enough time to send that signal.

A final word on foods with proclaimed health statements

I’m always wary of foods that state that they are healthy or better for us. It’s only natural for a health seeking individual to turn to these types of foods but there are compromises to be had and you should be fully aware when making any such purchase.

By choosing this meal you will indeed get 34.6g of protein, but at the same time you’ll be getting 3.71g of salt which is 62% of your recommended daily amount of 6g.

Would you have been better off if you’d pre-cooked 125g of chicken breast with a sprinkle of smoked paprika (38.8g of protein and 138 calories) and served it with some microwave wholegrain rice and some salad? More protein, less salt and takes a little planning, but worth it surely?

My Verdict

Taste : 2.5 out of 5 – the sauce was lovely and thick, but the chicken was tough and I couldn’t taste past the oregano!

Value for money : 2.5 out of 5 – whilst the meal does deliver the protein hit it promises, you would feel short changed if you ate this without a salad or some veggies to bulk it out.

Likelihood of buying it again : 0 out of 5 – I’d prefer to plan ahead and skip the soya protein isolate.

Where To Buy It

Visit the Aldi website for full details or CLICK HERE to add it to your click and collect basket.

Please note that this review is based on the product that I’ve purchased and the review reflects my own honest opinion.

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