{{Short description|Pre-packaged frozen prepared food}} {{Redirect|TV dinner|the song by ZZ Top|TV Dinners (song)|the album by Mikey McCleary|TV Dinners (album)}} {{Globalize|date=September 2020}} [[Image:Ready to eat microwave food (TV dinner) Currywurst with French fries.JPG|thumb|250px|A German ready meal that has been heated: currywurst with fries]]
A '''frozen meal''', also called a '''TV dinner''' (Canada and US), '''prepackaged meal''', '''ready-made meal''',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2005/jun/12/foodanddrink.features9|title=Could a top chef stomach ready-made meals?|date=12 June 2005|website=The Guardian}}</ref> '''ready meal''' (UK), '''frozen dinner''', or '''microwave meal''', is a meal portioned for an individual that is stored in a freezer and heated prior to serving. A frozen meal in the United States and Canada usually consists of a type of meat, fish, or pasta for the main course, and sometimes vegetables, potatoes, and/or a dessert. Frozen meals can include various cuisines, such as American, Indian,<ref>{{cite web |title=Breaking Trend: Indian Gourmet |url=https://www.preparedfoods.com/articles/105383-breaking-trend-indian-gourmet |work=Prepared Foods |date=1 July 2006 |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241214114201/https://www.preparedfoods.com/articles/105383-breaking-trend-indian-gourmet |archive-date=14 December 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> Chinese and Mexican.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shrivastava |first1=Anusha |title=As busy immigrants reach for taste of home, frozen food sales take off |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/804808692 |access-date=10 November 2023 |work=Newspapers.com |publisher=The Naples Daily News |date=20 June 2003 |page=1E}}</ref>
The term ''TV dinner'', which has become common, was first used as part of a brand of packaged meals developed in 1953 by the company C.A. Swanson & Sons.<ref name="Smithsonian">{{cite web |last=Biakolo |first=Kovie |title=A Brief History of the TV Dinner |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/brief-history-tv-dinner-180976039/ |work=Smithsonian |date=December 14, 2018 |access-date=January 13, 2025}}</ref> The original ''TV Dinner'' came in an aluminum tray and was heated in an oven. In the US and Canada, the term is synonymous with any packaged meal or dish ("dinner") purchased frozen in a supermarket and heated at home.<ref>{{cite web |title=TV dinner |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/TV%20dinner |website=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> In 1986, the Campbell Soup Company introduced the microwave-safe tray.<ref name="Smithsonian"/> Today, most{{cn|date=February 2026}} frozen food trays are made of a microwaveable and disposable material, usually plastic or coated cardboard.
==History== [[File:2020-02-27 00 31 49 A Hungry-Man Country Fried Chicken TV dinner before being heated in the Franklin Farm section of Oak Hill, Fairfax County, Virginia.jpg|thumb|A frozen American TV dinner: Swanson "Hungry-Man Country Fried Chicken"]] Several smaller companies had conceived of frozen dinners earlier (see Invention section below), but the first to achieve widespread and lasting success was Swanson. The first Swanson-brand TV Dinner was produced in the United States and consisted of a Thanksgiving meal of turkey, cornbread stuffing, frozen peas and sweet potatoes<ref>{{cite web |url-status=dead |url=http://www.swansonmeals.com/WebPortals/Default.aspx?tabid=29 |website=Swanson Foods |title= FAQs |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060908053345/http://www.swansonmeals.com/WebPortals/Default.aspx?tabid=29 |archive-date=September 8, 2006 }}</ref> packaged in a tray like those used at the time for airline food service. Each item was placed in its own compartment. The trays proved to be useful: the entire dinner could be removed from the outer packaging as a unit, the tray with its aluminum foil covering could be heated directly in the oven without any extra dishes, and one could eat the meal directly from the tray. The product was cooked for 25 minutes at {{convert|425|°F|°C|abbr=on}} and fit onto a TV tray table. The original TV Dinner sold for 98 cents,<ref>{{cite news |title=The rise and rise of the ready meal: So what's for TV dinner tonight? |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-rise-and-rise-of-the-ready-meal-so-what-s-for-tv-dinner-tonight-5346532.html |access-date=10 September 2023 |work=The Independent |date=13 July 2005 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014131609/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-rise-and-rise-of-the-ready-meal-so-what-s-for-tv-dinner-tonight-5346532.html |archive-date= Oct 14, 2023 }}</ref> and had a first production run of 5,000 dinners.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bauer |first1=Bob |title=The Tv dinner hits its prime |url=https://www.supermarketnews.com/archive/tv-dinner-hits-its-prime |website=Supermarket News |access-date=10 September 2023 |date=5 September 1994 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014131413/https://www.supermarketnews.com/archive/tv-dinner-hits-its-prime |archive-date= Oct 14, 2023 }}</ref>
The name "TV dinner" was coined by Gerry Thomas, often considered its inventor. In an interview long after the product's introduction, Thomas noted how televisions were "magic" status symbols, and he thought the name "TV dinner" could attach the attributes of a popular medium to a convenient food item.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzlkO8LIWrs |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/MzlkO8LIWrs |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=Invention and view of the original TV dinner|last=((miscellus2)) |date=25 April 2010|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Another source postulates that the box of the TV dinner was made to look like a television, and that TV trays (folding tray table furniture) soon appeared on the market.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=Andrew F. |title=The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink |date=May 2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA |isbn=978-0-19-530796-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AoWlCmNDA3QC&q=tv%20dinn |access-date=11 November 2023}}</ref>
Much has changed since the first TV dinners were marketed. For instance, a wider variety of main courses – such as fried chicken, spaghetti, Salisbury steak and Mexican combinations – have been introduced. Competitors such as Banquet and Morton began offering prepackaged frozen dinners, too. Other changes include: * 1960 – Swanson added desserts (such as apple cobbler and brownies) to a new four-compartment tray.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Martinez |first1=Erica |title=What Happened To Swanson's Once Popular Frozen TV Dinners? |url=https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/happened-swansons-once-popular-frozen-102500966.html |publisher=The Takeout |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250501064115/https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/happened-swansons-once-popular-frozen-102500966.html |archive-date=May 1, 2025 |via=Yahoo Life |date=26 April 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref> * 1969 – The first Swanson TV breakfasts were marketed.<ref>{{cite book |title=Sales Management |date=1969 |publisher=Dartnell Corporation |page=94 |edition=Volume 103 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=amEWAQAAMAAJ&q=%22We%20believe%20that%20by%20making%20a%20breakfast%20meal%20convenient%22}}</ref> Great Starts Breakfasts and breakfast sandwiches (such as egg and Canadian bacon) followed later.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}} * 1973 – The first Swanson "Hungry-Man" dinners were marketed; these contained larger portions of its regular dinners. The American football player "Mean" Joe Greene was the "Hungry-Man" spokesman. * 1986 – The first microwave oven-safe trays were marketed.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}<ref>{{cite web |title=US Patent for Dual ovenable frozen food tray/cookware formed from a lainate containing a polymer that is crystallizable at use temperature Patent (Patent # 4,737,389 issued April 12, 1988) - Justia Patents Search |url=https://patents.justia.com/patent/4737389 |website=patents.justia.com}}</ref>
Modern-day frozen dinners tend to come in microwave-safe containers. Product lines also tend to offer a larger variety of dinner types. These dinners, also known as microwave meals, can be purchased at most supermarkets. They are stored frozen. To prepare them, the plastic cover is removed or vented, and the meal is heated in a microwave oven for a few minutes. They are convenient since they essentially require no preparation time other than the heating, although some frozen dinners may require the preparer to briefly carry out an intermediate step (such as stirring mashed potatoes midway through the heating cycle) to ensure adequate heating and uniform consistency of component items.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}} [[File:Spaghetti carbonara ready meal.JPG|thumb|right|A British ready meal after being microwaved: spaghetti carbonara ]] In the United Kingdom, prepared frozen meals first became widely available in the late 1970s. Since then they have steadily grown in popularity with the increased ownership of home freezers and microwave ovens. Demographic trends such as the growth of smaller households have also influenced the sale of this and other types of convenience food.<ref>{{cite web |title=Frozen Ready Meals - UK - March 2006 |url=http://www.the-infoshop.com/study/mt37772-ready-meal-uk.html |publisher=Mintel International Group Ltd |date=March 2006 |access-date=2007-04-28 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071022074155/http://www.the-infoshop.com/study/mt37772-ready-meal-uk.html |archive-date=2007-10-22 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> In 2003, the United Kingdom spent £5 million a day on ready meals, and was the largest consumer in Europe.<ref>{{cite news |title=UK meals 'ready' for growth |url=http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp?id=18472-uk-meals-ready |publisher=William Reed Business Media SAS |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2003-11-21 |access-date=2006-12-31}}</ref>
Unfrozen pre-cooked ready meals, which are merely chilled and require less time to reheat, are also popular and are sold by most supermarkets. Chilled ready meals are intended for immediate reheating and consumption. Although most can be frozen by the consumer after purchase, they can either be heated from frozen or may have to be fully defrosted before reheating.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}
Many different varieties of frozen and chilled ready meals are now generally available in the UK, including "gourmet" recipes, organic and vegetarian dishes, traditional British and foreign cuisine, and smaller children's meals.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}
==Invention== thumb|Swanson TV dinner ad from 1963 The identity of the TV Dinner's inventor has been disputed. In one account, first publicized in 1996,<ref>{{cite news |last=McMorris |first=Robert |title=Gobbler Glut Spurs Dinners |newspaper=Omaha World-Herald |date=1996-05-10 |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=OWHB&p_theme=owhb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&s_dispstring=Gobbler%20Glut%20Spurs%20Dinners%20AND%20date%28all%29&p_field_advanced-0=&p_text_advanced-0=%28Gobbler%20Glut%20Spurs%20Dinners%29&xcal_numdocs=20&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&xcal_useweights=no |url-access=subscription}}</ref> retired Swanson executive Gerry Thomas said he conceived the idea after the company found itself with a huge surplus of frozen turkeys because of poor Thanksgiving sales. Thomas' version of events has been challenged by the ''Los Angeles Times'',<ref>{{cite news |first=Roy |last=Rivenburg |title=False tales of turkey on a tray |url=http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-op-tvdinner31jul31,1,6644824.story?ctrack=1&cset=true |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=2005-07-31 |access-date=2014-05-06}}</ref> members of the Swanson family<ref>{{cite news |last=Rivenburg |first=Roy |title=A landmark idea, yes, but whose? |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date= November 23, 2003 |page=E1|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-nov-23-ca-rivenburg23-story.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807212133/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-nov-23-ca-rivenburg23-story.html|archivedate=7 August 2020}}</ref> and former Swanson employees.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/tvdinner.html |title=Who "invented" the TV dinner? |publisher=Library of Congress |date=<!--undated--> |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |access-date=2014-10-09}}</ref> They credit the Swanson brothers with the invention.
Betty Cronin, a bacteriologist employed at C. A. Swanson and Sons, has also been credited with important contributions to the invention.<ref name="SeattleTimes94">{{cite news |last1=Bartlett |first1=Kay |title=The Year The TV Dinner Knocked America Cold |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19940626&slug=1917398 |access-date=5 February 2020 |publisher=Seattle Times |date=26 June 1994}}</ref> She was involved in the technical design of dinner items that could be frozen then re-heated successfully.
Swanson's concept was not original:
* In 1944, William L. Maxson's frozen dinners, served on disposable, compartmentalised, coated paper plates, labelled Strato-Plates, were being served by the military and on airplanes.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Harold |last1=Ross |first2=Russell |last2=Maloney |title=Defrosted Dinners |url=http://archives.newyorker.com/?i=1945-08-04#folio=011 |magazine=The New Yorker |date=1945-08-04 |page=11 |access-date=2014-05-06 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
* In 1948, plain frozen fruits and vegetables were joined by what were then called 'dinner plates' with a main course, potato, and vegetable. * In 1948, Jack Fisher, formed a company called FridgiDinners, to supply bars and taverns with “just reheat” wares.<ref name=":0" />
* In 1949 Albert and Meyer Bernstein, formed the Pittsburgh based Frozen Dinners Inc., to sell frozen dinners, on compartmentalised aluminum dinner trays; by 1950 they had sold in excess of 400,000 dinners.<ref name=":0" />
* In 1952, the first, consumer, frozen dinners, on oven-ready aluminum trays, were introduced by Quaker State Foods under the One-Eyed Eskimo label, and by 1954 the company sold 2 million such dinners annually.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kohler |first1=Roy |title=Assembly Line Dinners |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/148885980 |access-date=10 September 2023 |work=Newspapers.com |publisher=The Pittsburgh Press |date=6 March 1955 |page=8}}</ref> Quaker State Foods was joined by other companies including Philadelphia-based Frigi-Dinner,<ref>{{cite news |title=La Baw Brings Frigi-Dinners To Shore Housewives, Firms |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/143463533 |access-date=10 September 2023 |work=Newspapers.com |publisher=Asbury Park Press |date=9 Nov 1952 |page=10}}</ref> which offered such fare as beef stew with corn and peas, veal goulash with peas and potatoes, and chicken chow mein with egg rolls and fried rice. Swanson, a large producer of canned and frozen poultry in Omaha, Nebraska, was able to promote the widespread sales and adaptation of frozen dinner by using its nationally recognized brand name with an extensive national marketing campaign nicknamed "Operation Smash" and the clever advertising name of "TV Dinner," which tapped into the public's excitement around the television.<ref>{{Citation |surname=Shapiro |given=Laura |author-link=Laura Shapiro |year=2004 |title=Something from the Oven: Reinventing Dinner in 1950s America |place=New York |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=014303491X |oclc=52471805}}</ref>
==Manufacturing== The production process of frozen meals is highly automated and undergoes three major steps. Those steps are food preparation, tray loading, and freezing. During food preparation, vegetables and fruits are usually placed on a movable belt and washed, then are placed into a container to be steamed or boiled for 1–3 minutes. This process is referred to as blanching, and is used as a method to destroy enzymes in the food that can cause chemical changes negatively affecting overall flavor and color of the fruit and vegetables. As for meats, prior to cooking, they are trimmed of fat and cut into proper sizes. The fish is usually cleaned and cut into fillets, and poultry is usually washed thoroughly and dressed. Meats are then seasoned, placed on trays, and are cooked in an oven for a predetermined amount of time. After all the food is ready to be packaged, it is sent to the filling lines. The food is placed in its compartments as the trays pass under numerous filling machines; to ensure that every packaged dinner gets an equal amount of food, the filling devices are strictly regulated.<ref name="TV Dinner Manufacturing">{{cite web|url=http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/TV-Dinner.html|title=How tv dinner is made - manufacture, making, history, used, processing, components, structure, product, History, Design|website=www.madehow.com}}</ref>
The food undergoes a process of cryogenic freezing with liquid nitrogen. After the food is placed on the conveyor belt, it is sprayed with liquid nitrogen that boils on contact with the freezing food. This method of flash-freezing fresh foods is used to retain natural quality of the food. When the food is chilled through cryogenic freezing, small ice crystals are formed throughout the food that, in theory, can preserve the food indefinitely if stored safely. Cryogenic freezing is widely used as it is a method for rapid freezing, requires almost no dehydration, excludes oxygen thus decreasing oxidative spoilage, and causes less damage to individual freezing pieces. Due to the fact that the cost of operating cryogenic freezing is high, it is commonly used for high value food products such as TV dinners, which is a $4.5 billion industry a year{{When|date=January 2025|reason=The source cited does not mention where the figure was sourced from, nor does the source have a publication date.}} that is continuing to grow with the constant introduction of new technology.<ref name="TV Dinner Manufacturing"/>
Following this, the dinners are either covered with aluminum foil or paper, and the product is tightly packed with a partial vacuum created to ensure no evaporation takes place that can cause the food to dry out. Then the packaged dinners are placed in a refrigerated storage facility, transported by refrigerated truck, and stored in the grocer's freezer. TV dinners prepared with the aforementioned steps—that is, frozen and packaged properly—can remain in near-perfect condition for a long time, so long as they are stored at {{convert|-18|C|F}} during shipping and storage.<ref name="TV Dinner Manufacturing"/>
==Health concerns==
Frozen meals are often heavily processed with extra salt and fat to make foods last longer.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna17937719 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120922084821/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/17937719/ns/today_food_and_wine-before_you_bite_with_phil_lempert/ |url-status=live |archive-date=2012-09-22 |website=NBC Today Show |last=Lampert |first=Phil |title=6 things you need to know about frozen dinners: Tips for shopping wisely for the best — and healthiest — convenient meals |date=2007-04-04 |access-date=2010-02-15}}</ref> In addition, stabilizing the product for a long period typically means that companies will use partially hydrogenated vegetable oils for some items (typically dessert). Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils are high in trans fats and are shown to adversely affect cardiovascular health.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Willett |first1=W.C. |last2=Ascherio |first2=A. |name-list-style=amp |title=Trans Fatty Acids: Are the Effects Only Marginal? |journal=American Journal of Public Health |volume=84 |issue=5 |pages=722–724 |date=May 1994 |doi=10.2105/ajph.84.5.722 |pmc=1615057 |pmid=8179036 }}</ref> The dinners are almost always significantly less nutritious{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}} than fresh food and are formulated to remain edible after long periods of storage, thus often requiring preservatives such as butylated hydroxytoluene. There is, however, some variability between brands.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3756451.stm |website=BBC News |title=Choose your ready-meal carefully |date=2004-05-28 |access-date=2014-05-06 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->}}</ref>
In recent years{{when|date=November 2020}} there has been a push by a number of independent manufacturers and retailers to make meals that are low in salt and fat and free of artificial additives. In the UK, most British supermarkets also produce their own "healthy eating" brands.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}} Nearly all chilled or frozen ready meals sold in the UK are now clearly labeled with the salt, sugar and fat content and the recommended daily intake. In Quebec and Canada, companies need to label their products when they are over a fixed limit of sodium and fat. Concern about obesity and government publicity initiatives such as those by the Food Standards Agency<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/healthydiet/ |title=Food Standards Agency – Eat well, be well – Healthy diet |publisher=Eatwell.gov.uk |date=<!--undated--> |access-date=2009-01-28 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118002759/http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/healthydiet/ |archive-date=2010-01-18 }}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=How does this source support this paragraph? Reference is too vague and almost meaningless.|date=December 2014}} and the National Health Service<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/loseweight/Pages/readingfoodlabels.aspx |title=How to understand food labels |publisher=NHS.uk |date=2008-09-12 |access-date=2009-01-28 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=How does this source support this paragraph?|date=December 2014}} have encouraged manufacturers to reduce the levels of salt and fat in ready prepared food.
==See also== {{portal|Food|Television }} * Banquet Foods * Bento * Field ration * Freezer Queen * Frozen pizza
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{commons}} {{Wiktionary}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20060626042953/http://www.bl.uk/collections/business/frozfood.html The frozen, chilled and ready made foods industry] – business information at the British Library website * [http://www.askmen.com/sports/foodcourt_100/137_eating_well.html Healthy Frozen Dinners] – an AskMen review of various options in the United States *https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-nutrition/nutrition-labelling/front-package.html {{Meals_navbox}} {{Authority control}}
Category:American inventions Category:Convenience foods Meal Category:Dinner Category:Serving and dining