NOW CLOSED Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes reviewer feedback thread.

[KatieBMumsnet]

This thread is for the 250 Mumsnetters who have been trying out the new 2in1 recipe mixes from Schwartz.

Here's what they say: "The new 2in1 range offers two easy to use recipe mix sachets in one handy pack: one sachet flavours the main dish whilst the other contains a seasoning for a complementary side dish or topping. With five different varieties to choose from, and an easy recipe on the back of each pack, this is a great way to try out new dishes or transform an existing family favourite from ordinary to special."

Mumsnetters have been trying the following recipe mixes:

• Garlic & Thyme roast chicken + crispy roast potatoes

• Chicken Tikka + mint & cucumber raita

• Mediterranean chicken pasta + crispy crumb topping

• Southern style crunchy chicken bites + BBQ dip

• Garlic & herb crunchy chicken bites + cheese & chive dip

Below are some questions for you to answer but please do feel free to add any other comments you may also have. We'd like you to post at least 3 sets of feedback - answering the same questions for each recipe mix you try. Please also upload any pictures you take of your creations. Please note, photos and comments may be used on Schwartz's pages on Mumsnet and possibly on other marketing material.

Questions

• Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?
• How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)
• What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?
• How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?
• Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?
• Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
• Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?
• Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

Everyone who adds at least 3 sets of feedback to this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will receive a £500 John Lewis voucher!

Thanks and good luck,

MNHQ

Ooops, I hadn't finished. will start again!!

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Chicken Tikka and Mint and Cucumber Raita*

• How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

4

• What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

DS(15) liked the flavour of the Chicken Tikka. He had it for 3 meals, including cold in his sandwich the next day). Although he said it could have been a bit spicier.

• How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

very easy

• Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

I followed it exactly. Although I didn't measure out my yogurt for the dip, just guessed

• Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

It did, in that I didn't have to think up an idea for dinner that day. It was something different that we wouldn't usually have

• Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

Maybe. I don't tend to use packet mixes really, but these do make food a bit more exciting, without too much hassle

• Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

I loved it

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Mediterranean Pasta Bake with Crispy Crumb Coating

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

DH would rate it 4, I would rate it 2, DD would rate it 1

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

DH really liked it, especially the crispy topping. I thought it had too much pepper and oregano. DD refused to eat it.

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

This seemed to use an awful lot more pans than I would usually use for a pasta dish - two saucepans, a frying pan and a baking dish. I haven't counted the bowl I used to microwave some veg as I had altered the recipe. It seemed like a lot of effort for a pretty ordinary dish.

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

I changed this recipe a lot. I don't really like tomatoes, so instead of the tin of tomatoes I made a white sauce, and then mixed the sachet into the white sauce rather than mixing it with water. I also used broccoli instead of the peppers, as I thought it would go better with the white sauce.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

No, it made it a lot more effort! For pasta I would usually just use some pesto and chicken - I see it as a no-effort meal. This seemed to leave me with a lot of washing up.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

Not this one, but I will definitely buy others.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

DH really liked it, I didn't think it was very good, DD didn't like it at all.

And now number 2.

Tonight tried the tikka with raita.
Would rate it 4.5/5
Everyone really liked the flavour of the tikka - ds said it tasted like 'proper curry' ie from a take-away! I thought the raita was a bit watery (grated the cucumber as suggested) but next time would leave it chunky cos that's how I like it.
Yes - followed the recipe pretty much exactly except I had king prawns instead of chicken as I don't eat meat. Had nan, rice and bombay potato with the tikka. The bombay potato gave the whole dish a bit of 'sauce' without which it might have been a bit dry but then this isn't really supposed to be a 'saucy' dish so that's nit-picking.

It as V easy to use the mix.

Didn't add any extra ingredients to the 'mix' dishes.

Yes - made dinner easier as it provided an idea and an easy way to do it.

• would most likely buy this one again as it was a real success with the family.

• Loved this one (except the water raita..). Sorry - having trouble uploading photos.

-I have now tried the garlic and thyme roast chicken.
-I would give it a 2/5. We all liked the chicken but the children refused to eat the potatoes.
-The chicken has quite a nice flavour, but the crispy roast potatoes taste very salty and artificial.
-easy to use

• I followed the recipe to the letter, though added my own gravy and green beans to the meal

-if I was going to cook a roast dinner, I would just make it normally from scratch as the packet mix does not really save time, and I did not like the flavour as much -I wouldn't buy this particular sachet as the potatoes were wasted, and it was too artificial-tasting for the amount of effort. If I wanted to eat something similar I would get a frozen product instead

• I'm afraid I hated this one....

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?
Garlic and Thyme Roast Chicken with Rosemary Potatoes

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)
3 out of 5, although we would give higher for the potatoes alone!

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?
The chicken flavouring was predominately garlic, you couldn't really taste the thyme at all. It would have been nice for the other ingredients to be able to play a larger role in the flavour of the dish.
The potatoes were nice, although could do with more rosemary.
My 18 mo was not keen on the potatoes, but did enjoy the chicken.

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?
Incredibly easy to use

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients
I followed the instructions on the back of the packet.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
In this case I would say that it didn't really make much difference to this meal. Roast dinners look after themselves and don't really require much preparation.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?
Not this particular mix, I don't think that it made my life any easier and I could put garlic and thyme on the chicken myself in the same time it took to use the pack.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?
I liked the mix.

• Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Garlic & Thyme roast chicken + crispy roast potatoes

• How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

4/5

• What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

Added a good amount of flavour without being overwhelming.

• How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

Pretty easy although there is scope to add a bit more detail on the packet instructions eg there is no heat given for fan ovens/the instruction to 'score the chicken' was a bit too general. It was slightly confusing to work out how long overall the recipe would take so it would be ready for a particular time.

• Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

Followed it, although I did roast some veg in the tray with the chicken.

• Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

Probably not much in it when roasting a chicken.

• Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

Possibly - open minded but would have to fit with what I was wanting to cook.

• Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

Liked it

Tonight we tried the garlic and thyme roast chicken with crispy roast potatoes.

DC2+3 would rate it 5/5, DH and I 3/5.
DC1 loved the potatoes, but wasn't so keen on the chicken.

The flavour of the chicken was fairly mild. DH and I would have liked it more garlicky, but the three younger dc cleared their plates.
The potatoes were a great success, enjoyed by everyone. They welded themselves to the bottom of the roasting tin, which was a little disappointing.

The mixes were easy to use. 8yo ds coated the chicken, I did the potatoes.

We pretty much followed the recipe, but if we made it again, would possibly add other veg to the potatoes, and more garlic to the chicken.

Using the mixes was easy, no different than cooking a normal roast chicken and potatoes.

I think we probably would buy this in the future, as the dc liked it so much.

The younger three dc loved it, dh and I liked it, dc1 loved the potatoes and ate the chicken because it was either that or starve :o

Tonight we tried the garlic and thyme roast chicken with crispy roast potatoes.

DC2+3 would rate it 5/5, DH and I 3/5.
DC1 loved the potatoes, but wasn't so keen on the chicken.

The flavour of the chicken was fairly mild. DH and I would have liked it more garlicky, but the three younger dc cleared their plates.
The potatoes were a great success, enjoyed by everyone. They welded themselves to the bottom of the roasting tin, which was a little disappointing.

The mixes were easy to use. 8yo ds coated the chicken, I did the potatoes.

We pretty much followed the recipe, but if we made it again, would possibly add other veg to the potatoes, and more garlic to the chicken.

Using the mixes was easy, no different than cooking a normal roast chicken and potatoes.

I think we probably would buy this in the future, as the dc liked it so much.

The younger three dc loved it, dh and I liked it, dc1 loved the potatoes and ate the chicken because it was either that or starve :o

Whoops, sorry .

We had roast chicken today and my DD, who is normally very fussy, just kept eating! This was a hit all round. So much so that we were already eating before I remembered to take a photo, so apologies for the pic of half a carcass and some roasties! It made my kitchen smell lovely, and I've boiled the bones for stock, which will taste lovely with the extra herbs.

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

The Garlic and Thyme roast chicken and crispy potatoes

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

4.5

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

My DD (1.9) ate the chicken, went back for more of the flavoured skin and ate all her potatoes. This is quite unusual as she has not been eating her dinner AT ALL for a couple of weeks. We got "mm, nice" so I'm fairly sure she enjoyed it!

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

No different to how I'd normally do a roast as I usually season the meat and potatoes anyway (with a Schwartz mix!) so fairly easy, although seasoning the potatoes took a little longer as they had to be completely coated - I normally just sprinkle the tops once I've covered them in fat.

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

I pretty much followed the recipe, except I used lard for my potatoes as I'm not keen on the taste of potatoes roasted in oil. Also, I bought a slightly bigger bird than the recipe said (2kg instead of 1.6kg) so had to adjust my cooking times, but the mix still covered it really well.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

Not really in this case, as it was similar to what I would normally do. Time saved by not oiling and seasoning the chicken separately was spent on seasoning the potatoes.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

Probably not this one, but I would definitely recommend it to someone who was new to cooking or wary about doing a roast dinner. I might buy it for a change to our normal roast chicken. I would be tempted in future to just sprinkle the potato seasoning over the top and save a bit by for my Yorkshire mix to make them herby and more interesting!
(Yes, we have Yorkshire's with our roast dinners, regardless of the meat!)
I think the mix would lend itself well to most meats and I would probably use it on a lamb leg with some chopped rosemary added.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

Really liked it, the potatoes were lovely but not that different to how I normally do it. The chicken skin tasted lovely, but underneath that it was just chicken, but maybe I didn't score it deeply enough?

I used the chicken tikka recipe pack to make up some chicken skewers for a bbq, they were very well received. The recipe was very easy to follow and smelled lovely whilst marinading and then grilling.
DD loved the chicken but wasnt keen on the dip, there was also enough of a ''kick' to keep spice loving DH happy i'd definitely buy the mix again. I'd rate this sachet 4 out of five.

Sunday I made the Garlic & Thyme roast chicken + crispy roast potatoes for Sunday Lunch, very easy to use. The Chicken was extremely tasty and the pack for the roast potatoes made them more crispy than usual. Will be certainly buying again.

We started off with the Garlic and Herb Chicken with Cheese & Chive Dip. Was really easy to prepare, so easy in fact that my 13-year-old son took over and prepared it himself. There was quite a bit more breadcrumb mix than we needed so obviously could have done with using a bit more chicken. We weren't keen on the dip at all - we thought it was a bit sickly. Overall though, the chicken was a bit hit with both of us. We'd definitely use this packet again but without the dip this time - a 4/5 from us.

1st review, here goes....

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Garlic & Thyme roast chicken + crispy roast potatoes

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

For ease of use and quality of instructions, definitely 5 (and after reading all packets, all instructions are succinct and well laid out).

Taste... See below.

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

For taste, I found (and DH) that whilst it all smelt amazing cooking, it just didn't match up in the taste department. It by no means ruined the food but I just didn't find the promised flavoured coating came through on with the chicken or the potatoes. That said, we ate the whole lot, as did DS (who is 25 months).

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

Really easy.

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

I followed the recipe in its entirety, nothing added or taken away.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

I wouldn't say easier because when I do a roast chicken I add nothing to it and when I do Roast Potatoes I don't add anything either . So the mixes required me to do more, however the additional work was so minimal that it didn't impact at all.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

I don't think I would buy this one again based on the fact that it was a bit bland.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

I some what liked it

Easy to use, simple instructions and not an abundance of additional ingredients. But sadly lacked on flavour for my family, which given its a food product is the overall clincher for me, above ease and convenience.

Apologies for photo of partly eaten food... We started eating and had forgotten to take pictures!

• Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Mediterranean pasta with crunchy topping.

• How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

3

• What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

DC said it tasted like school dinner (not a criticism I don't think), DH and I thought it tasted like a highly seasoned ready meal. I quite liked the crunchy topping as it's something I wouldn't usually bother to add to a dish as it would be too much faff to make myself.

• How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

Very easy.

• Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

I followed the recipe, but would add something like some veg to it next time.

• Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

It did make it easier as I didn't need to sort loads of ingredients out, and the crunchy topping isn't something I would bother making myself.

Overall we thought it was fine. I'm not sure if I would buy this particular sachet again, but it certainly hasn't put me off trying the others

- Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try? Garlic & herb crunchy chicken bites + cheese & chive dip
- How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest) 3
- What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product? My girls were fine with it, not overly enthused by any means, but they ate it, no requests for repeats tho. My sister loved it, she loved the crunchy coating and the dip, she was dipping chips into it as well.
- How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use? This one was super easy, I had a migraine coming on so made this altho I had had no plans to do so at the beginning of the day.
- Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients? Followed it exactly as I was feeling really ill at the time, I just wanted to get food on the table so I could go and die quietly.
- Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not? yes this one absolutely did, required no thought and very little cooking everything again was in my fridge so no special shop required. I also could lie down whilst it was cooking! My girls came to tell me when the oven pinged.
- Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not? Yes for the ease, might have this one as well in case I need to cook whilst not feeling great again, usually we order take out if I'm feeling ill, this is way cheaper and at least I know the rest of the ingredients are fresh.
- Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it? This one we liked, as I said my girls weren't crazy about it, my sister was, the dip doesn't keep that well either but it is filling and quick and not too bad.

We made the garlic chicken bites and BBQ dip Saturday evening. They were easy and quick to make and very tasty! We would rate them 5/5. My sons are chicken nuggets fans so it was nice to make these with 100 % chicken so more tasty and nutritious

We made the mediterranean pasta bake with crunchy topping last night. As suggested on reverse of pack I substituted the chicken for tuna.
The pasta bake itself was tasty but we found the topping dry and rather too spicy. We rate this one 2/5.

We tired the garlic and thyme roast chicken last night.

I wrote down as we ate:

Chicken feedback

Roast dinner.

Ds1 likes the potatoes, but not as good as mummy's.

He really likes the chicken.

Ds2 likes the chicken, but doesn't like the potatoes at all! Tried them but pushed them all away.

My feedback - Roasties nice and crispy, but not sure what the taste is supposed to be, it left chicken dry

Didn't like roasties. Really liked chicken - dh.

I wouldn't buy this sachet again considering the mixed reactions to the roasting, but I would consider the mix for the chicken if it were sold separately. I would say overall we liked this particular mix.

I used a two kilo chicken, because I always aim to get 2/3 meals from one chicken, and there was more than enough baste for that size bird.

We're trying a different packet tonight.

Sorry forgot to add I would rate it 3/5, it didn't particularly make life any easier because it was no less work than a normal roast.

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?
Southern Style Crunchy Chicken Bites + BBQ dip.
We seved them with a salad and tortilla wraps which the kids loved.

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)
4 out of 5. DS, 6 gave it a 5 for the chicken alone. DD, 3 said it was great. Both DH and I really enjoyed the chicken and DH particularly enjoyed the BBQ dip.

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?
We all really enjoyed the chicken and found the level of spice just right for the DC's. Any more and I don't think they would have enjoyed it as much. The BBQ dip was also good although I think you can buy ones just as tasty ready made.

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?
Incredibly easy to use. It was in the oven in a matter of seconds and the dip was a case of stir and go.

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients
I followed the instructions on the back of the packet.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?
Yes, much easier than faffing about with a load of ingredients.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?
I think we would definitely get this mix again and look out for any similar.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?
We all liked it, DS loved it

Sorry, forgot to upload picture!

Marking place. Must buy chicken

Which 2in1 recipe mix did you try?

Southern style crunchy chicken bites + BBQ dip

How would you rate this recipe mix out of 5 (1 being lowest and 5 highest)

4/5, I would of given it full marks but I felt the crumbs on the chicken were a bit too dry.

What did you/your DCs think of the overall flavour of the product?

I personally really liked it, the bbq dip was really tasty and the chicken was indeed crunchy and had a peppery kick to it which was unexpected but nomalicous! My partner also agrees with me and says the strong flavours were really nice. I can safely say that my son loved it! He is only 1 years old and normally makes a mess at dinner but I was shocked when I saw his plate empty and I looked on the floor expecting to find food....THERE WAS NONE THERE!

How easy, or difficult, did you find the 2in1 mix to use?

Very easy and simple to follow. The measurements for me were spot on! Which is rare to find now a days.

Did you follow the recipe on the back of the packet or did you add/take away any other ingredients?

Followed it but had it with chips if I had any I would of added some peas as well haha.

Would you say the 2in1 recipe mix made your mealtimes easier at all? If so, why? If not, why not?

I would say for this specific recipe it did indeed make it easier as it didn't take as long as I would of expected also to make the BBQ sauce all I needed was tomato ketchup which nearly every household normally has. I mean I HATE ketchup but we have it for when guests come over.

Do you think you will buy, or look to buy, Schwartz 2in1 recipe mixes in the future? If so, why? If not, why not?

I would buy this when I next go shopping as all it requires is the packet, chicken and well the ketchup I already have. So it really does save you money, which is always a win in this economy.

Overall, would you say you loved the 2in1 recipe mix, you liked it or you hated it?

I LOVED it!