Wild Zora, a brand of commercial meals we have liked over the years, has introduced a newer line of meals. This time they have instant quinoa in them. The meals are gluten-free as normal. These have a “grain” (quinoa is a seed, but is eaten as a grain), versus the Paleo To Go Meals they make.
The quinoa bowl meals are affordably priced, at $9.99 each at REI. These are single serving meals.
The Harvest Beef has new packaging that is being sold at REI, than is shown on Wild Zora’s website currently. However, the price on Wild Zora is also $7.99. The calorie count is the same and it doesn’t seem any different.
Amazon has a 5 pack of all the quinoa bowl flavors for $32.99. That is the best price out there, it is in the old packaging however.
The meal contains:
Organic quinoa, 100% grass-fed beef, mushrooms, organic carrots, organic onion, organic spinach, turmeric, organic garlic, sea salt, oregano, organic rosemary and a packet of oil to add.
It is 310 calories without the oil, 400 with. At 350 mg of sodium, this is a powerhouse for those on a lower sodium diet. 20 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber.
It’s also in one of the thinnest mylar bags I have encountered over the years. It’s so thin that if you are at high altitude, or in very cold temperatures, I would recommend insulating the bags in a cozy.
Dry ingredients and the included olive oil packet.
While it calls for 10 minutes rehydration time, I would give it 15 minutes. The meal has decent sized pieces of beef and plenty of vegetables. The quinoa is snappy, not mushy (this was a fear of mine, that the quinoa would be lackluster). As for salt, you might actually need to add a pinch on top.
Wether or not you like this dish comes down to if you like quinoa. I am not the world’s biggest fan of it (it’s a texture thing for me), but with the seeds having a pop between the teeth, I actually liked it.
~Sarah