New range of convenient frozen veggies

The husband and wife team of Ivan and Antoinette Smook have launched a selection of tasty and nutritious vegetable side dishes to encourage South Africans to add more variety to their meals. Available in eight different options, the heat-and-eat, home-cooked-style dishes take just two minutes from freezer to microwave to plate. For added convenience, each pack contains four individually bagged portions, believed to be South Africa's first veggies in this format.

15 Feb 2013

The pair, a food-lover and cold chain refrigeration expert, calling themselves Amore, have developed a strong following within the hospitality trade for their desserts, producing the range from their Paarl-based factory, which is already supplying to retail chains in the Western Cape.

The new range targets busy mums and professionals, singletons and the elderly with quick and convenient dishes that include ratatouille, spinach and broccoli in a white sauce, butternut and cinnamon, green beans with potato, and more.

South African favourites

The dishes are made with fresh ingredients, according to traditional or popular South African recipes, and contain no added MSG or preservatives, no powdered milk or cheese. They have been developed to give South Africans, notorious for avoiding their veggies, more of an appetite for them, says Ivan.

"We joke in this country that so many South Africans refer to chicken as a vegetable, because they have no palate for what comes out of the ground. By missing essential nutrients, they are potentially harming their health. Everyone wants to give their families the best they can but it is not always realistic in terms of daily pressures. These dishes are made with love for varied, sensible eating. That's why we've called the range Amore."

Each pack of four servings, retailing for around R22, offers single portions that vary in weight from 80g to 100g depending on the ingredients used. For example, the ratatouille comes in at 80g per serving, while the potato weighs 100g.

Once a portion is removed from the pack, the balance remains protected from freezer burn. Each is wrapped individually in recyclable, see-through plastic bags, using lightweight packaging. Each serving is date-stamped and has a freezer life of six months.

"The idea came to us because in our house, where we have pro- and anti-broccoli camps, we wanted to find a budget-friendly way of pleasing everyone, while making sure they were still eating a wholesome diet," he concludes.

For more details, contact Ivan Smook on az.oc.eromelppa@navi.