The TV Dinner.
No, it's not a new show on The Food Network.
I'm guessing that there are many among the 40-and-under crowd that never even heard of “TV dinners”. But for me... Swanson will always have a special place in my heart, if not my belly.
My Mom was an amazing, creative cook! But Mom often would get stuck working late in “the store” owned by my Dad. And while most times my sister Ellen, would very ably take over the culinary chores, there were those other times when I would have dinner with the Swansons.
It was those culinary pioneers, the brilliant Swanson brothers, who invented the classic TV dinner!!
Actually, frozen dinners had been around for a while. But in the ’50’s, these marketing geniuses, sensing the "TV Culture" explosion, developed the concept of an all-in-one meal... that could easily be prepared and served in a “futuristic” compartmentalized, aluminum tray, with no dishes, no clean up… allowing more time to… WATCH TV!
Now, I always believed that it was called a “TV dinner” for that very reason… because you could simply grab a tray out of the oven, plop it on a tray table… and sit glued in front of the TV. What wonderful quality time with the family! A family of four? Four “dinners”. And each could choose their own.
However… what I never realized, or simply forgot… was that the boxed dinner itself was shaped like a ‘50’s TV set?!?
The main entrée in the larger component served as the “screen”… the "speaker" was one small component on one side containing the veggies... and another small component on the other side, with a starch as “the controls”. AND… Some of the outer packaging even had TV knobs drawn on the bottom!!
And inside the box… There was the “meat”… could be Turkey, Meat Loaf, the mysteriously exotic Salisbury Steak… or my personal favorite… Fried Chicken!!! (Although, Swanson must have searched far and wide for rare “pygmy chickens” .... because those were the tiniest wings I ever saw!!)
The veggie section might serve up... Carrots, Corn or unexpectedly delicious Baby Peas. A starch was included… Rice or Potatoes or a "stuffing-like substance".
And then in a life-altering move… The Swansons added DESSERT! Hot Apple Cobbler… or the gummy yet yummy, (always stuck to the tray) Chocolate Brownie!
All ever-so-easily heated together. The only effort needed was... sometimes, uncovering the foil on one of the compartments while heating. (Trying in vain not to burn your fingers!)
And this entire feast for a little over a dollar! What a deal!
But, of course, I must share The Forever Kid's personal experiences with TV dinners.
First there was the actual preparation. TV Dinners were to be “cooked” in an oven. (What’s a” microwave” ????)
The oven in my house worked by turning on the gas… and then using a match to light the pilot light. Yeah, OK... A 12-year-old boy…gas…lit matches… What could go wrong?
My method was to light the wooden matchstick… “toss” it in the general direction of the tiny hole of escaping gas, and then basically… RUN!
Needless to say… there was more than one incident of singed eyebrows.
But more important to me about TV Dinners… was that they served as my introduction to the culinary arts.
Never one to leave well enough alone… I sought to “enhance” the already gourmet offerings (?) of the Swansons. When my best friend, Heintz, would stay for dinner, I would prepare my masterpiece.
First, ever-so-carefully, I would uncover the baby pea section… and then, apply my now classic technique... adding an extra pat of butter and a sprinkling of garlic salt. A divine explosion of flavor!
Then for my piece de resistance… I would reveal those three pieces of frozen pygmy chicken… and spoon over a coating of Saucy Susan, (a thick peach-apricot baste)... and crisp to glazed perfection Magnifique!
Or, to quote the famed food critic, Heintz…
“Skollar…You are a great cooker!”
I believe Swanson could revive the TV dinner with “program-themed” offerings… Fresh Off the Boat…General Tso’s Chicken, with Fried Rice and Egg Roll… Nashville ….Ribs, Grits and Corn Bread…
Escargot, Sweetbreads and Lychee Mousse for …Stranger Things.
LET'S THAW! LET'S EAT! LET'S WATCH!
Would love to hear your memories of TV dinners.
