Update added 10/28/2015 from the Chef Ernesto Facebook page: Would you like more vegan choices at the Dollar Tree Store? I know a way that you can help make this happen. Could you please email our Managing Director. If he receives enough positive feedback he can show the Dollar Tree store! Dollar Tree needs to see that people come to the Dollar Tree store for Chef Ernesto! This is your way to help bring more vegan food to those who have found the cruelty free food way. Thank you so much! Here is the email: himalya@erols.com.
I was recently contacted to try samples of a new line of Chef Ernesto products. I was informed that they are presently available in select Northeast Dollar Tree Stores and that the Chef Ernesto products are in the beginning phase of a nationwide rollout of their all-natural high quality frozen food line. The products are offered at a discounted price.
I was interested to try some samples because Chef Ernesto is a 100% vegetarian frozen food brand and is advertised to use “ingredients you know and can pronounce.” The press released informed me that their food is comparable with products you can find at high end grocery stores. The line consists of three products: Battered Mushrooms, Vegetable Samosas, and Veggie Burgers and they are all vegan!
Now if you know me, my preference is to prepare meals at home, from whole, minimally process, organic plant foods. But we had just finished our big fundraising event. We were exhausted and there was not much energy for cooking. These samples came at an ideal time. Here is my take on these products:
The Good Points!
1. All 3 products, Battered Mushrooms, Vegetable Samosas, and Veggie Burgers are vegan! This is something to celebrate. I support any kind of vegan food product, whether it is healthy or not, because it can be used in place of a similar product made from animal, which I don’t support.
2. These products are fast and easy to prepare.
3. These products are unbelievably inexpensive.
4. All of these products are spicy and full of flavor.
Now for the not so good points!
1. Too salty! Typically a prepared food should have about the same number in milligrams (mg) of Sodium as it has in Calories. All these products have more than double the sodium that I think is necessary or healthy.
2. The product is not organic and may contain genetically modified ingredients, it is not clear if they do or not. The “edible vegetable oil” listed could be from soy or corn that is GMO.
I think these products are best for a treat. They’d be great as appetizers for a party. I love that they are vegan, inexpensive and easy to prepare. These are not products I would want to eat everyday – since they are too salty, too oily, not organic and may contain GMO ingredients.
I love all of the Chef Ernesto and Himalaya Food products. I used to buy several boxes of their Meatless Balls every week at Dollar Tree, as well as some others. My Dollar Tree no longer carries any Chef Ernesto or Himalaya Food products.
Have they gone out of business? The website on the box is gone, himalayaint.com and thechefernesto.com is also gone. I sent a message to the customer service email and the Facebook page and no one ever responded.
We need more affordable vegetarian options.
Thank you
Hi Dan, Sorry to hear about Chef Ernesto. We are not aware of what is happening with this business. – Caryn
Panjabi samosa is testy
But some time in same packing i get different type of samosa shape is different and teste is also not good how can I recognize which samosa is in side
I did see the Chef Ernesto veggie samosas there as well and bought a box to try them. They were okay, but not as good as Deep, which IMO are the most superior frozen samosas you can buy. Deep have excellent flavors and seasoning in their filling. My favorite are their chili-paneer but everything they make is great. I only wish they were more widely available and cheaper.
I found these at my local Dollar Tree and was really surprised to see vegan or “healthy” food at Dollar Tree. I liked that they were flavored with Indian spices. That was a nice surprise, as I thought they were more flavorful than other veggie burgers I had eaten in the past and they were only a dollar for the box. Not bad! There was only two small patties in the box. I cooked them on the stove top in a skillet and put them each on a small bun to make a sandwich, topped them with the same condiments I would use for a hamburger. I think they might cook up better in the oven but I was in a hurry. My local Dollar Tree also sold Jennifer’s Garden frozen fruit which I LOVED. I used the packages of fruit to make smoothies. There was mango chunks and strawberries and I got some of each. The fruit was very good quality with no added ingredients and only a dollar a bag.I hope they keep stocking that brand. I also found decent quality dried fruit at Dollar Tree as well, for snacking. I bought the figs and the dried apricot.
The veggie burgers tastes great!
Skip the zucchini- not a quality product.
Love your products
The Samosas are out of stock in my local Indio Dollar Tree do you know if they will stock them going forward?
This is not Chef Ernesto’s page. You can contact them at their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ChefErnestoFood or at the email noted at the top of this post.
These somosas are the most underrated thing ever! Love these things.
I just bought 4 boxes of the vege-burgers today at the 99 Cent Store. In my opinion, they are the best vege-burgers I have ever had that were bought in a store. I just LOVE them. Would actually eat them daily for 99 cents a box. Would never become tired of the flavor. Liked the texture and size of the burger also. Crunchy on the outside. Filled with flavor and still moist.
These products are NON GMO. Any product from India is NON GMO. Indian agriculture does not permit GMO farming. Also indians don’t use soybean oil for cooking. Soybean in India is non-GMO anyway. Eat with confidence!! Its all good:)
We are Vegetarian, and Vegetarian in our language means we do not consumed eggs either. But we eat dairy which includes milk and its bi-products. We are always in the lookout for fresh or frozen Vegetarian food. We were literally thrilled when we saw Zucchini fries and Vegetable Empanadas. We bought several boxes and half of them are over the same evening. Usually we go to Dollar stores only when we need some Gift items for party or decorations. This time we just took a look at frozen items and we were very surprised, obviously now on, visit to Dollar store will be more often than ever before since we can buy 100% Vegetarian frozen items. We will also spread the word among our vegetarian community too.
I ran across the samosas at the dollar store. Since they were only $1.00 I though why not try them. THEY WERE SOOOO GOOD!! I will be purchasing more, and will be trying the veggie burgers.
Vege Burgers are great.
Muy buenas,las recomiendo
ENJOYED YOUR BREADED GREEN BEANS DO YOU OFFER BREADED CALIFLOWER IF SO WHO IS A DETROIT MICH RETAILER
Hi Kurt, This is not the page for Chef Ernesto products. You can email them at himalya@erols.com or go to their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ChefErnestoFood/.
This line of frozen food states that it’s a “product of India”. So far India has allowed testing of GMO corn but based on what I have read it’s not yet available commercially. So, I don’t know if the information about GMO corn is accurate. They now have Zucchini Fries also. I’m actually baking them, together with the Somosas and Mushrooms, as I type, to try them. I really like their veggie burgers. They are really great tasting. I fry them with onions. Plus they have turmeric which is something I am trying to include in my diet because of the health benefits. It is believed that that ingredient is the reason why India has a much lower instance of Alzheimer’s than the US. It runs in my family. Plus two veggie burgers for one dollar is amazing. Just to be clear, I am one of those people who is VERY opposed to GMOs. If I thought they were GMO I would not go anywhere near them.
I LOVE the battered mushrooms they are so tasty . pop them in the oven and they taste better than restaurant battered mushrooms at a fancy posh place ! When ever I see them on the shelve at the dollar tree I buy ALL of them . 20 to 30 at a time . please keep up the supply and demand because it sure will pay off!
No doubt , we don’t get the battered Mushrooms here.
I read on the Chef Ernesto Facebook page that all of their products are non-GMO. YAY!
Yay indeed!
I found the vegetable samosas at the Dollar Tree of all places. A minute and a half in the microwave. My budget is very tight, so I skimp on the GMO and even the organic thing quite frequently. Just for the record, this hits my Indian-food craving right where it matters and I love ’em!
If you r alert about ur health, do not use microwave at all.
My kids and I love your battered mushrooms!
I am neither Vegan nor Vegetarian, however, I think the Veggie burgers are quite tasty. They are full of identifiable vegetables. They don’t have the right texture, in my opinion, to put on a bun and make a sandwich….. a bit to mushy. I think they make a wonderful snack or even a side dish.
I don’t know how you cook them, but I fry them with just a small amount of olive oil in a skillet, along with mushrooms, and they turn out just right and not at all soggy.
Jeanie you can make a sandwich. My first time eating one I put it on bread it was very tasty. I’m sorry I didn’t get 2 boxes.
What about the sugar???
Most is bone charcoal processed,not Vegan at all.
I wouldn’t buy or eat these without first knowing where their sugar is sourced.
What about sugar processed with (vegetarian charcoal which is used to reduce bloating). Tell me more please : michaelalmir854@gmail.com
I highly recommend the Samosas…They’re quite tasty and make for perfect vegetarian appetizers!
Every Sunday morning I make a cup full of Indian-style sweet&sour sauce: Tamarind paste, brown sugar, ground cumin seeds, water. Throughout the week, we cook the veggie burgers (which are actually “batata wadas” without the battered exterior), break them in half, spoon on some of the sauce, then roll in a tortilla/chapati.
The sauce also goes well with the samosas.
Yum! I love the veggie burgers and at only $1.00 for two, it sure blows away Boca and Morningstar Farms with their mega prices and mega ingredients which also could contain non organic and GMO’S. I wish my dollar tree had the samosas.
Let them know that you want more products at your store: https://www.facebook.com/ChefErnestoFood?fref=ts
I was very pleased with the veggie burgers. They blew away boca and morningstar in flavor and I loved the prices for only a dollar for a box of two.
Deb,
contact the store mgr. and request for Samosas.
I love them and so is everybody at home, as a side snack.
I purchased, served and tried myself; the “Vegetable Samosa” purchased from the Dollar Tree here on Long Island, NY…. Little triangle shaped rolls or puffs stuffed with “who knows”. Everyone spit it out….while attempting to eat it. Then I tried it and almost vomited.. Chef Ernesto needs to rethink the making of this dish. I returned it to the Dollar Tree and will NEVER purchase it again. I will also discourage others from buying it. Though… you who’s reading this post must try those frozen Traditional Vegetable Spring Rolls by “Jennifers’s Garden (dipped in honey or sour crème) are great, and I buy them all the time… for myself and others to try… It’s a WINNER.
They are all natural, no artificial ingredients, 55 calories per roll, no cholesterol, and
no MSG added…. So I think I will stick with Jennifer’s verses Chef Ernesto.
I wish I knew you. You could have given them to me. I love those with different sauces I have laying around.
It says to not consume if you’re allergic to…and it lists one of my allergens on it. Nicely done Chef Ernesto. -_-
What are you allergic to? You can comment on their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ChefErnestoFood?fref=ts
I have looked up and down for a website, do they even have one?
They are manufactured by Himalya International, http://himalayaint.com/ethnic. I asked the marketing folks if there is a website and will get back to let you know.
Chef Ernesto’s website is currently under construction, but please feel free to direct any inquiries to their Facebook page – – https://www.facebook.com/ChefErnestoFood?fref=ts
Thechefernesto.com
Thank you so much for reviewing these products. I, too, support vegan products no matter if they meet my usual “healthy food” requirements and it is always great that we have more choices for ‘treats’.