Easter Dinner in a Box from Iceland(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
Shops didn’t used to be as packed with Easter tableware as they are these days, but a roast dinner has always been a tradition for many families at this time of year.
But with shoppers searching for those much-wanted chocolate eggs and treats for the kids, it can seem like just another thing on the endless to-do list.
That’s why Iceland’s Easter Dinner in a Box seems so appealing and is set to fly out of the freezers when it launches next week.
Following the success of the Christmas Dinner in a Box, the frozen food retailer decided to bring the concept back for Easter and there are two meals to choose from with either chicken or lamb.
Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. And don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.
It fed four with some left over(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
With lamb being a traditional choice for many on Easter Sunday, we decided to sample the goods.
You get everything you need for a family meal for four, in fact more than we’d typically have with our usual roast dinner.
As well as the leg of lamb, which weighs a pretty hefty 1.32kg on its own, the box contains roast potatoes, beef dripping Yorkshire puddings, honey glazed parsnips, a mix of carrots, broccoli and peas, and 12 pigs in blankets.
You get a tub of luxury beef gravy with it too.
It’s all very simple to put together and the box comes with a handy ‘cooking instructions’ leaflet explaining how long everything needs to go in the oven or air fryer for.
The box includes half a leg of lamb(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
The lamb itself obviously takes the longest – around three hours from frozen – and comes with its own instruction label explaining that it’s in for 14 minutes per 100g in weight.
You can just leave it cooking though and remove the foil that’s covering it when it’s half done.
The rest takes around 25 minutes with the potatoes and parsnips going in first, followed by the sausages and finally the Yorkshires. The carrot mix is simply boiled for around five minutes and the gravy can be done in the microwave.
Everything was perfectly cooked in those times except for the parsnips, which seemed to need another 10 minutes until they were soft enough.
Everything you get inside the box(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
The lamb itself was lovely a tender and made a change from our usual chicken. Although if you do fancy chicken, that box is slightly cheaper at £25 compared with the lamb box costing £30. You get an 800g Butter Basted Chicken Joint and chicken gravy instead of beef.
Despite being frozen, the Yorkshires were big and fluffy – one is plenty enough per person – and we particularly enjoyed the luxury gravy which is so rich and full of flavour.
Frozen roast potatoes are never going to be quite as nice as those done from scratch, but like with the Christmas box, these are an ideal cheat if you’re wanting an easier option. A decent size, they’re fluffy on the inside, with that promised outer crispiness most people want with their roasties.
The lamb dinner(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
You can feed four with fresh produce for the same price – or near enough – especially when the supermarket veg deals are on, but it’s the ease of this that makes it so appealing, from being able to grab it all in one go without having to look for the individual products, to being able to cook a full dinner without a veg peeler in sight.
And for £7.50 a head, I think you’ll find it’s pretty impressive.
As well as the meat joint and gravy, inside each box is:
Ridiculously Crispy Roast Potatoes – 1kgIceland Luxury Beef Dripping Yorkshire Puddings – 4 PackIceland Honey Glazed Parsnips – 750gIceland Carrot, Broccoli & Pea Mix – 1kgIceland 12 Pigs in Blankets – 252g
Iceland says the boxes are ‘designed to make Easter lunch preparation easier than ever’, giving families ‘a delicious, great‑value feast without the stress’.
It’s in stores from March 24(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
An Iceland spokesperson said: “After the overwhelming demand for our dinner in a box concept during the festive season, it was clear our customers wanted the same convenience and great taste at other key seasonal moments.
“Designed to feed four people comfortably, the box takes the stress out of seasonal hosting, offering an affordable, no‑prep solution without compromising on quality. We’re proud to make celebratory meals easier, tastier and more accessible than ever.”
The boxes are available from Tuesday, March 24 in store and online at Iceland and The Food Warehouse. After the huge success of the Christmas launch, the retailer is encouraging shoppers to act fast, with the new boxes expected to fly off the shelves.
Did you sample Iceland’s Christmas Dinner in a Box? Will you be cooking at home this Easter? Let us know in the comments here.