Since Trader Joe's Kung Pao Chicken was better than a lot of other frozen Kung Pao chickens I've had, my boyfriend and I decided to try some of Trader Joe's Szechuan Style Spicy Beef & Broccoli. Unfortunately, we didn't read the instructions fully before buying it and assumed it was microwavable, like their Kung Pao chicken. However, the beef & broccoli ended up being mostly cooked on the stovetop. The only part that was microwavable was the bag of broccoli.

The spicy beef & broccoli came in three separate packets: beef, broccoli, and sauce. The bag of broccoli also came stuck to the outer bag.

Bag of frozen broccoli stuck to outer packaging

We cooked it all following the instructions on the back of the bag, except we only used half of the sauce. It took us a total of about 15-20 minutes to make.

The beef wasn't great. A few of the beef bits were grisly, and beef wasn't very crispy because of the sauce. Although the beef bits had a slightly crispy exterior, the inside of the beef was very mushy, which I didn't like at all. The sauce was sweet and a little tangy, but I didn't care for it. I'm glad we only used half the sauce or it would have been too sweet. The only part I did like about the beef was its spiciness. The broccoli was also OK, but it didn't really add anything to the beef.

Refrigerating the beef didn't do the beef any favors, either. We had it as leftovers the next day; it tasted worse. The beef was even mushier, and I couldn't eat the three pieces I put on my plate.