Guide to Gluten-Free Frozen Dinners (Nima Tested!)

This post includes a list of brands that offer gluten-free frozen meals, and I’ve tested several of the meals for hidden gluten using my Nima Sensor. This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosures.

If you’re looking for a quick gluten-free frozen meal that you and heat and eat in minutes, you may be surprised to hear that many new and old brands alike have gluten-free frozen entrees you can try.

While many TV dinners are off limits because they contain gluten, a sticky protein found in wheat, rye, barley and sometimes oats, there are more than a dozen brands that offer gluten-free frozen entrees safe for you to consume even if you have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Unfortunately, only a handful of them are certified gluten free by a third-party certifying agency, but all say they meet the FDA guidelines that require them to contain 20 parts per million (ppm) of gluten or less.

If gluten-free frozen entrees aren’t your thing, but you’re looking for a convenient, pre-packaged, gluten-free safe meal, check out Freshly.

Freshly is a meal delivery service that ships you pre-made meals made with clean and healthy ingredients and all of Freshly’s gluten-free labeled meals are certified gluten free by the Gluten Intolerance Group. You can get 30 percent off your first week with Freshly when you sign up with this link.

However, if you’re still looking for a grocery-store frozen entree, check out what the following brands have to say about gluten. Please make special note of the following:

Only a handful of brands are certified gluten free
Not all products from one brand are gluten free. Most of the time they only have a handful of gluten-free labeled frozen entrees.
There is always a risk of cross contamination; although most brands say they test their products to ensure they contain 20 ppm of gluten or less per the FDA gluten-free labeling guidelines

If I’m missing a frozen entree you’d like me to add to the list (or one you’d like to see tested with the Nima Sensor), please leave a comment to share.

Gluten-Free Lean Cuisine

Did you know that many Lean Cuisine frozen entrees are clearly labeled gluten free on the front of the packaging? I found a handful of gluten-free labeled Lean Cuisine’s at my local King Soopers (Kroger store), and according to the Lean Cuisine website, there are nine listed including:

Buffalo Style Chicken
Chicken in Sweet BBQ Sauce
Chicken Marsala
Herb Roasted Chicken
Sweet & Spicy Korean Style-Beef
Mango Chicken with Coconut Rice (Bowl)
Roasted Turkey & Vegetables (Bowl)
Sticky Ginger Chicken (Bowl)
Unwrapped Chicken Burrito (Bowl)

Please note these frozen entrees are not certified gluten free by any third-party organization. This means Lean Cuisine has verified they contain less than 20 ppm of gluten per the FDA gluten-free labeling requirements.

I decided to independently test one of the frozen entrees for hidden gluten using my Nima Sensor, a portable gluten-detecting device that you can learn more about in this article, What You Need to Know About Nima Sensor Before You Buy.

A smiley face (as pictured below) means no gluten found. (If Nima finds gluten, it displays a “Gluten Found” message and wheat symbol.)

Life Cuisine Gluten-Free Frozen Meals

Life Cuisine is an offshoot Lean Cuisine brand that offers a line of high-protein, low-carb and gluten-free options. Please note not all Life Cuisine entrees are gluten free.

According to the company, there are seven Life Cuisine frozen entrees labeled gluten free (not certified gluten free), including:

Three Meat Pizza with a Cauliflower Crust
Three Cheese Pizza with a Cauliflower Crust
Pepperoni Pizza with a Cauliflower Crust
Chicken Bacon Ranch Piada with a Cauliflower Crust
Chicken Mozzarella Piada with a Cauliflower Crust
Penne Pasta Bolognese Bowl (made with Banza pasta)
Riced Cauliflower Teriyaki Chicken Bowl

Gluten-Free Frozen Meals by Amy’s Kitchen

A brand many people in the gluten-free community know and trust is Amy’s Kitchen, which offers a variety of frozen entrees and soups labeled gluten free. In fact, Amy’s says on its website that “gluten free is practically our middle name.”

Amy’s Kitchen boasts more than 100 gluten-free products and was one of the first companies to make pre-packaged convenience foods for the gluten-free community.

You can view a full list of gluten-free labeled frozen entrees on the Amy’s Kitchen website. There are too many to list here, but a few notable gluten-free frozen meals include:

Mac & 3 Cheese with Cauliflower Bowl
Gluten-Free Pizza (several varieties including cheese, margarita, and more)
Broccoli & Cheddar Bake Bowl
Black Bean Vegetable Enchiladas
Tortilla Casserole and Black Beans Bowl
Pad Thai
Thai Vegetables and Rice Bowl
Chinese Noodles & Veggies
General Tso’s Bowl
Indian Mattar Paneer
Greek Inspired Red Rice and Veggies

As you can see, Amy’s Kitchen channels flavors from all over the world to meet a variety of tastes and preferences.

A few important notes about Amy’s Kitchen. First, the company’s products are not certified gluten free by a third party, they are only labeled gluten free.

Second, Amy’s Kitchen does not use a dedicated gluten-free kitchen. In fact, the company is transparent in the fact that it uses a shared manufacturing facility to produce its gluten-free foods.

Specifically, Amy’s Kitchen says, “For all of our gluten-free items, we have numerous safeguards in place to assure that the items meet the FDA definition. We know that some consumers may be so sensitive to gluten that they may choose to avoid any food that could contain any gluten, even less than 20 ppm.

“For this reason, we alert consumers that our food is made in a shared facility in the event that they wish to avoid such items. We take our obligations in this regard very seriously, and are happy to answer any questions you may have or provide additional information if it would be useful.”

I independently tested an Amy’s Kitchen frozen entree with my Nima Sensor, and you can see the results below. Again, a smiley face means no gluten found.

Stouffer’s Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese

Stouffer’s seems to be dipping its toe in the gluten-free market with the launch of a single gluten-free entree, its gluten-free frozen mac and cheese meal. The gluten-free packaging has a large splash of green on it to help it stand apart from the other Stouffer’s frozen meals, which all contain gluten.

Please note that while the entree is labeled gluten free, it’s not certified gluten free by a third-party certifying agency.

I independently tested Stouffer’s gluten-free mac and cheese for hidden gluten with my Nima Sensor. As you can see, Nima didn’t find any gluten.

Blake’s Gluten-Free Chicken Pot Pie and Other Entrees

Another frozen entree brand to add to your list is Blake’s. In fact, Blake’s makes a few hard-to-find frozen meals including:

Gluten-Free Chicken Pot Pie
Shepherd’s Pie
Turkey Shepherd’s Pie
Turkey & Uncured Bacon Cottage Pie
Gluten-Free Mac & Cheese

According to the Blake’s website, the company works to “…validate the segregation and cleaning methods in our facility with testing.” It says that during production of its gluten-free meals, “we periodically test them to ensure that the presence of gluten is less than 20 ppm.”

Gluten-Free Healthy Choice Frozen Entrees

After sorting through the frozen food aisle at my local grocery store, I was surprised to see that Healthy Choice had several gluten-free frozen meals, all clearly labeled gluten free. (None are certified gluten free.)

All of the gluten-free options are part of the Cafe Steamers line, however, not all Cafe Steamers are gluten free. Be sure to look for the gluten-free label.

Gluten-free options include:

Homestyle Chicken & Potatoes
Cajun-Style Chicken & Shrimp
Beef Merlot

Udi’s Gluten-Free Frozen Meals

While I could not find Udi’s frozen entrees in my local grocery store, I’m pleased to share that Udi’s makes several certified gluten-free frozen meals including:

Single Serve Chicken Florentine
Three Cheese Ravioli Skillet Meal
Chicken Parmesan Penne Skillet Meal
Chicken Penne Alfredo Skillet Meal
Italian Sausage Lasagna Frozen Entree
Lasagna with Meat Sauce Bakeable Meal

CedarLane Gluten-Free Frozen Entrees

CedarLane makes a variety of specialty frozen entrees to cater to the gluten-free, keto, paleo, high-protein and vegetarian communities.

Keep in mind that only some CedarLane frozen meals are gluten free, so be sure to look for the “gluten-free” label on the front left corner of each entree.

Some of the gluten-free frozen entrees include:

Chicken Fajita Protein Bowl
Chicken Souvlaki Protein Bowl
3 Layer Chicken Enchilada Bowl
Roasted Pork Paleo Bowl
Lemon Thyme Chicken Paleo Bowl
Adobe Chicken Paleo Bowl
All Tamales (look for a red circle stamped gluten free on the front of each package)
Eggplant Parmesan entree
Three Layer Enchilada Pie
Roasted Chili Rellano
All Omelette entrees
Spinach and Roasted Tomato Egg White Frittata

Red’s Gluten-Free Entrees

An up-and-coming brand I keep hearing about is called Red’s, and it offers a line of gluten-free frozen entrees and breadless breakfast sandwiches. Be sure to look for the “gluten-free” label as to not confuse them with the brand’s non-gluten-free entrees.

While none of the products are certified gluten free by a third party, Red’s says on its website, “With all of our gluten-free items, we adhere to the FDA’s strict Allergen Cross-Contact Prevention guidelines to ensure safeguards are in place to control incidents of cross-contamination.”

Gluten-free entrees from Red’s include:

Gluten-Free Macaroni and Cheese
Chicken, Cilantro and Lime
Chicken Tikka Masala with Riced Cauliflower
Chicken, Cilantro and Lime with Riced Cauliflower
Chicken Teriyaki with Riced Cauliflower
Chicken & Cheddar Enchiladas

Beecher’s Gluten-Free Mac & Cheese

If you’re in the market for some tasty macaroni and cheese, check out the certified gluten-free frozen mac and cheese entree from Beecher’s.

Beecher’s is known for cheese, and it has two cafes located in high profile U.S. cities, including Seattle’s Pike Place Market and New York’s Flatiron district.

If you’re not able to travel to either coastal city, you can enjoy Beecher’s frozen mac and cheese entree. I spotted it at Safeway, Kroger and Sprouts near me.

Forks Over Knives

Forks Over Knives is a popular community dedicated to the plant-based lifestyle. It’s also the name of a film, best-selling book, and a movement.

There are three Forks Over Knives frozen entrees available on the market today. All are whole food, plant-based frozen entrees, but only the following two frozen meals are labeled (not certified) gluten free:

Sesame Ginger Fancy Veggies & Rice
Fire-Roasted Enchilada Stack

Primal Kitchen Gluten-Free Frozen Entrees

Primal Kitchen makes a line of frozen entrees that cater to the Whole30 and paleo communities. Several of their frozen entrees say they contain “no gluten, grains or soy.” Any food item that says “no gluten” is held to the same labeling standards as set forth by the FDA, which means a product must contain 20 ppm of gluten or less in order to make that claim.

Gluten-free frozen entrees from Primal Kitchen include:

Chicken Alfredo
Chicken Panang Curry
Chicken Pesto Bowl
Beef & Mushroom Bowl

Gluten-Free Saffron Road Frozen Entrees

Saffron Road makes a variety of frozen entrees inspired by world cuisines, with a focus on India and Southeast Asia.

I love that all Saffron Road products are certified gluten free by the GFCO, and they’re certified Halal as well. Although the frozen entrees are not Kosher, many Saffron Road products are Kosher.

Choose from:

Chicken Biryani
Chicken Enchiladas Poblano
Chicken Pad Thai
Chicken Tikka Masala
Coconut Curry Chicken
Enchilada Al Chipotle
Lamb Saag
Lemongrass Basil Chicken
Madras Curry and Chicken Meatballs
And many more that you can find on the Saffron Road website.

Starlite Cuisine Gluten-Free Frozen Meals

Starlite Cuisine is another specialty brand of frozen meals, and the brand’s enchiladas and taquitos are gluten free (other products by Starlite are not gluten free).

The company says it does not have an official gluten-free certification, but that it sends samples to an independent lab to ensure the products contain no more than 20 ppm of gluten per the FDA gluten-labeling guidelines.

Scott & Jon’s Frozen Meals

Scott & Jon’s are known for making “healthy” frozen meals that contain under 300 calories and only simple ingredients.

Some products say “gluten free” whereas others says “made without gluten ingredients.” None are certified gluten free by a third party.

Entrees made without gluten include:

Garlic Butter Shrimp
Cilantro Lime Shrimp
Shrimp Risotto
Shrimp Jambalaya
Veggie Pad Thai

Are Smart Ones TV Dinners Gluten Free?

Smart Ones are frozen entrees made for those following Weight Watchers. There are a handful of frozen entrees that are labeled gluten free (not certified gluten free), including:

Chicken Enchiladas Suiza
Chicken Mesquite
Chicken Santa Fe
Santa Fe Rice and Beans
Cheesy Scramble with Hash Browns
Ham and Cheese Scramble
Three Cheese Omelet

Always read labels carefully to determine if a Smart Ones frozen entree is safe for you to consume on the gluten-free diet.

Brands of Frozen Entrees to Avoid

Avoid the following brands of TV dinners, as they do not offer gluten-free options at this time:

Banquet (no gluten-free options)
Hungry Man
Marie Callender (no gluten-free options)
Stouffer’s (except for the gluten-free mac and cheese – see above)

Additional Reading

You might enjoy these articles about other gluten-free products:

And learn more about the Nima Sensor in these articles: