Description: Unsliced loaf bread made daily at 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. at most Ralphs bakeries, and packaged in white bags with an Eiffel Tower logo on the front.

Preparation summary: Eat as purchased or warm in toaster oven.

Highpoints: So soft and doughy the loaves double as comfy pillows when stuffed into high-thread pillow covers.

Lowpoints: Leave it to one of the worst grocery store bakeries on the planet to mix bleached flour and water together, call it French bread, and then present it in Parisian-style bags to make it look artisan. Whiter than Wonder Bread, the loaves are omnipresent throughout the stores. If the French want to regain strength in the American marketplace, they’ll need to demand that their name be taken off this squishy junk.

Average retail price: 99 cents per loaf.

Availability: Ralphs

Description: A one-pound portion of southern-Indian stew in a glass jar containing potatoes, red lentils, okra, spices and lemon juice concentrate.

Preparation summary: Pour desired amount into bowl and heat in microwave or on stovetop. For a heartier meal, serve over cooked rice.

Highpoints: Has a chunky consistency and stimulating potpourri of flavors that most home cooks will never achieve in their kitchens. All the more power if you luck out with a spicy batch (see lowpoints below), which tastes as good as the piquant stews you’ll find at Indian restaurants.

Lowpoints: There seems to be a quality control problem on the chili conveyor belt. After purchasing the exact same product twice, the second batch was blatantly void of hot spice and tasted less interesting.

Average retail price: $2.99

Availability: Trader Joe’s

Description: Ground beef contained in one-pound plastic tube packs by Artesia Quality Products in the city of Compton. Meat-to-fat ratio is 80/20 percent.

Preparation summary: Cook thoroughly when using in recipes or making hamburgers.

Highpoints: Litigious consumers could chip a tooth on bone shards and end up with a free gold filling. Slimy juices are tightly contained in heavy plastic wrapping, which means no sticky fingers when handling.

Lowpoints: This bad-news beef is flecked with too many bits of hard gristle and bone. Burgers and meatballs come out awfully chewy due to coarser grounding. Lack of expiration date on package was cause for concern.

Average retail price: $3.29

Availability: Most major grocery stores

Description: New chicken soup from Healthy Choice containing breast meat, noodles, carrots and celery that can be heated and eaten from its own 14-ounce container “bowl.”

Preparation summary: Remove the metal lid under plastic cover and replace plastic top. Heat for 90 seconds on high.

Highpoints: Famous for its flavorless frozen dinners, Healthy Choice has managed to keep the taste buds engaged after axing out those evil levels of salt. The single serving contains only 480 milligrams of sodium, about half the amount compared to canned soups by Campbell’s and Progresso. The broth is easy on the palate (if you’re not a salt addict), and the chicken is fork-tender and lean.

Lowpoints: More chicken chunks, please. And as with all noodles embalmed in canned soups, these are baby-food soft.

Average retail price: $3.19

Availability: Most major grocery stores