You may have seen this line of frozen raw stuffed chicken breasts at the supermarket. I buy them all the time as a quick-fix dinner, especially their Chicken Kiev and Apple & Cream Brie. But I’ve never tried this seafood option because frankly, they scare me a bit. Sure their other varieties are pretty good, but lobster? What kind of lobster? And scallops too? How can they do it without charging an arm and a leg?

As luck would have it my local supermarket had a buy one get one free special on Barber Foods stuffed chicken breasts…but they only had the Scallop & Lobster Stuffing left. Good thing I write a seafood blog, I thought to myself and grabbed two in the name of “research.”

Packaging and Price

Barber stuffed chicken breasts have a consistent packaging that showcases the product. I always buy the smaller package with 2 individually wrapped chicken breasts. Sometimes I make one, but I usually make both of them. The box and the wrappers are both recyclable, which I find a nice touch. Depending upon where you shop, the 2-count box runs between $4-6. They day I bought these, they were two for one.

The Product

Like all of Barber Foods stuffed chicken, it is a frozen, breaded stuffed breast. They remind me somewhat of those awesome krokets I gorge on when I’m in the Netherlands. They are raw so you have to cook them in the oven for a little over half an hour. I have always found them remarkably consistent in quality, and I approve of the modifications they made to the preparation a couple of years ago.

As far as the ingredients, I contacted AdvancePierre Foods, the maker of the Barber brand to ask about where they source their seafood. After a very nice exchange with Consumer Affairs, I learned that they use finely shredded lobster meat sourced domestically “that is very flavorful and perfect for fillings and stuffings.” The scallops are small bay scallops farm-raised and imported from China.

When I cooked two of the Scallop & Lobster stuffed breasts there was no mistaking what I was having for dinner that night. The house was filled with the smell of seafood stuffing, like I was cooking stuffed clams. It was a little on the strong side, which made wonder just how strong tasting the seafood would be.Not a big deal since I planned on putting lemon on them after the first bite.

The Verdict

After two separate dinners I have to say I’m pleasantly surprised. There is no denying that there is real seafood in here, you can really taste the lobster and there are plenty of bay scallops. It really did need the lemon however, as the stuffing is very rich. While maybe not my favorite out of the entire Barber line, I’ll be putting them in my regular rotation. With a squeeze of lemon or accompanied by a salad with a tangy vinaigrette, it can make for an inexpensive surf-n-turf, especially if you are nowhere near the “surf.”