Swanson TV dinners were the first commercially successful frozen meal.
More than 10 million TV dinners were sold during the first year of Swanson's national distribution. For $.98 per dinner, customers were able to choose among Salisbury steak, meatloaf, fried chicken, or turkey, served with potatoes and bright green peas; special desserts were added later. The food groups in a TV dinner were displayed neatly in a divided metal tray and heated up in a conventional oven.