The kits, branded Go Cook!, contain pre-measured ingredients for meals that consumers prepare in the home to a recipe included in the pack.
The range is being introduced this month and Asda said the launch was likely to be backed by a press campaign later this year.
Go Cook! comprises about 65 different dishes, including mango and beer chicken, salmon risotto and beef Wellington. The ingredients supplied as part of the meals will all be fresh and contain no artificial colouring or hydrogenated fats.
Although the majority of the meal kits will contain all the ingredients needed to prepare the dish, some are likely to require additional items.
Asda hopes Go Cook! will emulate the success of similar products in the US, which have proved popular with consumers who want to avoid ready-made meals but do not have the time to seek out the ingredients for individual recipes.
In May, Asda marketing director Richard Hodgson said it was his job to make life harder for brands and drive customers to the store's own-brand products (Marketing, 10 May). Hodgson went on to claim that own-brand products were not only better than branded rivals, but also more profitable.
Asda is currently trialling an Asda Essentials store in Nottingham that is about 80% own-brand. The only branded products in the store are those which fill in gaps in the Asda range. The 8000ft2 store is intended to steal market share from rivals such as Lidl and Iceland.
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