6 Of The Best Healthy Meal Deliveries

Great intentions diet-wise are well and good, but how many of us have been derailed by the need to grab something quick and easy on the go or at the end of a long day and, therefore, succumbed to the ultra-processed? The answer, so often, is simply having good ingredients to hand without having to think too much on the matter or be required to make too many decisions. One way to enable this ideal situation is to subscribe to a healthy meal delivery service, thus equipping you with delicious meals, ready to make, that are actually good for you. These are the delivery services keeping our good intentions on track.

Mindful Chef

If what puts you off subscribing to a meal delivery service is the commitment, Mindful Chef removes all such worry. Its customers can order a weekly delivery or just drop in once in a while as and when they feel the need. The consistent element is the healthy goodness found inside its boxes: no refined carbs; gluten- and dairy-free ingredients; and all the best proteins – all ready to cook in pre-measured ingredients. There are also ready meals available for the same recipes if you want simply to bung your supper in the oven with zero effort. There are 20 recipes to choose from each week, each packing in flavours from all over the world, from Korean-style beef and kimchi rice bowls to gnocchi with lentil ragout and yogurt. Explore more.

Food Hak

If you’re interested in vegan food, you enjoy the flavours of India and you have a passing interest in food science (that last a bonus but not a requisite), Food Hak is an exciting prospect. Though it was founded in London, its roots reach back to Delhi, where its founder Sakshi is originally from. When, during her first pregnancy, she developed a rare liver disease, Sakshi refused medication and instead switched to a plant-based diet focusing on traditional Ayurvedic dishes from India, such as Kitchari and Rasam. The result? She managed to reverse her illness and discover reserves of energy she’d never known. It gave her the idea and the know-how necessary to found Food Hak in 2021, its mission to ‘lead the food revolution by combining scientific research along with the latest tech and traditional Ayurvedic principles.’ If the likes of kale and spirulina bhaji or harissa chickpea stew float your boat, do explore more here.

The Good Prep

If you’re one of those who likes the idea of a meal delivery service but struggles with the prescriptive nature of what’s on offer, then The Good Prep could be the one for you. Putting the customer completely in control of every element, it enables you to build your own plan thus ensuring nothing arrives at your door that you will not end up eating. You can customise your plan to your wellness needs, as well as adding sides and juices as wanted, choosing from three-, five- or six-day plans. Meals are fresh and never frozen, packaging is 100 per cent recyclable, and you can pause or cancel any time. Perfect, whether ongoing or to order in when you have a particularly busy week and don’t want your diet to spiral off course into processed fast foods. Explore more.

Planty

Are you vegan or vegan-curious? Do you like high end food of Michelin quality (who doesn’t?) Then Planty’s menu, every element of which is delivered in fully recyclable packaging, is a must-try. Run by a team of Michelin-starred chefs, it launched in 2019 with a mission to make eating planet- and microbiome-friendly plants as easy and delicious as can be. We love the mushroom massaman curry and the sweet n’ sour tempeh. Explore more.

Hello Fresh

With more than a billion fresh meals delivered in 2022, Hello Fresh is the most popular meal kit in the world, with 20,000 employees across the UK and the US, and more than eight million customers in 2023. From keto to plant-powered and beyond, it has a recipe box for every diet plan, and its meals arrive, ready to heat and then eat in moments. Never has healthy eating been more effortless – plus it does tangible good too. Hello Fresh not only aims to save its customers money on food, but it also works with partners to repurpose food waste. You can choose from categories including mostly meat; family; quick cook; calorie smart; and pescatarian – and off you go. Explore more.

Green Chef

If you are following a particular eating plan and want to stick with it while also benefitting from the convenience of freshly cooked home delivery, Green Chef is likely to have a solution that works for you. Offering meals that fit with six diet plans – vegan, vegetarian, lower carb, flexitarian, keto and pescatarian – all recipes are nutritionist-approved and use sustainable ingredients. Plus, it offsets 100 per cent of its operational and distribution-related carbon emissions, as well as 100 per cent of in-box plastic waste. Our stomachs are rumbling at the thought of peri peri hallmoumi fries, as well as the chestnut mushroom and lentil pie. Explore more.

By Nancy Alsop
August 2023