Meal delivery could be the answer to your weeknight woes

Making sure the kids get to school on time, full-time work, and having to think about preparing a healthy dinner? There has to be another way!

Meal delivery is becoming the way to source food with more products on the market and the increasing availability to areas outside cities.

FEMAIL tested five delivery and ready-to-eat meal services to help you find the best one for you.

HELLO FRESH

Hello, Fresh is one of the meal delivery services that send ingredients and recipe cards to your door. It doesn’t necessarily save you time in the kitchen but it saves you from having to trek to the supermarket.

However, some recipes do require additional ingredients as they’re either staples in the kitchen like salt and pepper or delicate like eggs.

Meal delivery services like Hello Fresh and Marley Spoon bring fresh pre-portioned meals to your door

Hello Fresh’s lemon pepper seared beef with veggies covered in Dijon mustard was definitely a stand out dish

When the ingredients are hand-packed there is always the risk that one element could be missed out and that is what happened when my leek went missing in my grilled fetta and leek chicken meal.

The taste and the simplicity of the recipes made up for this though. I found the recipes easy to follow and without an unnecessary amount of skill or pots and pans required.

You also need to think wisely about what meals you pick as some may be higher in calories than you think.

Cooking times were based on how you wanted your meat cooked. So for the lemon pepper seared beef it took longer because I wanted it cooked more than medium-rare.

Although missing the leek from this recipe the fetta melted in your mouth and clean veggies are always a plus

Box types vary from veggie, classic and family. You can choose how many meals you want for how many people. The minimum for most is two but the family box is for four.

Prices vary from $64.95 to $139.95. Additional costs can apply depending on where you’re getting the food delivered.
Click here to know more about HelloFresh.

MARLEY SPOON

Marley Spoon is very similar to Hello Fresh, but there were a few key differences.

I found Marley Spoon’s recipe guides more complicated to read than Hello Fresh as it required more kitchen tools than its fresh ingredients counter-part.

All the fresh ingredients are delivered in a box, with meats and sauces packed in a freezer bag and fruit and vegetables were packed in paper bags, according to the recipe. But you have to make sure you get it in the fridge quickly because the ingredients could start to go limp.

This lemon myrtle and macadamia chicken recipe required me to have Dijon mustard at home. Always check recipe cards to make sure you don’t need any extras

Dietitian Gabrielle Maston said these meals are perfect for families as they have ‘time to cook and where weight loss is not the focus’

They come in either two or four people boxes with two, three or four meals in each. Prices range from $55 to $143.20.

Gabrielle Maston, dietitian and exercise physiologist, said: ‘Freshly cooked and prepared food is your best choice over commercially frozen food. When food is cooked and frozen it can lose some of the nutrients from ingredients.’

She thinks Hello Fresh and Marley Spoon are great for families as they have ‘time to cook and where weight loss is not the focus. Meals tend to be slightly higher in energy which is great for active individuals and growing kids.’

YOUFOODZ

YouFoodz is a ready-to-eat meal service. It has a wide range that includes snacks and breakfast such as waffles, wraps with sausages.

Ready-to-eat meals are an even quicker way to save time

Filled with colour and flavour this ready-to-eat meal packed a punch

If you order from the site to have it delivered to your door it is a minimum of $69. However, if you go to the ‘stockist’ tab and put in a postcode it will tell you the supermarkets where you can buy YouFoodz from.

You can also choose meal plans that cost $99.50. Each has a different purpose such as ‘muscle gainer’ or ‘summer faves’.

‘THR1VE and YouFoodz meals are more energy controlled and protein dominant, which is great for those who are trying to lose weight,’ said Ms Maston.

‘They also come in single serves so it takes the guesswork out and time away from food preparation, which is great for singles or couples.’

THR1VE

While you usually sacrifice taste for ease, this is not the case with THR1VE as the meals are packed with flavour.

THR1VE is similar to YouFoodz in that it offers breakfast, drinks and snacks, as well as lunch and dinner options. It is also a ready-to-eat meal.

THR1VE is a ready-to-eat meal designed for weight loss

A pulled lamb roast for one would usually be way too much effort to cook but THR1VE makes it easy

You have to place a minimum order of $69 to get the food delivered, it’s $99.95 for a starter box, a low carb box is $135 and meal plans that can cost upwards of $217.

You can also buy it at some Woolworths Metro stores.

However, they only deliver to your door in some areas in New South Wales, Victoria, ACT and Queensland.

It didn’t require a lot of effort or thought to prepare this meal so it was very convenient.

LEAN CUISINE

These meals are available in every major supermarket. I taste-tested the creamy Atlantic salmon pasta and it was really nice, except the salmon had a really strong fish taste that could put some people off.

‘Frozen meals like Lean Cuisines tend to be more tightly controlled with their energy content as they are commercially formulated to meet 25 per cent of a person’s daily energy allowance,’ said Ms Maston.

Ms Maston said: ‘Frozen meals tend to be cheaper than fresh delivery services, which means it may be more affordable for those with limited finances and poor cooking skills’

‘However, there are limitations on the texture and quality of food provided. For example, frozen meals tend to be a soft overcooked consistency and tend to be carbohydrate dominant with most meals consisting of pasta, rice or potato.’

However, who can argue with the ease of being able to come home, stick something in the microwave and have it within minutes?

They’re the cheapest per meal as well, ranging from about $5.70 to $7.40 each.

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