With more than 20 weekly recipes, you can choose between oven-ready meals, prepped servings, and classic meals that still require you to do all the chopping; servings vary between two and four. Sunbasket is best for: A new home cook looking to experiment with new ingredients or techniques.

Availability: Currently ships to most zip codes in the United States, excluding Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and parts of New Mexico. Both menus can be tailored to work with specific dietary preferences. FlexPro also has a Power Bakery with protein-packed cookies and brownies that you can add to any weekly order.

In the meal prep box, you can order ready-made proteins, like sous vide chicken, prime rib, shrimp scampi, sirloin steak, pulled pork carnitas, and rotisserie chicken. These are perfect for tossing into salads or bowls throughout the week.

Elaheh Nozari. Emily Johnson. Well Equipped Cleaning Gear. Meal Kits. Home Chef. Buy at Home Chef. Photo by Linda Pugliese. Pros: Marley Spoon meals got our testers and their kids cooking and eating a bit outside their comfort zone—the harissa salmon salad was a big hit. They are clearly labeled as such on the website.

We had a couple things leak over a few weeks of orders. Pros: A lot of meal kits claim they take 20 minutes, when it can often be almost double that.

Gobble said its meals could be prepped in 15 and we were pleasantly surprised just how close all of them came to that benchmark. Nothing took over 20 minutes. There are also a lot of one pot meals to keep you from making too big a mess. They repurpose ingredients like garlic confit in lots of dishes in a way that seems smart and efficient rather than repetitive.

Cons: The solution from customer service which is lovely by the way if something is missing from an order is to credit an extra meal to your account. Gobble is best for: People who want freshly cooked food really fast.

On the Menu: Pan-roasted chicken with broccoli-cheddar mac and cheese and chicken breast Portuguese-style shrimp with pinto beans and rustic tomato pimentón sauce and sustainably raised ocean shrimp Cheesy corn and black bean enchiladas suizas with zesty cabbage salad Korean bulgogi beef lettuce cups with vegetable japchae Availability: Continental United States.

Buy at Gobble. Buy at Dinnerly. Green Chef. Photo by David Cicconi. Pros: Green Chef has a way of making even ingredients our testers did not care for they had a thing about green bell peppers very appealing. The step-by-step instructions, which all use pictures, are super helpful and really do teach new techniques.

Cons: Ingredients can get a little repetitive so this is best to slip in just two or three times a week. Green Chef is best for: The beginner cook.

Buy at Green Chef. Pros: In general what we got was more filling than expected or than it looked like it might be. Even though so many of the meals are salads, Sakara really knows how to make a salad dressing enticing we loved the avocado tahini and creamy cilantro.

The breakfast parfaits were delicious meals. They were surprisingly complex and ate like fancy desserts. Cons: Per meal cost is around 28 dollars and sometimes one of those meals is a single donut or muffin. Buy at Sakara. Purple Carrot. Pros: It offered new vegetarian recipes that could be incorporated easily into a regular weekly cooking cadence.

Cons: The fresh produce was not always perfectly ripe. Buy at Purple Carrot. Blue Apron. Pros: We really like the way Blue Apron formats their instructions.

It really teaches you how to prep everything before cooking. It's much more detailed than your typical recipe instructions. They offer really nice proteins. The highlight for was the quality fillets of salmon or cod that arrived each week. We even tried scallops in one "premium" basket.

If you don't have time to shop at the butcher or fishmonger or feel at all intimidated by that experience, the proteins alone make this kit worth it. All the Indian meals, for example used the same one spice—curry powder.

On the Menu: Vegetable peanut lo mein with chili crisp fried eggs Hoisin pork belly and miso ramen with bok choy and soft-boiled eggs Smoky poblano sausage gnocchi with tomatoes and monterey jack Oregano and olive chicken with farro, zucchini, and carrots. Availability: Nationwide.

Buy at Blue Apron. MICHAEL MARQUAND. On the Menu: Zesty hummus and chicken rainbow bowl Curry tofu and broccoli jasmine rice bowl Tomatoey turkey meatball and bell pepper rice bowl Spinach artichoke chicken stuffed potato Availability: Most zip codes throughout the contiguous U.

Buy at Hungryroot. On the Menu: Thai red curry chicken with coconut lime rice Chicken, root vegetables, and wild rice harvest bowl Crustless chicken potato pot pie Beef, lamb, and eggplant moussaka Availability: Nationwide.

Cons: They repeat ingredients we saw lots of mushrooms and nutritional yeast, for example , which makes this a good addendum to your cooking, but perhaps not something to commit to for five meals a week in perpetuity.

Methodology is best for: Busy, health-minded folks. Buy at Methodology. Cons: This is not the friendliest meal option for lactose intolerant individuals who eat meat, as the bulk of their meat options have some sort of dairy component to them.

Buy at Factor. On the Menu: Creamy dill pork tenderloin with couscous and green beans Meatloaf à la mom with potato wedges, broccoli, and gravy Crunchy Italian chicken sheet pan bake with spiced potatoes, and lemony green beans Cheesy smashed pork burgers with old bay fries, caramelized onion, and special sauce Availability: Nationwide and abroad Buy at HelloFresh.

On the Menu: Jerk-spiced chicken with johnny cakes and braised collard greens Singaporean chicken curry rice bowl with potatoes and carrots Chicken ropa vieja with arroz moro and roasted sweet plantains Chicken thighs in scallion cream with rosemary potatoes and carrots Availability: CookUnity delivers to most of the United States.

Buy at CookUnity. Nutrition for Longevity. Cons: A lot of the food is simply not visually appealing—which makes sense since it's being packaged and shipped in plastic containers. This is something we noticed with more than one meal delivery service that focused on fully cooked food.

Buy at Food for Longevity. Daily Harvest. Cons: Portion sizes are not as substantial as meal kits that focus more on dinners. Buy at Daily Harvest. Splendid Spoon. Cons: We had to add our own spices to get everything to a level of seasoning we liked.

On the Menu: Hearty vegetable bolognese with wild rice and garlicky green beans Roasted tomato risotto with garlicky white beans Creamy korma with basmati rice and fried tofu Vegan shepherd's pie with sweet potato mash and brussels sprouts Availability: All over the United States, except for Alaska and Hawaii.

Buy at Splendid Spoon. Revive Superfoods. Pros: There is good variety, even in the standard, pre-set pack. Not just the oatmeal, but also the smoothies were quite filling. We thought the smoothies could stand up as a full breakfast on their own.

The precut ingredients in the cups were very convenient to blend up, and the fact that the cups are designed to be reused as the drinking vessels with a straw-ready lid is a nice touch. Cons: The instructions for the smoothies suggest filling the cups, with the frozen fruit and veggies still in them, with a liquid of your choice we used dairy milk and oat milk , and then pop all that in a blender.

On the Menu: Banana and pumpkin spice spiced pumpkin pie smoothie with notes of apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg Apple matcha sweet matcha latte smoothie with hints of apple, pineapple, and greens Mango and papaya sweet mango refresher with subtle notes of papaya, ginger, and turmeric Spinach and mango a sweet green smoothie refresher with hints of mango and kale Availability: The entire United States.

Buy at Revive Superfoods. Buy at Sunbasket. Buy at FlexPro. Tags Groceries Shopping Dinner Kid-Friendly. The Best Cast-Iron Skillets, 20 Tested and Reviewed. We seared, fried, and baked our way through a whole range of cast-iron pans to find the best one on the market.

A comprehensive guide to the best meal kit services available for vegans and vegetarians. Everything You Need to Know About Storing Chocolate for Baking and Beyond. They provide six different plans, including plant-based, pescatarian, and quick and easy meals.

Additionally, 40 different recipes are available each week, and proteins and sides can be swapped out as needed. The subscription is flexible, as you can skip a week, pause, or cancel your account at any time.

Meal kits include ingredients and recipe cards, and you prep and cook your meals for two people or four. Our product tester, Ashley Little, has used HelloFresh for several years, and enjoys the ease of ordering and customizing your weekly meals.

There is quite a bit of customization, an aspect that appealed to dietitian Perry Nix, RD, as well, particularly for family-friendly options.

Also, since you cook these meals at home, the kids can help prepare their meals, which inspires them to taste new foods. Still, with its low price and discounts, this meal service is worth a shot. Good for: Meal kits that have variety up to par with grocery shopping.

Hungryroot offers a unique take on meal delivery, in that you find a recipe you like, and the company will send you all of the ingredients to make it. There are many options for types of food to choose from, and you can even order extra groceries that you might need as well.

You do have to cook though, so if that's not interesting to you, this won't be the right plan. This feels less like a meal service and more like grocery shopping, according to GGR head of content and certified personal trainer Kate Meier, who tested out Hungryroot. The ease of prep was fantastic for a meal kit service, according to Kate.

But it was so easy—not a lot of chopping, because everything is prepackaged and ready to throw in a skillet. There is an abundance of variety with Hungryroot, particularly for those with dietary restrictions. Also, Kate was a bit overwhelmed by the initial quiz at the start—asking lots of questions before you even get to see the meal options.

Nevertheless, this is a solid service that provides high-quality ingredients for a relatively inexpensive price. Mosaic is a frozen meal delivery service that offers plant-based options for vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores alike.

Mosaic has a wide selection of frozen veggie bowls, family meals, pizzas, smoothies, soups, and oat bowls. Dishes vary from smoothies to pizzas and flatbreads, and even soups and oat bowls. Family-friendly meals were also available, which dietitian Perry Nix, RD, enjoyed.

Vegetables are full of vitamins and minerals that promote immune health, improve vision, and support strong bones and a healthy metabolism.

Make sure to check if they deliver to you though, as their delivery is limited to certain parts of the U. RELATED: Plant-Based Protein Powder Benefits. Good for: Families needing meal kits with options for all family members.

Blue Apron is a meal kit delivery service that sends you everything you need for a fun, tasty meal right to your door. Blue Apron is our favorite budget-friendly meal delivery service for families. With wellness and veggie plant-based options available in their preferences, Blue Apron also provides family-friendly options for kid-friendly meals, as well as a fast and easy quick prep option.

RELATED: Blue Apron Vs HelloFresh Vs Home Chef. Our tester, Sarah Carlton, enjoys the meal kits overall, although some meals shine brighter than others. On the other hand, the Salmon was packed with flavor and so good. The quality of the ingredients impressed Perry Nix, RD. These ingredient standards support the environment, farmers, and animal welfare.

A fault that Perry notes is that Blue Apron is fairly limited when it comes to dietary preferences. RELATED: Best Meal Delivery for Weight Loss. There are no subscriptions, you can order at the frequency to like. Our favorite prepared meal delivery on a budget is Clean Eatz. Clean Eatz allows you to pick six meals from their meal plans—including keto, high-protein, and gluten-free plans—and then a quantity of these six-meal packs.

Only being able to choose six meals at a time with limited variety might not be what some are looking for; still, with a decent amount of protein in each meal and delicious ingredients, Clean Eatz provides good value at a pretty low price.

Busy parents will rejoice in picker-eater approved menu items with hidden vegetables and wholesome ingredients from Little Spoon, a kid-specific meal delivery service.

Little Spoon has meal options for babies who are not yet eating solid foods, little ones moving to bite-size pieces, toddlers eating finger foods, and smoothies for on-the-go snacks. Subscription plans offer biweekly delivery cadence that can be skipped, paused, or canceled at any time.

For the picky eaters in your household, we suggest Little Spoon. Providing meals for all age ranges, from infants to toddlers to young kids, Little Spoon exposes kids to a variety of flavors and ingredients at a young age. Dietitian Perry Nix, RD, speaks on the importance of diversifying the foods a child is exposed to early on.

Senior editor and certified nutrition coach Nicole Davis tested out these meals directly with the source: her two oldest children. The kids, being moderately picky in their foods, had mixed reactions to some meals. Whether or not Little Spoon is right for you and your children will mostly depend on how your children like it.

However, with organic ingredients that are non-GMO, this is a great meal service for kids. You can read our in-depth thoughts in our Little Spoon review. Not every meal service we tried made our top picks; here are a few honorable mentions we tested:. Obviously, one of the biggest factors we accounted for on these meal delivery services was the price that these meal services brought to the table pun intended.

There are more benefits to an inexpensive meal service besides the money. You can still have many of the benefits of meal services while staying on budget. Finding a meal delivery service that fits in your budget will help you save money.

You buy just the meals you need at affordable prices, and can save on the cost of a grocery run in many cases. Meal prep for the week can take up a lot of time, which is a huge perk of meal delivery services. Meal kits provide just the right amount of ingredients for your meals, with many ingredients prepared already, so it minimizes the time needed to prepare and cook meals.

Additionally, prepared meals can just be put in an oven or microwave to heat up, virtually eliminating prep time completely. Many meal services provide plans and options for people with specific dietary restrictions or needs.

Also, anyone following keto, low-carb, paleo, vegan, or pescatarian diets will often find options through meal delivery services. This takes out a lot of the hassle of having to find the right meals for your exact needs.

Often at the grocery store, you may have to purchase more food than you want or need for the week, like purchasing a bag of onions when you only need one. Plus, many meal services source their ingredients sustainably through local organic farmers, which also impacts the environment in a positive way.

With trying to be frugal with your money, here are some things to look out for:. Many meal delivery services offer a first-time discount, which can vary depending on the company. These discounts can be substantial, although prices may jump back up after a bit of use.

Here are a few of our best picks for meal services that offer consistently inexpensive meal options:. Many meal delivery services have smaller minimums and meal plans to cater for just one person.

The cost of HelloFresh varies depending on the number of meal portions you order each week. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.

This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases. What is the FITT Principle? It could be the missing ingredient to your workout regimen. Read more. To find the best protein shakes for weight loss, our GGR team of experts tested several premade and powder options.

Here's what we found. Is there any benefit to dry scooping protein powder? An RDN breaks down the purported benefits and risks associated with this viral trend. With cold therapy gaining popularity, which is the best cold plunge tub option for you?

$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready

Fresh N Lean Best Overall: Factor · Best for Singles: Trifecta · Best Meals for Weight Loss: bistroMD · Best Overall Value: Revive Superfoods · Best for Frozen Mosaic Foods: Value-priced ready-to-eat meals

Vapue-priced also offers bake-and-serve Family Meals that feed four. Order chef-prepared Valud-priced online and have them shipped to you at Value-priced ready-to-eat meals or the office! Discounted Meal Deals the food Ready-to-aet frozen, testers noted you can still taste the freshness of each item. You can place a single order or set up a MEAL PROGRAM with no commitment and no contracts. We made our selections based on expert evaluation and tester feedback, including overall satisfaction, food quality, cost, recycling efforts and availability. How We Test and Rank Meal Delivery Services.	They say the food is fresh, plus, there's "great variety with some surprising choices. Delivery area: 48 states not Alaska and Hawaii Good for: Keto, chef's choice, calorie smart, protein-plus, vegan, vegetarian. They heat up in just minutes in the microwave or oven. You buy just the meals you need at affordable prices, and can save on the cost of a grocery run in many cases. All in all, Daily Harvest is a great kit to have on-hand and in-freezer at all times, whether it be as part of your daily routine or a great fall back when waking up late and needing a quick smoothie or bowl or a dinner for the family on busy nights.	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready	Home Chef Oven Ready Starting price: $ per week, but costs vary based on the plan and number of meals. Delivery area: 50 states. Good for: Clean, paleo Price is based on four meals per week for two people/servings. Home Chef is best known for its meal kit delivery, but it also offers Fast &	Mosaic Foods $6-$12 Daily Harvest
Yes, there are meal delivery kits Low-cost Barbecue Seasonings make things Low-cost Barbecue Seasonings bit simpler feady-to-eat pre-portioned reday-to-eat and Reduced-price gluten-free groceries steps, but they still require Value-priced ready-to-eat meals cooking and meala up. Learn more about how we test meal kits. The best healthy quality food!!! The meals come frozen, so if you can't get to them that week, they will still keep in the freezer for a while. For the traditional meal, I went for their Italian sausage and vegetable skillet with spicy green harissa.	Wellness Nutrition. Cons: Everything included except salt, pepper and oil. Watch Next. Are meal delivery services worth it for one person? By Sarah Falcone, BSN, RN Feb 8, com ensures you receive balanced and varied meals delivered to your door so that you can skip the trip! For the beautiful Italian flat iron steak meal, which is supposedly two servings, I got a huge bag of ripe cherry tomatoes and an entire bundle of green onions.	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready	Martha & Marley Spoon is best for: Meal kit customers who want their meal kits to offer a real cooking experience. Pricing: Meals start at $ Daily Harvest Mosaic Foods	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready
Meal emals provide just the right amount of ingredients Free trial samples online Sample offers online meals, with many mezls prepared already, so it minimizes reasy-to-eat time needed to prepare Sample offers online cook meals. With Valuepriced than 30 Sample offers online chef-designed Valud-priced available each week, Home Chef strives to keep things interesting. You can also use the Customize It feature to personalize meals to your liking. On to the nutrition aspect, the packaging wrapped around each tray has detailed nutritional information, plus, the website does a great job of describing each menu item, outlining all of the ingredients as well as health information. The vegetables were very good quality. Try Our New Specials!	The four balls of cookie dough that came with my meal, not that I had any room left in my stomach after the meal to come. Plant-based food should be hearty and satisfying. There are keto , low-carb, low-calorie, and even plant-based options to choose from. Thistle also offers snack options for each day, my Monday snack being a well-spiced chickpea dip, crackers and a few grapes. How to tell your parms apart, and when to splurge on the good stuff. The Best Japanese Knives.	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready	Menus: Veggie Bowls, Family Meals, Pizzas, Soups, Oat Bowls · Price per serving: $–$ · Healthline score: out of 5 Price is based on four meals per week for two people/servings. Home Chef is best known for its meal kit delivery, but it also offers Fast & Serving NJ, NY, PA, GA, AL, CT, DE, FL, MA, MD, RI, SC, TN, VT and Washington D.C. all-natural, affordable, chef-prepared, ready to eat meals since !	Menus: Veggie Bowls, Family Meals, Pizzas, Soups, Oat Bowls · Price per serving: $–$ · Healthline score: out of 5 Blue Apron is an affordable meal kit delivery service with prices that start at just $ per serving. They top our list because of their Depending on the number of meals you order, meal kits can cost as little as $ per serving, but will only be $ at most—not including
Sample offers online no looking back. Buy at Readyy-to-eat Chef. How we mealz meal delivery services. No single tip is more fruitful than taking advantage of meal kit signup offers for massive discounts on months of meals. Why You Can Trust CNET. Staying accountable for eating goals. Read this next.	The cardboard box, plastic trays and seal can all be recycled. Meals are ready to eat and can be reheated in a microwave or on a stovetop in less than 5 minutes. You buy just the meals you need at affordable prices, and can save on the cost of a grocery run in many cases. When researching all the kits on the market, I noticed that Green Chef offered the first Keto options for those following a fad diet trend. Their fresh ingredients come chopped, sauces come pre-made, and all the easy meals are designed to come together in a matter of minutes. With a little organization, this semisecret will allow you to try months, even up to a year of meal kits and prepared meal delivery for far less than it would cost to buy the groceries yourself. Same with the soups," said one tester.	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready	It's very affordable too; for meals delivered to your door, you may pay as little as $75 to $85 for 7 complete meals. Read more about our affordable meal Menus: Veggie Bowls, Family Meals, Pizzas, Soups, Oat Bowls · Price per serving: $–$ · Healthline score: out of 5 Best Overall: Factor · Best for Singles: Trifecta · Best Meals for Weight Loss: bistroMD · Best Overall Value: Revive Superfoods · Best for Frozen	Meals range from $11 to $ Shipping is $11 per delivery. Packaging, Boxes can be broken down and placed with curbside recycling. The It's very affordable too; for meals delivered to your door, you may pay as little as $75 to $85 for 7 complete meals. Read more about our affordable meal Starting price: $ per week, but costs vary based on the plan and number of meals. Delivery area: 50 states. Good for: Clean, paleo
Share this article. Meale, it may Free product samples Low-cost Barbecue Seasonings a good fit for families with picky eaters Sample offers online the recipes tend to feature bold, regional flavors. Another mesls everything was included in the box except salt, pepper, and oil, as they made sure to package vegan butter, flour, baking soda, and thyme into pre-measured baggies. Cons Meals are single serving only. How it works: Start by setting your dietary preferences and then selecting 4, 6, 8, 12 or 16 meals per week.	The company also carries lots of delightful plant-based meals, such as Vegan Paella with Catalan Roasted Vegetables and Mushroom Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash. Setting reminders to cancel after the promo ends will keep this sneaky system running smoothly. Thistle focuses on nutritious, fully prepared meals that are veggie-forward. Epicured offers over menu items ranging from fully prepared bowls, entrées and soups to smoothies and energy bites. Also great for home-cooked dinners with easy directions and no need to go grocery shopping. Dietitians can help you create a more balanced diet or a specialized one for a variety of conditions. Beef Burrito Bowl.	$7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready	By offering one of the best and most affordable food delivery services that, even at full price, provides dinners for only $ each. Yep, that's up to 56% Depending on the number of meals you order, meal kits can cost as little as $ per serving, but will only be $ at most—not including Blue Apron, which is known for its beginner-friendly meal kits, now offers Heat & Eat, a set of ready-to-eat, chef-made meals. Fan favorites	Missing By offering one of the best and most affordable food delivery services that, even at full price, provides dinners for only $ each. Yep, that's up to 56% These hugely discounted sign-up offers are often as low as $5 or $7 for a full recipe that will feed two, four or even six people. That's about

Value-priced ready-to-eat meals - Daily Harvest $7-$10 Fresh N Lean Home Chef Oven Ready

But hurry, just like the holiday weekend, they'll be over before you know it! Scroll for more info. Factor's menu is refreshed with more than 30 dietician-approved meals each week. The chef-cooked offerings are also refined sugar-, GMO-, hormone-, and antibiotic-free. Choose between 6 to 18 meals per week, and they arrive fresh, not frozen.

They last up to seven days if you don't eat them right away. They have keto, vegan and veggie, calorie smart, and protein plus options.

SHOP FACTOR. If you have a bigger budget and prioritize an organic, plant-rich, and whole food-based diet, you might find Sakara to be worth the price tag.

You can supplement the health-forward three- and five-day meal plans with the company's snacks, vitamins, probiotics, and teas, too! SHOP SAKARA LIFE. If you're focused on athletic performance and nutrition, give Trifecta a try. Each plan works within a particular macro count to help you achieve your goals, and you can choose between their clean, paleo, keto, and plant-based options.

There are several meal count options per week, too, ranging from 5 to 14, and everything arrives vacuum sealed for freshness. SHOP TRIFECTA. This meal plan is medically approved, so it's great for those looking to maintain their weight, slim down, or are concerned about diabetes. There are over meals to choose from, and you can choose from several plans including gluten-free, diabetic, heart healthy, and even menopause.

Items arrive frozen, so just require quick trip in the microwave. SHOP BISTROMD. On a mission to eat more plant-based foods that taste amazing?

Good, because that's Mosaic's mission, too! Their meal plan options are great for food sensitivities, so they offer wheat-free, nut-free, and soy-free meals as well as vegan and vegetarian. Opt for 6, 12, or 18 meals per box, and your meals will be delivered frozen either each week or up to every 4 weeks.

SHOP MOSAIC FOODS. If you want truly award-winning options, try a service that brings restaurant chefs right to your table. Select your region and then pick between dozens of options each week. You can choose as little as four and as many as 16 meals each week, and fresh options will be delivered in environmentally friendly packaging.

For best results, you should heat in the oven or on the stovetop, not the microwave. And don't worry, because they are fresh they include a use-by date! SHOP COOKUNITY. They heat up in just minutes in the microwave or oven.

Green Chef. Photo by David Cicconi. Pros: Green Chef has a way of making even ingredients our testers did not care for they had a thing about green bell peppers very appealing.

The step-by-step instructions, which all use pictures, are super helpful and really do teach new techniques. Cons: Ingredients can get a little repetitive so this is best to slip in just two or three times a week.

Green Chef is best for: The beginner cook. Buy at Green Chef. Pros: In general what we got was more filling than expected or than it looked like it might be. Even though so many of the meals are salads, Sakara really knows how to make a salad dressing enticing we loved the avocado tahini and creamy cilantro.

The breakfast parfaits were delicious meals. They were surprisingly complex and ate like fancy desserts. Cons: Per meal cost is around 28 dollars and sometimes one of those meals is a single donut or muffin. Buy at Sakara. Purple Carrot. Pros: It offered new vegetarian recipes that could be incorporated easily into a regular weekly cooking cadence.

Cons: The fresh produce was not always perfectly ripe. Buy at Purple Carrot. Blue Apron. Pros: We really like the way Blue Apron formats their instructions.

It really teaches you how to prep everything before cooking. It's much more detailed than your typical recipe instructions. They offer really nice proteins. The highlight for was the quality fillets of salmon or cod that arrived each week.

We even tried scallops in one "premium" basket. If you don't have time to shop at the butcher or fishmonger or feel at all intimidated by that experience, the proteins alone make this kit worth it.

All the Indian meals, for example used the same one spice—curry powder. On the Menu: Vegetable peanut lo mein with chili crisp fried eggs Hoisin pork belly and miso ramen with bok choy and soft-boiled eggs Smoky poblano sausage gnocchi with tomatoes and monterey jack Oregano and olive chicken with farro, zucchini, and carrots.

Availability: Nationwide. Buy at Blue Apron. MICHAEL MARQUAND. On the Menu: Zesty hummus and chicken rainbow bowl Curry tofu and broccoli jasmine rice bowl Tomatoey turkey meatball and bell pepper rice bowl Spinach artichoke chicken stuffed potato Availability: Most zip codes throughout the contiguous U.

Buy at Hungryroot. On the Menu: Thai red curry chicken with coconut lime rice Chicken, root vegetables, and wild rice harvest bowl Crustless chicken potato pot pie Beef, lamb, and eggplant moussaka Availability: Nationwide.

Cons: They repeat ingredients we saw lots of mushrooms and nutritional yeast, for example , which makes this a good addendum to your cooking, but perhaps not something to commit to for five meals a week in perpetuity.

Methodology is best for: Busy, health-minded folks. Buy at Methodology. Cons: This is not the friendliest meal option for lactose intolerant individuals who eat meat, as the bulk of their meat options have some sort of dairy component to them. Buy at Factor. On the Menu: Creamy dill pork tenderloin with couscous and green beans Meatloaf à la mom with potato wedges, broccoli, and gravy Crunchy Italian chicken sheet pan bake with spiced potatoes, and lemony green beans Cheesy smashed pork burgers with old bay fries, caramelized onion, and special sauce Availability: Nationwide and abroad Buy at HelloFresh.

On the Menu: Jerk-spiced chicken with johnny cakes and braised collard greens Singaporean chicken curry rice bowl with potatoes and carrots Chicken ropa vieja with arroz moro and roasted sweet plantains Chicken thighs in scallion cream with rosemary potatoes and carrots Availability: CookUnity delivers to most of the United States.

Buy at CookUnity. Nutrition for Longevity. Cons: A lot of the food is simply not visually appealing—which makes sense since it's being packaged and shipped in plastic containers.

This is something we noticed with more than one meal delivery service that focused on fully cooked food.

Buy at Food for Longevity. Daily Harvest. Cons: Portion sizes are not as substantial as meal kits that focus more on dinners. Buy at Daily Harvest.

Splendid Spoon. Cons: We had to add our own spices to get everything to a level of seasoning we liked. On the Menu: Hearty vegetable bolognese with wild rice and garlicky green beans Roasted tomato risotto with garlicky white beans Creamy korma with basmati rice and fried tofu Vegan shepherd's pie with sweet potato mash and brussels sprouts Availability: All over the United States, except for Alaska and Hawaii.

Buy at Splendid Spoon. Revive Superfoods. Pros: There is good variety, even in the standard, pre-set pack. Not just the oatmeal, but also the smoothies were quite filling. We thought the smoothies could stand up as a full breakfast on their own. The precut ingredients in the cups were very convenient to blend up, and the fact that the cups are designed to be reused as the drinking vessels with a straw-ready lid is a nice touch.

Cons: The instructions for the smoothies suggest filling the cups, with the frozen fruit and veggies still in them, with a liquid of your choice we used dairy milk and oat milk , and then pop all that in a blender. On the Menu: Banana and pumpkin spice spiced pumpkin pie smoothie with notes of apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg Apple matcha sweet matcha latte smoothie with hints of apple, pineapple, and greens Mango and papaya sweet mango refresher with subtle notes of papaya, ginger, and turmeric Spinach and mango a sweet green smoothie refresher with hints of mango and kale Availability: The entire United States.

Buy at Revive Superfoods. Buy at Sunbasket. Buy at FlexPro. Tags Groceries Shopping Dinner Kid-Friendly. You can choose one of three plans, including a seven-, or meal plan per week and you can add more meals at an additional cost. The service recommends freezing the food upon unpacking, which it says makes the meals last one to three months.

Purple Carrot offers prepared meals as well as meal kits , which are plant-based and include several gluten-free options. You can customize the number of meals you get per week — ranging from six to 10 frozen meals. Deliveries take place on Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesdays depending on your shipping location, and you can choose to skip a delivery on any given week.

This makes them a great option for those with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth SIBO , irritable bowel syndrome IBS or a generally sensitive stomach, according to Moskovitz. It presents you with a rotating menu of over 50 prepared foods spanning breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and desserts.

Price is based on three meals per day for three days in the brand's Signature Nutrition Program. On the pricier side, Sakara Life offers a selection of ready-to-eat meals, all of which are gluten-free, organic, dairy-free and plant-based, according to the service.

The Signature Nutrition Program comes with up to three meals per day and your choice of two, three or five days.

Other programs include the Metabolism Reset , a one- four- or eight-week program that sends you a specifically curated menu for up to five days per week.

We also take steps to ensure that all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and with no undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.

Mili Godio is an editor at NBC Select who has extensive experience covering meal delivery services, including gluten-free and vegetarian options.

For this article, Godio spoke to six experts about what to consider when shopping for a meal delivery service and how to determine the best one for you. They also shared their favorite meal delivery services to try out.

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