Best Prepared Meal Delivery Services

NEWS FEATURE

Best Prepared Meal Delivery Services Of 2022

By Abigail Abesamis Demarest

Signal Contributing Writer

Figuring out what to eat for weeknight dinners can be a drag, especially if you’re already mentally and physically exhausted from work, kids, and all of the other things that pull you in one direction or the other. And yet, the average person can only handle doing so many dishes and so many nights of takeout in a row.

Enter premade delivery services. They send prepared foods to your door and require little to no prep. Simply pop a meal into the microwave, and bam! A complete meal that’s ready in minutes.

But not all premade meal delivery services are created equal. The market is vast and filled with a variety of options to suit different tastes, schedules, and dietary preferences. You can sign up for a service that includes a week’s supply of main meals, or choose one that supplies a handful of dishes to have at the ready. There are chef-created meals for hardcore food obsessives, and protein-packed picks for gym-goers that require zero meal prep.

We’ve done the hard work for you, sussing out the best options for a wide range of eaters. Our pitch for the category? You’ll save money, do less dishes, and maybe even find some extra time for the things that you love: spending time with loved ones, binge-watching Bridgerton, or even sleeping. The choice is yours.

How We Picked

With the sheer number of meal delivery services on the market, we wanted our list to reflect the diversity of offerings. These include meal services that cater to a range of dietary restrictions and preferences (vegan, keto, paleo, etc.) and offer flexibility in the number and frequency of meals you receive. There are meal delivery services that have options for breakfast, lunch, dinner and all of the above, plus companies that allow you to mix premade meals with traditional meal kits for those nights when you have time to actually make a meal.

Our Top Picks

services are curated by chefs, but the ones brainstorming the dishes you’ll receive from CookUnity include some award-winning chefs. They create a weekly-changing menu of fresh options that balance great taste with solid nutrition. Prices begin at $9.55 per meal. Best Variety Daily Harvest

Daily Harvest offers so much more than smoothies. Consider its Harvest Bowls, which can be microwaved or prepared on a stovetop, Harvest Bakes that you pop into the oven (and are big enough to share), flatbreads, soups, chia seed bowls — the list goes on. Pricing begins at $5.99 per meal. Best Overall Factor

Factor brings the flavor and nutrition in each of its fully prepared meals, which you’ll actually want to eat. They use fresh, never frozen, ingredients and combine chef recipes with advice from dietitians. There are keto, low-carb, low-calorie, and even plant-based options to choose from. Prices begin at $5.50 per meal. Best Portable Farmer’s Fridge

Perfect for office lunches and quick breakfasts, Farmer’s Fridge meals are ready-to-eat and require no prep— you don’t even have to heat them up. Another plus is you don’t need a subscription to try their meals. Just order enough to fill up a box and you’re good to go. Prices begin at $5.99 per meal. Best For Active People Fresh n’ Lean

A simple solution to refueling after a grueling workout, Fresh n’ Lean serves up protein-packed meals that are ready to eat—no meal prep required. They bill themselves as the “#1 meal plan for fitness junkies” and offer organic meals that are fresh and nutrient-dense. Prices be-

COURTESY PHOTOS

gin at $10.75 per meal. Best Microwave-Ready Freshly

Freshly’s model is simple and straightforward: Order more meals and save more money. Each single-serving meal is ready after a three-minute blast in the microwave, and there’s a solid variety of options, including gluten-free, dairy-free, plant-based and low-calorie options. Prices begin at $8.99 per meal Best Oven-Ready Home Chef

Not a microwave person? Home Chef offers oven-ready meals that require just a little assembly before popping them into the oven. Options include Tuscan-Style Shrimp and Peppers, Steak au Poivre Baked Penne and Creamy Cheddar Buffalo-Style Chicken Breast. Prices begin at $6.99 per meal. Best Freeze-Dried Kencko

Kencko’s “just add water” approach allows them to pack lots of fruits and vegetables into shelf-stable smoothies and bowls, which come in portable packets. The company supplyies the reusable bowl and fork to make meals like lentil dhal and minestrone soup. Prices begin at $6.90 per meal. Best Vegetarian Mosaic

Whether you’re vegetarian or simply looking to introduce more plantbased meals into your diet, Mosaic is a standout option. To help curb food waste, Mosaic’s meals go in the freezer. Also, for every box sold, Mosaic donates two pounds of nutritious food to New Yorkers in need in partnership with City Harvest. Mosaic also offers bake-and-serve Family Meals that feed four. Prices start at $4.99. Best Paleo Pete’s Paleo

Offering paleo plates without the prep, Pete’s Paleo serves up a weekly-rotating menu that changes with the seasons and is based on what their farmers are growing and harvesting. Sample meals include BBQ Short Ribs with Cabbage Slaw and Chive Mashed Potatoes, and Mushroom Herb Turkey Burgers with Garlic Yukon Potatoes and Sauteed Spinach. Meals begin at $16. Best Dietitian-Approved Sunbasket

Co-founded by a James Beard Award-winning chef, Sunbasket employs a team of chefs and registered dietitians to make tasty meals featuring organic produce. Their “Fresh & Ready” meals are heat-and-eat and ready in under four minutes. They can be mixed in with traditional meal kits if you’re looking for both experiences. Prices begin at $5.99 per meal. Best With Smart Oven Tovala

For meals that cook themselves (wait, what?!), Tovala has you covered. It separates itself from other meal kit services in that it also makes a smart oven that scans your meal and uses heat and steam to prepare it. The oven also works with items you find at the grocery store, like pizza rolls, and has a manual option to steam, bake, broil, toast, and reheat whatever you want. The oven cost $99 and the meals begin at $11.99 per meal. Best Holistic Trifecta

Trifecta’s selling point is that it offers more than just ready-to-eat meals that cater to specialty diets like keto, paleo, and vegan. It also has a team of nutrition experts that offer support and guidance, plus an app that tracks macros. The company’s testimonials page is filled with customers who have lost weight, gotten into shape, and even improved gut health with Trifecta. Prices begin at $99.99 per week. (Delish) 