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What for dinner? This can be a thorny issue at the end of a busy day when your decision-making brain is virtually exhausted. Deciding what to eat (for dinner or any other meal) requires planning, a grocery store and time in the kitchen, which can seem overwhelming. Faced with these constraints, many people are turning to subscription meal kits. A poll conducted in late 2018 by Nielsen found that 12% of consumers had tried one in the previous six months, but the number of people considering trying one of these kitchen aids practices was almost double that number. For those who are looking for convenience, these kits can deliver results without compromising the freshness or quality that other forms of convenience might sacrifice. If you do not know if you will have a meal kit, these indicators can help you make a decision. And, if you are looking for the healthiest options, I have also put forward some good services to help you start looking for your lunch kits.
You might like a meal kit if:
In addition to helping with the challenge of what to prepare for dinner, these kits address many common cooking issues. They offer more variety and introduce you to new flavors and cuisines that could have more flair than the dinners you currently have. They also reduce the time needed to plan, shop and prepare meals, which is often more of a barrier than cooking itself. If you're intimidated by cooking or cooking, a kit can help you, with clear, step-by-step instructions, often with beautiful visuals that help you understand what's involved.
You stop regularly for quick meals or takeaway
If you are planning faster, take-out or delivery meals on your reserve nights, a meal kit may be a healthier choice. For starters, the entrance to a meal kit will probably be better suited to your needs. In a study of the calorie load of popular meals in restaurants, researchers found that some of the most popular kitchens (American, Chinese and Italian) were around 1,500 calories per meal. Of course, the restaurants serve oversized portions, but the researchers found that serving size alone was not to blame. Restaurants also use high quality ingredients (eg butter and olive oil) that are difficult to detect. You can not know what you're eating or manage portion sizes to make it fit.
Sodium is another concern in prepared meals and at the restaurant. In a restaurant meal analysis, the average sodium level was greater than 1,500 mg per meal, which is 65% of the maximum daily target. You are more likely to dodge high levels of sodium – as well as too high sugar levels and saturated fats – when cooking at home, which may include preparing a packed lunch, provided that you examine the ingredients and the nutritional value.
You are trying to eat healthier or you want to try a new style of eating
Have you ever thought about trying an herbal diet, but you do not know where to start? Or maybe you want to go keto or try the pescatarian diet, but you want some reliable recipes to get you started. This is where a meal kit can be useful. You can find a meal kit suitable for many diet plans, which facilitates the modification of your eating habits – or at least, allows you to perform a new diet plan test.
JUMPING A MEAL PLAN …
You are a tough eater (or you have one at home)
I've talked to parents who love meal sets because they expose their kids to flavors and cuisines that may not be in the family's kitchen cabinet or spice cabinet. One parent even stated that she felt like a better mother when she subscribed to a meal kit as this reduced the amount of fast food that she was serving to her children and that she was was proud to serve them home-cooked meals. However, if you have difficult children at home – or if you are meticulous about food – a meal kit may not be suitable for you. Many will lock you up in a number of meals each week and you may not find enough to satisfy your palate, or if you come across meals that you and your family enjoy, they may be replaced by something else. (Menus change frequently.) Being a difficult child or having children who do not exclude the possibility of a meal kit, but if you are not open to a wide range of foods and flavors, this may limit considerably your choices.
You have a lot of dietary restrictions
You can not be difficult, but if you have food allergies or insensitivity, you may be able to manage your own menu. Some meal kits contain sauces or spice blends with undisclosed ingredients. You can contact businesses to find out if they will give you details (I guess they will), but this extra hassle may not be worth it every week. Although some meal kits are for people with certain dietary restrictions (for example, gluten-free or dairy-free), it may be difficult not to take several allergens or foods.
You are a kitchen maniac
Some home chefs like to control the quality of the ingredients they use (say organic cabbage, a special sauce or a less sweet marinade). When you order a kit, you entrust the selection of ingredients to the brand and you may not find one that meets your particular standards. This might not be a decisive factor for you – you can still use some of the ingredients you prefer – but it's worth thinking about.
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
Preparation, cooking and cleaning
Although meal kits can save you time, most do not eliminate them. You may still have to chop an onion and cleaning is still going on. In addition, your current cooking time is quite similar to what you would have spent otherwise and if you select a complex recipe in several steps, you risk losing more than 45 minutes preparing a meal on the table.
Navigation options and ingredients
Expect to spend some time on your packed lunch hunt, and once your service is reduced, you will also spend time sorting through the menu options. For some, this may seem daunting (but probably not as intimidating as the alternative). In addition, it is difficult to navigate the menus of the site without sending e-mail. After that, expect your inbox to be cluttered with offers. If you disclose your email address to multiple meal kit services, be sure to unsubscribe from those for which you do not wish to receive information.
The fine print
Know what you are signing up. The services vary – some allow you to order when you want, others are more based on a subscription template (even if you can skip weeks or cancel at any time). There are also differences in the minimum commands required. This is probably self-evident, but just in case, check the terms of service before ordering.
Food and packaging waste
Some find that a meal kit minimizes wasted food because they contain pre-dosed ingredients and saves you from buying an aromatic herb garden when you do not need it than from a branch. However, if you receive a last-minute invitation to have dinner with friends and do not cook or have leftovers of the past night (assuming you have them), your kit will contribute to food wastage. Be realistic about how much cooking you really want and how many servings you will get from a kit. From there, you can plan accordingly.
Although many people are worried about packaging waste from meal kits, a new study may help. When we look at the overall situation of greenhouse gas emissions, which goes beyond packaging, but also the impact of the supply chain, transportation, etc., a kit may be a more sustainable option than buying all your recipe ingredients at the supermarket. Of course, packaging remains a nightmare, but it turns out that this is offset by some of the most sustainable practices, such as a streamlined supply chain and pre-dosed ingredients that can reduce food waste. If you buy packed lunches, choosing an herbal option will further reduce your impact on the environment.
What to look for in a meal kit
Check out the Nutrition Facts table and ingredients to make sure your kit meets your needs and that it's a healthy option rather than a meal on a meal at home. restaurant. This means that it should include a generous portion of non-starchy vegetables (about half a plate), quality protein (from plants or animals) and healthy fats (mostly from plant sources, such as as nuts, seeds, olives, avocados). , or their butters or oils). Ideally, starchy carbohydrates come from plant sources, such as sweet potatoes and butternut squash, or from whole grains, such as brown rice and quinoa.
If you find that the portion size of your kit is a bit lean in the vegetable department, go ahead and fill in with extras. Low-preparation options include frozen vegetables or pre-washed and pre-prepared vegetables, salad vegetables with shaved Brussels sprouts. Since meals in the meal kit are usually seasoned generously, there should be a lot of flavor for your extra vegetables.
MEAL KIT OPTIONS
Meal kits are a growing and evolving market. So there are new ones (and some that disappear or merge with other brands) quite regularly. Here are some that caught my attention:
Basket of sun
There is a menu for just about everyone here – from pescatarian to the Mediterranean to palaeo and diabetes. In addition, their supply standards are distinctive, including organic products and eggs, wild-caught seafood and meats without antibiotics or hormones.
Freshly
For those looking for the convenience of a kit but who do not even want to cook, this service offers ready-to-eat meals prepared by the chef with an eye on nutrition. Of all the services I have seen, it has made it easy to consult the menu and the full list of ingredients.
gurgle
Unlike other kits, this one is for people who want to cook but do not want to bother with the hassle. Gobble's ingredients are peeled and chopped (again, you'll always have to do the dishes). Gobble also has a clever lunch plan from which you choose a protein, a vegetable and a starchy carbohydrate.
More better
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