Vegan Meal Delivery Services:
— Purple Carrot — View Latest Deals
— Green Chef — View Latest Deals
— Veestro
— Sunbasket — View Latest Deals
— Hungry Root — View Latest Deals
— Fresh n’ Lean
There are many different ways to eat healthily. For instance, some people may choose to adhere to a vegan diet for health, ethical or environmental reasons.
Beyond a vegetarian or plant-based diet that removes meat or emphasizes vegetables, “a vegan diet excludes meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, eggs, gelatin and other foods of animal origin, except human breast milk,” says Cathy Leman, a registered dietitian nutritionist and founder of Dam. Mad. About Breast Cancer, a nutritional consulting firm aimed at helping breast cancer patients and survivors.
[READ: Types of Vegetarian Diets.]
What Is Vegan?
Vegans, as well as some vegetarians, also avoid honey, which relies on bees for production.
Removing animal-based foods from the diet might be a healthier alternative for both humans and the planet. Research has suggested that moving to a plant-based diet can pay dividends for certain chronic health conditions, including heart disease and diabetes. And because farming and raising animals for food leaves a significant environmental footprint, removing these foods is also healthier for the planet.
“When planned appropriately, a vegan diet is healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits for the prevention and treatment of certain diseases,” Leman says.
But she cautions that the term “planned appropriately” is important here, because it’s quite possible for a vegan diet to veer into the unhealthy realm.
“Low-quality vegan diets high in processed foods and refined carbohydrates and devoid of fruits, vegetables and plant-based protein lack nutrients, vitamins and minerals,” she explains.
When compared to the standard American diet (SAD), also called the Western-style diet, the vegan diet can be a better option.
“(The SAD) is characterized by highly processed and refined foods, red meat and high levels of added sugar, salt and fat,” she says. “Research has shown that this eating pattern contributes to metabolic disorders and the development of obesity-related diseases, including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.”
Removing meat and dairy may improve the quality of the diet, as long as it’s replaced with healthy alternatives, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains and adequate plant-based protein sources.
Ethan Dixon, a registered dietitian based in Houston, says that a well-planned vegan diet is a healthy alternative to the SAD. There are a number of ways to approach going vegan, but the key is to include “lots of different vegetables and protein sources, so you can get all of the recommended nutrients and protein that you need,” he says.
[See: 12 Health Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet.]
Not All Vegan Diets Are Healthy
However, just because someone follows a vegan diet, it doesn’t necessarily mean their eating pattern is a healthy one by default. It can be easy to miss vital nutrients if proper care isn’t taken to incorporate whole foods, such as fruits and vegetables.
“Some (vegans) are just sugar-tarians,” says Daryl Gioffre, celebrity nutritionist and author of “Get Off Your Acid.” By “sugar-tarians,” he means that some people have removed animal products from their diet only to have them simply replaced with refined carbohydrates, which are often nutritionally deficient. Replacing a salmon fillet with a plain bagel certainly won’t boost your intake of high-quality nutrients.
Consuming an adequate amount of protein is also a potential concern with veganism.
“The biggest misconception is that you can’t get enough protein from a vegan diet,” Gioffre says.
Removing animal proteins can quickly reduce the overall amount of protein in the diet, but plants can still deliver adequate levels, he explains. Even athletes can consume enough plant-based protein to function at optimal — even elite — levels. It just takes a little planning to cover all your bases and to make sure you’re able to supplement for certain nutrients that are more plentiful in animal-based foods.
“Vegan diets also require a degree of nutritional considerations, for example, paying attention to getting an adequate intake of or supplementing for omega-3 fatty acids, iron, calcium and vitamin B-12,” Leman says.
Vegans, who avoid dairy products and seafood, may also be at higher risk of developing vitamin D deficiencies.
Because there can be some intricacies to making sure you’re eating a nutritionally balanced vegan diet, Leman recommends working with a qualified registered dietitian to identify a balanced approach.
“That can mean the difference between simply avoiding animal foods or eating a robust, high-quality plant-based diet,” she says.
While the vegan diet can be a good option for managing or potentially reducing the risk of certain chronic diseases and improving overall health and energy, there are certain people who should avoid it. For example, people who have a history of disordered eating, are currently in recovery or treatment for an eating disorder or “anyone unwilling to learn how to plan and execute a balanced, nutritionally adequate vegan diet” might not find the diet to be a good fit, Leman says.
“Picky eaters” might struggle a little more on a vegan diet than those with more adventurous palates, Dixon adds.
Experts say the diet is a great option for generally healthy people and has been determined to be safe for healthy women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. It can be safely fed to children, but it’s important to make sure the diet is still nutritionally adequate for their growing bodies.
Because the vegan diet may take a little more work on the eater’s part to ensure that animal products are excluded while nutritional needs are met, a meal delivery service can be a good option. It’s particularly helpful to those interested in adopting a vegan diet to cover their nutritional bases and can keep trips to the grocery store for fresh produce to a minimum.
“For anyone who doesn’t like to cook, doesn’t know how to cook or has no time to cook, a meal delivery service can be a reasonable way to eat a vegan diet,” Leman says.
While a meal delivery service can be a very convenient option to supplement a vegan diet, experts emphasize the importance of learning how to cook and work with food to build an optimal approach to eating.
“I would encourage anyone following a vegan diet to not rely solely on delivery service,” Leman adds. “Being able to put together nourishing vegan meals and snacks on your own will help you maintain a plant-based way of eating that’s balanced, varied and nutritionally adequate.”
If you’re interested in giving the vegan diet a go, Dixon recommends “educating yourself just like you would when trying to learn anything else for the first time.” Reaching out to a registered dietitian for support is a good way to get reliable information.
[READ: How to Spot a Diet Red Flag: Diet Red Flags You Should Know]
Compare the Most Popular Vegan Meal Delivery Services:
| Meal plan options | Average cost per serving | Shipping costs | Average prep time | |
| Purple Carrot | For meal kits, you can choose between three or four meals per week and two or four servings of each meal. For prepared meals, you can select six, eight or 10 meals per week. | Meal kits are $11.00 to $13.25 per serving. Prepared meals are $13.00 per serving. | $10 for an order of up to $85, and free on orders above $85. | 30 to 45 minutes for meal kits. |
| Green Chef | Meal kits can be purchased for three or four meals each week with two, four or six servings each. | Meal kits are $11.99 to $13.49 per serving. | $9.99 per box. | 30 minutes. |
| Veestro | You can choose from six to 15 meals in a box, depending on where you live. | $11.03 to $12.82 per serving. | Shipping ranges from $7.95 to $12.95 per box. | Freshly-made meals, just heat and eat or freeze for later use. |
| Sunbasket | Meal kits can be ordered for two to five dinners per week, each serving two or four people per week. Four to 10 prepared meals can be ordered each week. | Meal kits start at $11.49 per serving, and ready-to-eat meals are $9.99 per serving. | $9.99 per order. | 30-50 minutes for meal kits. |
| Hungry Root | Weekly subscription, with multiple plans offering a customizable number of meals, snacks and sweets to be delivered. | $8.50 to $13.00 per serving. | Free shipping for orders over $70; $6.99 for smaller orders. | 10 minutes. |
| Fresh n’ Lean | Subscribers can choose one to three meals daily, five or seven days per week. | $8.49 to $8.99 per serving. | Free (except to Alaska and Hawaii). | Ready-made meals, just heat and eat. |
Companies That Deliver Vegan Meals
Some of the meal delivery services listed below offer a starter program or a consultation with a nutritionist to help you get oriented around the principles of any diet you want to follow. These options might help you jump-start a healthier way of eating and give you the tools to carry on your culinary adventures once you’re comfortable with the diet.
Purple Carrot
— Cook fresh meals from ingredients delivered to your door.
— All vegan meals.
— Easy-to-cook meals and extras come with step-by-step instructions.
Founded by a former pharmaceutical executive who developed Crohn’s disease
, Purple Carrot offers plant-based, vegetarian and vegan meals for people who want the convenience of ingredients and recipes shipped to their door. Some basic cooking skills and utensils are necessary to enjoy Purple Carrot meals, and most meals take 30 to 45 minutes to prepare.
Purple Carrot labels its plant-based meals as high-protein, nut-free, soy-free, gluten-free, “quick and easy” meals and options with fewer than 600 calories per serving. Two-serving plans are available. This plan is “ideal for singles or small families” and costs $13.25 per serving. Subscribers can mix and match three or four plant-based dinners from a variety of options each week. Prepared meals are another great option for individuals tasked with feeding one or two people. With this plan, six, eight or 10 individual meals each week are delivered and ready to eat within minutes.
Sample meal: Butternut squash gnocchi with cranberries and hazelnuts.
— Prep and cook time: 30 minutes.
— Serves: 2.
— Calories: 570.
— Total fat: 18 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 95 grams.
— Protein: 10 grams.
Green Chef
— Fresh, organic pre-measured ingredients are delivered to your door.
— Step-by-step recipe instructions.
— Most meals are ready in about 30 minutes.
— No meal planning or grocery shopping is required.
Green Chef offers vegetarian and vegan meals (in addition to keto + paleo, Mediterranean, Fast & Fit and gluten-free meals) as part of its subscription program options. Vegetarian meals start at $12.99 per meal for the two-person plan — one box contains four dinners for two people, or eight servings total, per box. Two servings each of three meals per week costs slightly more per serving, $13.49. Plans are also offered with four to six servings of three or four meals weekly.
Green Chef delivers to almost all of the continental U.S. but is currently unable to deliver to Alaska and Hawaii. Shipping is $9.99.
Sample meal: Artichoke “crab” cakes with quinoa with roasted red peppers, sauteed zucchini and walnuts.
— Prep and cook time: 40 minutes.
— Serves: 2.
— Calories per serving: 800.
— Total fat: 43 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 87 grams (13 grams dietary fiber, 11 grams sugar).
— Protein: 19 grams.
— Cholesterol: 0 milligrams.
— Sodium: 1,870 milligrams.
Veestro
— 100% vegan meals made with organic ingredients.
— Ready-made meals, just heat and eat.
— Choose meals a la carte.
— Dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free, low-calorie, soy-free, high-protein and kosher options available.
— No preservatives.
Aimed at busy people who want to eat healthy, Veestro offers premade vegan meals delivered to your door. Part of the company’s “plantifesto” explains that, “we believe busy people deserve it all: flavorful, healthy, easy fast.” And that “we believe plants are the greatest food on earth.”
You can choose to have meals shipped in quantities of six to 15, depending on where you live. Since moving from a frozen meal to a fresh business model, Veestro no longer has as large of a delivery area. Check the website to see if delivery is offered where you live. Shipping ranges from $7.95 to $12.95 per delivery. Packaging is 100% recyclable or compostable.
Sample meal: Red curry with tofu.
— Menu: Dairy-free and gluten-free.
— Serves: 1.
— Calories: 410.
— Total fat: 17 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 54 grams (6 grams dietary fiber, 20 grams sugars).
— Protein: 11 grams.
— Cholesterol: 0 milligrams.
— Sodium: 670 milligrams.
Sunbasket
— U.S. Department of Agriculture-certified organic handler.
— All organic ingredients are clearly labeled.
— Most meals contain between 550 and 800 calories.
— Quick recipes for busy people.
— Recyclable and compostable packaging.
Sunbasket offers a wide range of meal kit options in its subscription-based delivery programs. The company is committed to providing the best organically produced, antibiotic- and hormone-free meats and sustainably-sourced seafood. It also “strives to deliver organic produce 100% of the time.” The company states that over 99% of the produce they ship is organic. If, for some reason, an item can’t be offered as organic, a conventionally produced version will be substituted, along with a note of explanation.
Most meals can be prepared in about 30-60 minutes and require basic cooking skills and utensils. Pre-prepped options reduce prep time with chopped ingredients. The company also recently introduced fully-prepared oven-ready options that can be heated and enjoyed.
Meal kits can be ordered for two to five dinners per week, each serving two or four people. Anywhere from one to 10 prepared meals can be ordered weekly. Meal kits start at $11.49 per serving, and ready-to-eat meals are $9.99 per serving. Shipping is an additional $7.99 per box.
Sample menu: Mushroom muffulettas with olive tapenade and kale chips.
— Menu: Diary free, soy-free, vegan, no added sugar.
— Serves: 2.
— Calories: 730.
— Total fat: 34 grams.
— Protein: 22 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 88 grams (8 grams dietary fiber).
— Cholesterol: 0 milligrams.
— Sodium: 1,250 milligrams.
Hungry Root
— Variety of fresh, clean-ingredient foods.
— Tailor to personal preferences.
— Vegan-only and organic options.
— Part grocery delivery, part meal kit program.
Hungry Root treads the line between grocery delivery and meal kit plan. It’s a little of both and neither at the same time. Subscribers get all the ingredients and instructions necessary to make quick, delicious meals. The company takes the pain out of meal planning — just input your preferences and food restrictions, and they send groceries and recipes for you to cook fresh at home. Most recipes are quick to make and ready to eat in 10 minutes.
The company offers multiple plan sizes. The small plan is a weekly subscription that’s suitable for one person and costs $69 weekly. It contains enough groceries to make three to four two-serving meals plus snacks. Other plan sizes and costs depend on how many breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and sweets you elect each week. Delivery is $6.99 for small plans and free for larger plans. Hungry Root does not currently deliver to Hawaii or Alaska.
Sample meal: Lemon artichoke quinoa cup.
— Menu: Vegan, gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free.
— Serves: 1.
— Calories: 210.
— Total fat: 8 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 28 grams (6 grams dietary fiber, 3 grams sugars).
— Protein: 7 grams.
— Cholesterol: 0 milligrams.
— Sodium: 760 milligrams.
Fresh n’ Lean
— Ready-made meals, just heat and eat.
— New vegan menus are offered weekly.
— Meals include no gluten, dairy, genetically modified organisms or animal products and contain no added sugar, processed ingredients or artificial flavors.
— Packaging is BPA-free and fully recyclable.
Fresh n’ Lean offers fresh, organic, 100% vegan meals that are ready to heat and eat. Recipes feature organic, seasonal ingredients and are free from GMOs, gluten and dairy.
The standard vegan package includes three meals five days a week and costs $134.85 weekly or $8.99 per meal. Three meals per week for seven days costs $178.29 or $8.49 per meal. On average, this plan provides 43 grams of protein, 144 grams of carbohydrates, 35 grams of fat and 1,225 calories daily. Subscribers can order additional meals and snacks a la carte. Shipping ranges from $7.95 to $12.95 per box.
Sample meal: Herb roasted root vegetables with tofu and brown rice.
— Serves: 1.
— Calories: 480.
— Total fat: 25 grams.
— Total carbohydrates: 42 grams.
— Protein: 20 grams.
— Cholesterol: 0 milligrams.
— Sodium: 380 milligrams.
The Takeaway
Dixon notes that following a vegan diet, especially if you’re doing so for ethical or environmental reasons, can be very rewarding.
“I think it can be very helpful in expanding your ongoing nutritional and culinary adventure,” he says.
However, despite the many potential health benefits associated with the vegan diet, it’s important to remember that the quality of a vegan diet is paramount in determining how healthy it is.
“A vegan diet isn’t a panacea or quick fix for weight loss,” Leman says, explaining that plenty of vegan dishes and recipes can be high in added sugar, fat and calories. In addition, grocery stores stock an enormous selection of processed, convenience foods that are labeled as vegan, but that doesn’t always mean that they are healthy.
At the end of the day, “an organic vegan chocolate chip cookie is still a chocolate chip cookie,” she says.
More from U.S. News
How to Eat Vegan During Pregnancy
What All Plant-Based Eaters Need to Know About Vitamin B12
4 Foods Besides Brown Rice That Help Prevent or Manage Type 2 Diabetes
Best Vegan and Vegetarian Meal Delivery Services originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 12/22/22: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
