If there is one thing that people with celiac and gluten intolerance spend time on, it's food. Reading about it, shopping for it, cooking it, label reading, recipe testing, product comparing, you name it, we do it. After all of this time consuming effort that goes into our food - who has tie to actually cook? This is precisely what makes gluten-free meal delivery services so appealing to us.
Meal delivery services offer an easy way to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner at home when you are busy. Today, more and more companies are offering gluten-free meal delivery options so that the celiac and gluten-sensitive communities can benefit from the perks of meal delivery as well!
What Are Meal Delivery Services?
Meal delivery services deliver either fresh or frozen meals to your door, offering convenience for those who don't want to cook, and a healthy option for those who want to avoid greasy takeout. Meal delivery options that allow you to cook at home offer you fresh, rationed ingredients and recipe cards with step-by-step instructions, allowing you to create meals quickly and conveniently.
They are popular among busy 30-55 year old professionals who live mostly in urban or suburban areas, and are starved for time but not necessarily for money. The gluten-free meal delivery options also often also use fresh, local ingredients, grass-fed meats and sustainable fish, in addition to being free of many other allergens.
The meals can cost as much as healthy takeout (starting at around $10 a meal), offering a healthy, affordable solution for those who don't want to cook.
Gluten-Free Meal Delivery Services
DICED: Taking only approximately 25 minutes to complete from start to finish, DICED offers generous portions that leave enough leftovers for the next day. All meals are certified gluten-free and come with all veggies, proteins and sauces. A DICED favorite is their take-out style chicken and broccoli with white rice because of how close it mimicks the Chinese food favorite that we all miss so much! Diced currently delivers meals to NYC's five boroughs plus Long Island, New Jersey, Westchester and parts of Connecticut. The service is expected to expand further north and into Philadelphia and Virginia within months.
Freshly: Freshly is a gluten-free meal delivery service offering everything from turkey lasagna with roasted pepper and broccoli to chicken parmesan breaded almond flour and served over zucchini noodles. Everything at Freshly is 100% gluten-free. Freshly is currently only available in western states, and it cooks and ships on the same day. The company is hoping to expand to the eastern states in late 2016.
Fresh N' Lean: Los Angeles based Fresh N' Lean has delivered gluten-free meals since 2010. They use organic, plant based ingredients to create meals that are low in fat, salt, sugar and calories. Their menu changes weekly and they offer options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Recent offerings include mixed berry chia pudding, roasted sunflower seed and balsamic cabbage rice, and kidney bean fajita bowl. Meals are available either a la carte or as part of a plan, and shipping is free. Weekly delivery is available nationwide.
A Word of Caution
It is important to approach food delivery services as you would any other restaurant or food service. A gluten-free label does not necessarily mean that steps were taken to avoid cross contamination or that the meal was made in a gluten-free kitchen.
While some food delivery services touting the gluten-free label follow stringent preparation practices to make them safe for those who have celiac disease, others say outright that they are not designed for consumers who have a medical need to avoid gluten.
Delivery services that offer gluten-free meals but cannot offer gluten-free certification or third party verification might be a better choice for those who choose to eat gluten-free, rather than those who must follow a gluten-free diet for health reasons. There are plenty of certified gluten-free food delivery services, including those we listed in this blog.
The gluten-free meal delivery market seems to be expanding almost daily. Earlier this year, even Beyonce launched her own gluten-free meal delivery service, 22 Days Nutrition!
Has anyone tried gluten-free meal delivery services? We would love to hear about your experience!
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