So you know I love to eat delicious, healthy food and I don’t love to cook. I’ve tried several healthy, meal delivery services this year and I am super excited to tell you about Cooked. I tried a few items, including a mouth watering pumpkin curry, from Cooked through Artizone. When Cooked contacted me to see if I wanted to do a review, I could not say yes fast enough.
Each week, Cooked has a new menu which includes entrees, salads, lunches, kid’s meals and cold press juices. They use locally sourced foods to create healthy meals under Chef Jona Silva. After 15 years in the restaurant business, Chef Silva’s interest in healthy cooking, vegetarian cooking, gluten-free options and weight management took him to the Culinary Institute of America where he took classes on nutrition and healthy cooking in 2007 and passed the rigorous exam to become a “Certified Chef” in 2009. Chef Silva started Cooked in 2014 in order to “share the great advantages of health with busy folks everywhere.”
I loved meeting Chef Silva at the Good Food Festival. His passion and enthusiasm for his work was contagious. We discussed how and why he got into the business and how it is growing and changing. He introduced me to their new dietician, as well. Above all, he believes that healthy food can taste good and that it can change your life. I absolutely agree. He gave me some delicious cold pressed juices to try, too.
Cooked delivers healthy, pre-cooked meals in the greater Chicagoland area. Each week they post and email their menu, you pick your items and delivery time and they bring them to you. Then you heat, eat and enjoy!
The menu items can be sorted by categories: “Clean Burn Shape,” dairy free, gluten free, vegan, vegetarian, free range, organic and kids. Every item has nutritional information and photos so you can see what you are getting. I ordered on a week when the Husband was out of town and before I had to travel to San Francisco and Phoenix. It was hard to pick just a few things so I wound up eating some lunches for breakfast. Who says that is wrong?! The items are fresh and meant to be eaten within 3 days.
The items come marked with clear labels and instructions in biodegradable containers.
Here is what I decided on:
- 2 Lunch Bowls – quinoa with chicken and veggies and quinoa with roasted veggies
- Lunch Kale Salad (with Free Range Chicken)
- Chickpea-Zucchini Fritters with Cauliflower “Taboule”
- Honey Mustard Chicken Dijonnaise
- Simple Coco-nutty Dal with white basmati rice
- Crunchy Cauliflower (side dish)
- Wilted Kale with pinenuts, apples, raisins (side dish)
The hardest part was choosing what to eat first! I had the Honey Mustard Chicken for dinner on Sunday when I received the food. It was delicious. The chicken was perfectly cooked and so were the vegetables. I also tried the Crunchy Cauliflower right away. It was amazing. It had so much flavor. I could have eaten about 10 containers of it! I really enjoyed these meals. The Dal was also amazing and so rich. The sauces and guacamole sides in several dishes were just enough to add a little extra flavor without a ton of extra calories. The Kale salad has edamame, sliced beets and carrots and other uniquely prepared veggies. So good! The lunch bowls were convenient, but these were the only things that I thought I could easily make myself and would probably not re-order despite the low price ($5.50). I also loved the fresh pressed juices that I tried from the Good Food Festival – especially the Honey Tumeric Tea.
All of the food was prepared so well. The vegetables were cooked perfectly, the food was flavorful and the combinations of tastes was delicious. I am sad that the Husband was not here to try because he would not have dismissed this as “too healthy” – even though it is. I am planning to order more for him to try!
Cooked sends an email with their menu weekly and I will definitely be ordering! The prices range from $12.95 per person for entrees to $5.50 for lunch bowls. Fresh pressed juices are $8.00. Kid’s meals are around $6.00. They have no minimum order and a small delivery fee (varies by location). They also cater. If you live or work in the Chicagoland area, I highly recommend that you try it.
You can keep up with Cooked on their website, Facebook and Twitter.
Want to see what other people are trying on Tuesday? Check out the Tried It Tuesday link up at Lake Shore Runner!
Please note, I was provided some of these items at no cost in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
PS. Don’t miss my great giveaways including the Wednesday Giveaway Round Up Link Up!