Desperate to spice up my dinner routine, I tried ‘allplants’, the vegan microwave meal website striving to revolutionise the world of plant based cooking. The best thing about it? I didn’t even have to turn on the hob.
Its 10pm on a Tuesday evening, my feet ache in places I didn’t know existed, and I’m flipping starving. Eight hour shifts in pre-Christmas retail are no joke. Despite being a keen cook, the idea of getting a pan out of the cupboard makes me want to cry. It’s a good job I prepared for this exact scenario…
The previous week I had hit a certified wall in the supermarket. There are only so many vegetarian lasagnas one can stomach before the dish gets a little dull. So, in a quest for quick meals that offered my taste buds something more exotic, Google found me ‘allplants’.
The certified B-Corp claim to pursue their mission ‘in a way that’s both Planet-kind and Human-kind’ whilst curating a menu of chef made meals that deliver a ‘powerful punch of flavour, a riot of colour’ and put ‘nutrition centre of the plate’. It sounded like just the solution.
I eagerly selected my menu, opting for a;
• Black Bean Power Bowl
• Tex Mex Protein Bowl
• Miso and Tamari Buddha Bowl
• Protein Bolognese Bowl
• Smoky Tofu and ‘Chorizo’ Paella
And
• Shepherdless Pie
In general, I had made my decisions based on wanting to sample ingredients and cuisines that I wouldn’t usually cook myself. The total cost came to £44.24, with the individual meals being priced between £5.75 and £7.50. Although a loftier tag than the usual £3 I would shell out for my Asda lasagna. I was willing to give this more inspiring menu a chance. It may sound odd, but I was also impressed by the overall ordering experience. An easy to navigate website littered with attractive photography and vibrant colours, certainly made me more inclined to branch out into unfamiliar ingredients and flavours.
Pictures of meals have a tendency to instigate flashbacks to questionable dining experiences along Tenerife beachfronts. Thankfully allplants have avoided this.
Four days later, my exciting delivery arrived on the doorstep. Six attractively packaged (and still fully frozen) meals were decanted into the freezer, primed for the next time hunger struck.
Can plants get me to my protein goal?
Although I am by no means an Olympian, I train daily and would describe myself as a bit of an athlete. Consequently, protein is vital in my diet for muscular recovery, making strength gains, and general physical health. It seemed that allplants had foreseen my concerns about the extent to which beans could fulfil my hefty daily target, hence they offer a ‘high protein’ category of meals, with some dishes offering over 25g. Furthermore, as a hungry gal, portion size is always a concern – although not huge, with a bit of extra veg I was not left unsatisfied. If one were to want a more exciting supplement than the basic broccoli, allplants do offer a variety of sides, including a very tempting ‘Truffle Mac and Cheese’, for the aspiring vegan with a bigger appetite. Therefore, when the option to bulk up the dishes is considered, these plant-based plates can cater to both dieters, and hungry sportspeople alike.
The debate as to whether following a vegan diet is healthier than an omnivorous one is complicated and highly prevalent. Despite this, multiple renowned athletes have made the switch to plant-based in order to improve performance, including Venus Williams, who finds avoiding animal products helps reduce fatigue and joint pain caused by her Sjögren’s syndrome. Its also no secret that consuming more fruit and veg is good for us, meaning the presence of at least two of the recommended five portions a day in all of allplants’ meals is unlikely to do any harm. Many of the recipes, such as the ‘Tofu Saag Paneer’, have a focus on high iron content, helping to qualm another one of the potential concerns of avoiding meat. So, as claimed on their website, maybe this pioneering company can help us to ‘thrive with the power of plants’.
Saving the planet with your choice of scran
Much to the shock and disappointment of many, it appears to be January again. Aside from the gruelling new fitness regimes, continued dark evenings, and dreaded post Christmas return to the office, the first month of the year has become associated with ‘Veganuary’. The month long initiative, created by Jane Land and Matthew Glover, has had the effect of bringing vegan diets from the realms of eccentricity, to the mainstream, with nearly 2.5 million people having tried a plant based diet as a result of the idea since its launch in 2014. For committed carnivores, coming up with a month of meat free meals may seem daunting at best, so if the idea of cooking tempeh is giving you nightmares, then a few teas from all plants may be a worthwhile decision.
Not only are the meals’ contents sustainable, but the packaging is too. Using materials like upcycled denim to insulate parcels, and smaller boxes to reduce waste, allplants are making strides in curbing the negative environmental impact of our convenience food consumption habits, with traditional packaging methods being notoriously harmful.
More information about their approach to sustainability and veganuary can be found via the link below:
The Taste Test
Environmental sustainability is all very well and good, but in reality, flavour is king. I am neither a huge meat eater, or a vegan, but I was not disappointed when it came to the flavour profiles of my meals. They took me on a journey from sun-kissed southern Spain with the paella, to homely British kitchens with the shepherdless pie. I was left a very happy little omnivore, and certainly couldn’t have produced anything as tasty myself.
One thing I would say about the menu selection, is that there could have been a wider array of nut-free options. Unfortunately for me, my allergy means cashews are out of bounds, so anything ‘creamy’ looking on the website (like the creamy mushroom pasta), was a no-go. This being said, the fact that the website had an effective filter option, allowing me to eradicate anything potential deadly from my menu options, did help to put my mind at ease.
A pretty penny for some plants?
At over £5 per meal, these veggie packed bites are by no means a budget option. However, when I considered how much it would cost me to buy the ingredients to concoct such exotic dinners myself, the cost didn’t seem so excessive. For example, if I were to attempt a ‘Miso and Tamari Buddha Bowl’ for myself, even buying the tamari and tofu would mean shelling out more than a fiver.
But why spend so much when there are a myriad of meals at our disposal in supermarkets? Well, since the publication of Dr Chris Van Tulleken’s ‘Ultra-Processed People’, convenience foods have been thrust into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. UPF’s can have a potentially devastating impact on both public health, and the individuals who consume them. The majority of supermarket microwave meals are ultra-processed, but allplants’ dinners are not. Due to being ‘flash frozen’ (a process involving rapidly freezing food immediately after it is made in order to prevent the formation of ice crystals), there is no need to add the chemical preservatives which are used to extend shelf life of most ready meals. As a consequence, allplants’ food contains only real, recognisable ingredients, so for the discerning diner, it may feel worth spending a little extra.
More information on ultra-processed foods can be found here;
What about the competition?
With more and more of us leading increasingly busy lives, the prepped food industry has grown rapidly, meaning allplants aren’t the only option when it comes to premium ready meals being delivered to your door. Musclefood’s Prepped Pots, Simmer Eats, and Lion’s Prep all offer similar services, each with a slightly different USP. At the top end of the market is Fresh Fitness Food, who provide a completely personalised meal plan designed to optimise physical health based on your individual goals. Each of these brands have vegan options, but a more limited selection than allplants for the plant-based diner.
Of course, should one be willing to get cheffy, the market expands further. The likes of Hello Fresh and Gousto will serve you up pre-portioned ingredients, along with recipe cards, for you to turn into a nourishing meal yourself. Unlike with allplants, this method of meal inspired relies heavily on your own adequacy as a chef, and requires considerably more time and effort. From a financial perspective, an initial five meal Gousto box for one would cost £33.49 of my hard earned cash. This seemed to further justify the allplants price tag (£44.24 for six meals), as the latter company has taken the time to make my tea for me.
In summary
Personally I was impressed. Allplants delivered six tasty and nourishing meals directly to my door, and kept me fed when late night work shifts meant cooking wasn’t an option. They let me explore new flavours and plant based plates that I would certainly not be able to cook myself. I would deem them far superior to the standard supermarket microwave meal. Despite this, the loftier price tag means an allplants parcel will have to be an occasional treat. As an omnivorous athlete, I would absolutely recommend it to the aspiring vegan, particularly if they were in need of some Veganuary inspiration. Furthermore, for the solo supper warriors, allplants offers an easy way to avoid waste, and to get dinner on the table in record time.
The Sprightly Spud 
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