Planty meal boxes in a nutshell
Pros: good variety of cuisines with exciting flavours and nutritional credentials, very convenient – just heat up from frozen, eco-conscious packaging.
Cons: slow delivery time, many of the dishes were spicy, some meals were low in protein for a main dish.
Overall rating: 4.5/5
Read about how to sign up to the Planty meals subscription box
What is Planty?
Planty is a meal delivery service providing 100 per cent plant-based, chef-prepared meals designed to help their customers eat responsibly-sourced, nutritious food. Their head & development chef, Joe Lovell, has worked at some of London’s top restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Petrus. The company claims to exclusively source from suppliers who share their values, namely an effort towards socially responsible and environmentally conscious business practices.
Planty meal choices
The company offers a good range of meal options, ranging from classics like shepherd’s pie, sweet potato curry and truffled wild mushroom pasta to more unusual combinations, like butternut mango madras and BBQ banana blossom burrito.
There aren’t any special diet filters available which might make it a little tricky for those with special dietary needs, however there is clear nutritional signposting to indicate whether a dish is gluten-free or low in saturated fat, a source of fibre and protein or contributes to your five-a-day.
How many meals do you get with Planty?
The site is simple and easy to navigate, offering customers the option to build their own ‘planty’ box, choosing between six, eight or 10 plant-based meals from their online menu. Meals are fresh-frozen and delivered to your door on your chosen date. They can then be stored in your freezer and simply reheated in the oven or microwave as desired.
What were your first impressions of the delivery?
First impressions were promising. On opening the box, we were pleased to discover the eco-conscious insulation padding surrounding the dishes. The sleeves on the meals were vibrant and attractive to the eye.
What do you get in a Planty box?
You receive all of your individual Planty meals wrapped in recyclable insulated padding. You also receive a welcome card, a returns label and details on how to return the packaging to Planty so that it can be recycled.
Are refrigerated ingredients kept sufficiently chilled in the packaging?
Our initial concern was that on a hot day, the meals might begin to thaw by the time we returned home; however, the meals were well packed with thick insulation and a large ice-pack.
What are the delivery options?
You can select a specific day for the box to be delivered. You can’t allocate a time – but, as with ours, if you are out when the delivery arrives, it will be left on the doorstep. Our only bugbear was that the earliest date available for delivery was a week later, so you’ll have to plan quite far in advance if you want the meals for a particular time.
How much packaging was there?
While you could reduce the packaging by removing the meal sleeves, they were recyclable cardboard and contained a lot of useful product information. It’s clear that Planty is making an effort to minimise waste.
Does it offer good value-for-money?
We think so, considering you get freshly prepared, healthy and 100 per cent plant-based meals that can be stored in the freezer and eaten when you like.
How easy are the meals to make?
The meals are already prepared and simply need to be heated in the oven or microwave.
Is there any food waste?
No. Meals are individually portioned.
What are the finished meals like?
The meals were simple, tasty and satisfying. We really appreciated the clear nutritional signposting to indicate whether a dish was gluten-free or contributed to your five-a-day. Quite a few of the meals were on the spicy side, which might not be to everyone’s taste. It’s also worth nothing, that for a main meal, some of the options were on the lower protein end, so it’s important to be aware of this within the context of your daily requirements. For reference, some meals were between 20-28g of protein per meal, with others just 12g.
How many people does a Planty box serve?
Each meal serves one person. You can build boxes that include six, eight or 10 meals.
What utensils did you need to use to make the recipes?
No utensils required.
Who would the product be most useful for?
Due to the portioning, we think this service is aimed at individuals or couples, rather than families.
What’s your favourite thing about Planty?
Overall, the best thing about Planty is the convenience. It’s so lovely to be able to pop a meal in the oven or microwave and have a balanced, nutritious dish ready for you after a long day – without any washing-up to do afterwards!
What are the subscription terms?
Planty offers a one-off purchase (meals starting at £5.45) or a subscription (meals starting at £4.95). Subscriptions can be cancelled anytime online.
Star ratings
Ease of cooking 5/5
Quality of the finished recipes 4/5
Packaging 4/5
Quality of ingredients 4/5
Value for money 4/5
Discover how to sign up to the Planty meal subscription box
This review was published April 1st 2021. If you have any questions, suggestions for future reviews or spot anything that has changed in price or availability please get in touch at goodfoodwebsite@immediate.co.uk.
