HelloFresh, blue apron and daily harvest
— Recommendations are independently chosen by the editors of Reviewed. Purchases you make through our links may earn us a commission.
Recently dubbed the best diet of 2022 by US News & World Report, the mediterranean diet is a lifestyle or way of eating intended to mimic the way people eat in countries like Italy, Greece, and Spain that border the Mediterranean Sea. Think fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins like chicken and fish, healthy fats like nuts and olive oil, and lots of tasty herbs and spices. Like any sustainable diet, refined sugar and dairy products aren’t banned per se, they just aren’t the focus of every meal. Because what would a Greek salad be without feta?
In the 1950s, researchers discovered eat a Mediterranean style diet which is plant-based and focused on whole foods has resulted in a lower incidence of heart disease and stroke than the standard American diet. As such, the Mediterranean diet has been widely touted as one of the best approaches to eating for long-term health.
Changing your eating habits is no small feat, but there are tons of user-friendly tools meal kits perfect for anyone looking to incorporate the fad diet into their lifestyle this year. Below are the best Mediterranean diet meal kits to add to your virtual grocery cart right now.
Get deals and shopping tips straight to your phone.Subscribe to SMS alerts experts from Reviewed.
1. Chef at home
Our number one meal kit pick, according to our expert testing, is a goldmine for those looking to introduce more Mediterranean-style foods into their diet. Every Monday, you will have the choice between more than 20 meals with the possibility of skipping weeks at any time.
One of the most appealing aspects of Home Chef is how easy it is to stay organized: all ingredient bags are labeled by meal and fit easily in the fridge. Our testers love how they now offer ready-to-cook, no-prep meals with their own cooking trays. Delicious offerings suitable for the Mediterranean diet include sesame and tofu rice bowls with broccoli and roasted cauliflower tostadas with corn and bean salsa. You also have the option of replacing protein if you want to make a particular dish more Mediterranean.
2. Daily Harvest
If you’ve ever heard a Daily Harvest ad read in a podcast and started drooling over menu items, consider that your sign for, well, sign up. The 95% Organic Meal Delivery Kit centers around pre-made, whole-plant snacks that make it easy to incorporate products. Our tester named it one of best pre-prepared meal kits because you don’t need to chop the fruit, just mix and enjoy. Select a plan based on how many items you want and how often you want them delivered.
Instead of typical heavy meals that can be high in saturated fat (which is limited on the Mediterranean diet), you get lighter snack foods like chia bowls, harvest bowls, oatmeal bowls, flatbreads and smoothies with little to no prep work required. Indulge in fan favorites like the mint + cocoa smoothie that would taste like mint chip ice cream, or the vanilla bean + apple chia bowl that will pamper the most discerning Mediterranean-style sweethearts.
3. Solar Basket
As the name suggests, a meal basket prepared by the chef of Sunbasket is a ray of total sunshine. For meals compatible with the Mediterranean Diet, select the Mediterranean Diet Preference to receive options centered around whole grains, good fats, wild-caught seafood, and responsibly sourced poultry.
With an extensive menu of vegetarian, vegan, and plant-based dishes, you’ll have no problem finding a heart-healthy meal. Choose the type of meal you want, from ready in 15 to 40 minutes to ‘heat and eat’, as well as your preferred number of servings per week. Past options include lettuce-wrapped turkey and avocado sliders with root vegetable fries and a warm farro salad with roasted squash and Brussels sprouts.
4. Green Leader
With Green Chef, you can feel good knowing that everything is 100% organic and free of GMOs, pesticides and antibiotics. Its pre-portioned ingredients ensure you avoid food waste while keeping food prep organised, while its packaging is either recyclable or reusable.
When making your meal selections, tap “Mediterranean” for plenty of vegetables and good-for-you fats, along with your preferred number of servings and delivery days per week. Examples of Mediterranean diet-approved dishes include Greek-style spaghetti squash with chickpeas, kale and feta and pineapple barbecue flatbreads with spiced pickled shallots. In our tests, our experts noted the generous portions that left them with lunch the next day.
5. HelloFresh
Our experts consistently rate HelloFresh as one of the best meal kit delivery services for its broad dietary offerings, which include Mediterranean-friendly vegetarian and pescatarian diets, the latter omitting meat but including fish and seafood. The brand claims that each recipe is tested 200 times to satisfy even the most demanding palates while being easy to prepare. Drool-worthy dishes include the plant-based Ragù Rigatoni Bake and fully loaded tofu taquitos with creamy guacamole and pico de gallo.
In a move towards more sustainable practices, HelloFresh’s pre-portioned ingredients are presented in recyclable or compostable packaging, while the brand claims to be streamlining its supply chain to reduce carbon emissions.
6. Gobble
If you love the idea of a freshly cooked meal but dread all the chopping, chopping, mixing and chopping, you’ll love our experts’ favorite pre-prepared meal kit. In their testing, all of Gobble’s recipes were on the table in less than 15 minutes, and most were bursting with flavor.
Their two meal plan options – the Classic Dinner and the Lean & Clean Dinner – offer a wide variety of Mediterranean dishes for two or four people. Just go vegetarian when you opt for the classic with options like Korean Sweet Potato Noodles with BBQ Broccoli and Tofu, and just steer clear of red meat when you opt for the lean and clean, like the seared salmon with shaved Brussels sprouts and pickled mustard vinaigrette. Tip: If you see a “customize this meal” icon in the lower right corner of the meal thumbnail, check to see if you can make it vegetarian or add lean protein like shrimp or turkey.
7. Blue apron
As one of the most popular meal kits on the market responsible for the meal kit boom of 2012, Blue Apron has become so ubiquitous that it hardly needs an introduction. It offers several options to make your quest for the perfect Mediterranean meal a little easier. Vegetarian options include Sweet Chilli Roasted Vegetables with Brown Rice-Cilantro Yogurt Sauce and Wellness options include options like Chickpea and Curry Shakshuka with Tomatoes and Spinach. If you go the Signature route, be sure to opt for products that are free of processed refined carbs. With that in mind, the Tilapia and Orange Jalapeño Salsa with Quinoa and Carrot Slaw is a great bet.
All ingredients are pre-portioned in recyclable packaging. Most recipes have protein substitute options and are all readily available online so you can easily display them on your screen while you cook.
8. A potato
The idea behind One Potato is to involve the whole family in the cooking process. Select your desired number of servings per week and delivery frequency, and cancel or pause anytime. All of their organic ingredients are partially chopped and prepped, and meals are ready in 12-30 minutes. For about $6 each, you can also add up to 10 Mediterranean Diet-approved smoothies to your order that stay fresh in the freezer for up to a year.
Vegetarian and omnivorous options can both be compatible with a Mediterranean-style diet – take for example the polenta lasagna with Mediterranean salad and the cold soba noodles with watermelon salad. Each recipe card has tips on how to make every meal more appetizing for kids, like letting them choose their own toppings.
There’s a lot more where that came from. Subscribe to our bi-weekly newsletter to get all our reviews, expert advice, offers and more.
The product experts of Revised have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Rated on Facebook, Twitter, instagram, ICT Tac Where Flipboard for the latest deals, product reviews and more.
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published, but may change over time.