Everyone loves the convenience of a frozen meal, but the high levels of sodium, chemical additives and preservatives, and soggy taste of many ingredients (especially vegetables) make the idea of frozen dinners far from appealing. Many companies are starting to seriously innovate healthy frozen food options. Just recently a new startup, Tovala, launched a Smart Oven, which they say was designed for “busy people who don’t have time to cook chef-quality meals on their own. ” Basically Tovala is a WiFi-connected countertop smart oven that steams, bakes and broils chef-prepared meals based on a custom QR code. Families sign up for weekly delivery meal service, and upon arrival each entree only requires one minute of prep time before it’s scanned and cooked for 20 minutes or less. The oven also has the ability to scan-to-cook 850+ brand-name grocery items from brands. Feels like The Jetsons, no? The meals don’t come frozen, but can easily be frozen to have food handy.
If going high-tech isn’t up your alley, you can stick with the basics and still find great-tasting, healthy and convenient items shopping the frozen aisle. Checkout the below for some healthy frozen food standouts.
More Health & Wellness:
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Healthy Frozen Food Options the Family will Actually Eat
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Performance Kitchen
Performance Kitchen offers nutritious frozen meals that are affordable and convenient for moms. The even have a maternity bundle that includes 11 meals for $99 that focus on healthy omega-3 fats, fiber, and important nutrients for pregnant women and new moms (and the rest of the family!). The company also offers free consultations with their team of registered dietitians.
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PlantMade
Plant-leaning chef Matthew Kenney is best known for pioneering raw food over two decades ago (think Pure Food and Wine) as well as for his revamping of the storied Parisian patisserie La Duree with dairy-free macarons and eggless omelets in Beverly Hills. Now he's launched PlantMade by Matthew Kenney and the options are amazing! Everything is dairy, gluten and soy free. Standout dishes include Chickpea Curry, Cacio E Pepe Mac & Cheeze and Cauliflower Steak.
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Trifecta
Trifecta will send you organic, gluten-free meals that are seriously mouth-watering. All you have to do is pop them in the oven. They offer meals in various categories including Keto, Paleo, Vegan, Vegetarian, Clean Eating and Classic Meals. Everything comes fresh, but because the meals are vacuum sealed they can easily be frozen without taking up much room in the freezer.
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Feel Good Foods
Feel Good Foods offers a cleaner twist on classic comfort foods. All of the options - which include things like potstickers, egg rolls and breakfast pockets - are made using non-GMO ingredients, antibiotic-free proteins and cage free eggs. They also have no preservatives, MSG, artificial ingredients, colors, additives or fillers.
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Gardein
Gardein makes quick and tasty plant-based meat substitutes for chicken, sausage, beef, and more. The products are a great base for loading more veggies onto the dinner table, but it's important to note that comparing nutrition facts to meat it's not much healthier in terms of sodium, calories and fat - still a worthy entrance point to adding more plant-based foods to your family's diet.
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Beckon Ice Cream
Dairy allergy? No problem! Beckon Ice Cream may be lactose-free, but you'd never know it. All of their flavors are creamy and delicious. Plus there are no funky gums or stabilizers.
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Mauna Loa
Yes, macadamia milk ice cream is as delicious as it sounds. Mauna Loa just launched the first macadamia-milk ice cream in a variety of flavors. This shouldn't be considered a health food, but it's certainly a healthier (and arguably even tastier) alternative to Ben & Jerry's.
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Impossible Burger
This might have the look and mouth-feel of a burger, but Impossible Burger patties are plant-based. Each 4oz serving has the same amount of protein as 80/20 ground beef, with 0 mg cholesterol (14 g total fat and 8 g saturated fat) and no antibiotics or animal hormones.
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Green Giant
We all know Green Giant for their frozen vegetables which, truth be told, are hit or miss as far as how watery/flavorful they are, but many people don't realize that they make a long list of other frozen food products including things like cauliflower crust pizza and cauliflower gnocchi.