If you've ever tried to cut out carbs, even for a little while, you know one of the keys is removing temptation altogether: Out of sight, out of mind (sort of). One way to save your well-intentioned self from your pasta-loving self is to have keto-friendly prepared meals at the ready or all the ingredients for a low-carb dinner on hand and waiting to be assembled. Keto-friendly meal services have spiked in popularity, so sifting through all that steak and cauliflower to find the absolute best keto food can take a bit of digging -- and a lot of tasting.
The ketogenic diet may have started as a fad diet decades ago, but today it is as popular as ever. That means that you can keep to a nutritious and low-carb eating plan while enjoying the convenience of home meal delivery. That's thanks to the many delivery services that now cater to the keto diet. In fact, some of the most popular meal kit services, such as Home Chef and Green Chef, have low-carb meal plans with as many as eight or nine keto menu options to choose from each week. If you don't want to cook at all, there are even more meal delivery services that will deliver ready-to-eat keto and paleo meals via weekly subscription or a one-time order.
Not all low-carb meals are created equal, however, so I've tried a few of the most popular options to separate the delicious meals from the tragic. Whether you're trying to eat keto and organic or are keen on low-carb versions of comfort food classics made with fresh ingredients, there's a healthy, tailored meal delivery service out there for you. Having tried all of the meal kits on this list -- and many more, I might add -- I've determined the best keto meal delivery to keep your low-carb lifestyle in good order, while ensuring you get to enjoy more than just grilled chicken and veggies.
And if you're unsure about trying a meal kit service or aren't jazzed about committing to a subscription, know that all these companies allow you to pause or cancel your subscription at any time and without cost. Most have enticing trial discounts and new customer sign-up offers too, so there's not much standing between you and some affordable keto-friendly food.
We'll continue to update this list periodically as we try new meal delivery services.
Read more: The absolute best keto snacks to buy online for 2021: Magic Spoon, Olipop, Flock and more
Yes, grammar nerds will tell you it should be "Fresh 'n' Lean." But if you can get past that missing apostrophe, I can tell you this: Fresh n' Lean is the best keto meal delivery service I've tried. Period. The healthy food was not only well prepared but it looked appetizing and wasn't overly expensive. Luckily for those looking for low-carb meals, Fresh n' Lean offers keto meal plans and that food was just as good.
With Fresh n' Lean, you can opt for either a standard low-carb or low-carb vegan meal plan and choose from as many as 13 meals per week. Some of the creative entrees you'll find with this meal service include an almond crusted cod over cherry tomatoes and olives, tender beef stroganoff with mushrooms and asparagus or a beanless chili con carne with cauliflower.
Pricing for Fresh n' Lean's keto plans start at about $11 a meal which isn't the cheapest on our list, but if it's high-quality, low-carb food you're after, Fresh n' Lean is my clear pick.
Keto meals per week: 13
Fresh n' Lean pricing: Meals are between $11 and $15 depending on the plan.
If you're looking to make keto dinners at home, Home Chef has the most flexible meal kits of any service we tried and that makes it an excellent choice for those keeping to a low-carb lifestyle.
Home Chef's Carb Conscious meal plan starts at about $7 per serving and you'll have as many as seven meals to pick from each week for the standard plan, plus a few Culinary Collection meals you can add for an additional cost. Most Home Chef meals are wholesome and hearty but not overly complicated and some take as little as 25 minutes to cook.
One great feature Home Chef offers is that you can swap or double the protein in any meal and since keto eaters are all about that protein, it makes finding the right low-carb meals each week that much easier. As if that wasn't enough, Home Chef also has oven-ready keto meals like sesame chicken and with cilantro lime broccoli that require almost no chopping or prep. Just assemble the ingredients in a provided baking tin and have dinner ready 30 or 40 minutes later.
Keto-friendly meals per week: 7 standard (plus 3 to 4 premium meals)
Home Chef Pricing: Meal plans start at $7 per serving. Two meals for two people is about $40 per week, plus shipping.
Ketoned Bodies delivers keto meals with some of the highest quality ingredients of any we found. The healthy meal service uses only grass-fed beef and pasture-raised pork and poultry, for instance, as well as a high percentage of organic produce in its healthy low-carb meals. Ketoned also employs regenerative farming for a more sustainable product from start to finish. Some Ketoned menu favorites from the meal delivery service include a creamy chicken piccata with roasted veggies, Spanish meatloaf with cauliflower rice and grilled pork chop with roasted squash and green beans.
As you might expect, all these organic ingredients include a higher price tag and Ketoned Bodies meals are about $15 a meal, depending on how many you order, making it one of the more expensive on the list. The good news is you don't have to subscribe and can place a one-time order, so if you want to stock up on organic, keto meals (and have room in your freezer), you can place a larger order -- which will mean cheaper meals -- and reach for them whenever you need.
Beyond traditional entrees, Ketoned offers a Carnivore Menu for the veggie-phobic with meaty meals such bacon-wrapped pork chops and slow-cooked chicken with cheddar and bacon.
Keto-friendly meals per week: 32
Ketoned Bodies pricing: Meals are between $14 and $16 each.
Green Chef is one of the healthiest meal kit delivery services and caters to an array of designer diets including a keto meal plan for folks looking to cut carbs. With a Green Chef meal kit subscription, you'll find creative keto meal kits such as creamy chicken alfredo with spaghetti squash noodles or za'atar-spiced fried cheese over cauliflower couscous.
These inventive recipes coupled with Green Chef's high-quality, mostly-organic ingredients make for a higher price tag. The Keto or Paleo meal plans start at around $11.50 per serving when you order four meal kits per week with four or more servings per meal. Order fewer meals and things get even pricier, but if you want low-carb meals to make at home and eating organic is important to you, Green Chef is the best option.
Keto-friendly meals kits per week: 9
Green Chef pricing: Keto and paleo meal kit plans are roughly $13 per serving.
The paleo and keto diets have a lot in common, but there are some important distinctions too. If you're more inclined to keep to a paleo plan that allows for healthy foods that may also have a high carb count, like carrots and sweet potatoes, then I'd recommend Pete's. You can still order plenty of low-carb, keto-friendly meals through Pete's Paleo, but it's not the foundational diet plan for this meal delivery service.
I tried several of the service's meals, which arrive frozen, and I was entirely impressed. A slow-cooked pork shoulder with sweet potatoes and celery was super tender, with great flavor. Another win was the moist Mediterranean chicken thigh dinner with olives, served alongside spaghetti squash and cauliflower. This is definitely thoughtfully prepared food made with quality ingredients.
Keto-friendly meals per week: 20-25
Pricing: Pricing is a bit complicated and you have several options, including a one-time order of six keto cauliflower bowls for $77 or a bundle of 10 for $112. There are also some premium a la cart keto and paleo options ranging from $16-$20. These include fancier fare such as braised brisket, skirt steak, pork butt and chicken gumbo.
Or subscribe to Pete's Paleo with weekly plans starting at $80, which will get you five home-cooked paleo meals, each with 5 ounces of protein and 7 ounces of veggies.
FreshlyFit is the healthier offshoot of popular meal delivery service Freshly -- which I also reviewed recently. FreshlyFit features tasty keto and paleo-friendly meals are available for as little as $8.50 a meal when you order 12 meals a week. Even a meal plan with just six meals a week is still less than $10 a meal, making FreshlyFit a great budget pick for anyone looking for healthy keto meals delivered on the regular.
While I didn't love everything I tried from FreshlyFit, most meals were pretty solid. You'll find keto versions of comfort foods such as shepherd's pie with cauliflower mash. I also had a very flavorful chicken with pesto cream sauce and mushrooms and a bison burger with sauteed vegetables.
One thing to like about FreshlyFit is a rotating menu of 23 keto-friendly meals to choose from each week which should keep you from getting bored. Note that steak and other beef entrees generally incur an added cost of $2 ti $3 a meal.
Keto-friendly meals per week: 23
FreshlyFit pricing: Plans start at $8.50 per meal.
Other keto meal delivery services we tried
Factor: This meal service fared well in a taste test but was similar to Fresh N' Lean in both price point and style. Fresh N' Lean was just, well, better. Factor -- sometimes called Factor75 -- is priced between $11 and $15 per meal depending on how many meals you choose. Read our Factor review.
Territory Foods: The portions from this meal delivery service were far too small considering how expensive they are -- as much as $15 a meal -- but they did taste OK. If you're looking for some serious portion control to cut down on calories, this might be a good option. Otherwise, it doesn't seem worth the price.
FlexPro: These frozen keto meals were some of the worst I tried and I would not recommend the service.
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.
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