When we were asked to review some ready made meals, by Ilumi, we jumped at the chance. As I have written about, before, we have struggled with finding pre packaged food, for when we need something quick and convenient, that is gluten free and also dairy free, and that my husband, and son can eat. I know other people with food intolerances struggle with this too. Close inspection of packaging is often required and finding stuff that is tasty and edible can also be challenging.
I asked LSH to taste test the food items that were sent to us, and we mainly used them for him to take to work, and to have in a particularly busy week, when I was eating out and he would be eating alone, in the evenings, meaning I didn’t have to cook and he could eat when he wanted to.
He enjoyed the fact that the meals were tasty, and full of flavour, and a good portion size. I think most of the meal packs, at approx 200-300g size are ideal for a main meal for one person, possibly two depending on the meal, and what it was served with, but he said he felt they were a good portion size for one person.
They are easy to prepare, they can be microwaved, or in our case, because our microwave has died, and we haven’t replaced it yet, heated in a pan on the stove. The sachets are easy to open, and convenient to pack in a bag to take to work for lunch, and because they don’t need to be refrigerated, can be stored easily, which is useful, I would keep a pack or two in the pantry, for those “Just in case” or “oops, I haven’t meal planned well, and need something fast” moments.
The website is very user friendly, we both had a look around, and we really like the fact that they promise all their products are gluten, nut and milk free. Reassuring to know, and handy, because often a lot of gluten free products can contain dairy products, which then rules them out, as suitable, for us, as we try to eat gluten and dairy free, or most of the time, I feed Charles and Matthew gluten and dairy free.
When I asked, LSH chose the Chicken Cacciatora as his favourite of the meals we were sent, you can see he ate it with a jacket potato, and he also enjoyed the Chilli con Carne with rice, as well, and he would be happy to take those to work, to have for lunch, or to keep in his desk, if for some reason, he wasn’t able to get get a lunch break and needed to rummage quickly for an easy meal.
I would say, if you are looking for quick, tasty, convenient, and suitable for a dairy and gluten free (and nut, as well) meal, that these would be a quick and easy option, and we will definitely be stocking up on some of their products. Eating a dairy free, gluten free lifestyle can be challenging, so having meals to go, that we can trust and know we will enjoy, is always a good thing.
*we were sent some Ilumi products to try, and all thoughts and opinion are our own. Links provided to the Ilumi product site*
This blog post was originally shared on another blog, last year. Edited and updated.