Healthy meal prep delivery: how to choose a service you can stick with

Fresh or frozen meal prep delivery: which one suits you?

Most services sell one of 2 types. Freshly cooked meals delivered daily need to be eaten soon after they arrive. Frozen ready-to-heat meals come several at a time. You keep them in the freezer and heat one meal whenever you need it.

Neither type is better. It depends on your daily routine. If you are home at regular times and want something new every day, daily delivery works well. If you finish work at different times, or nobody is home to receive food every day, frozen meals are much easier.

CleanFit sells frozen, ready-to-heat meals in vacuum-sealed pouches. They keep for 120 days in the freezer, so one order can last you several weeks.

What nutrition information should a service show for each meal?

At the very least, a service should tell you the calories, protein, carbohydrates and fat in each meal. If it lists sugar too, even better. A photo and a dish name cannot tell you whether a meal fits your goals.

A common mistake is not checking whether the numbers include rice. Some services sell meals with rice, others sell the main dish only, so you cannot compare their numbers directly. At CleanFit, every meal is the main dish only, with no rice. You decide how much rice or other carbs to add for your own goals.

How much you need per meal depends on your sex, age, weight and activity level. As an example, a weight-loss plan eaten with rice comes to around 350–450 kcal per meal, with 30–40 g protein, 5–10 g fat and 25–35 g carbs. For your own numbers, try this calorie calculator or read how much protein you need per day. Both pages are in Thai.

Does it deliver to your area, and when will it arrive?

Good food is no use if it cannot reach you, or arrives when nobody is home. Before you pay, check the delivery area, the day and time it arrives, and the delivery fee.

For frozen food, also check how it is shipped. It should still be cold when it reaches you, and the longer the trip, the more it needs transport that keeps it cold. This is how CleanFit delivers.

• In Bangkok and nearby provinces, Lalamove (a courier app) delivers every day except Saturday, and you can choose a time slot.
• Other provinces get temperature-controlled DHL delivery, Monday to Friday. You usually receive it the day after it leaves our kitchen. Remote areas may take longer.
• The delivery fee depends on your address, and you see it before you pay.
• To change your delivery date, message us at least 1 day before the delivery day.

Full details are on the delivery information page.

What makes a meal “clean”, and how do you check ingredients and cooking?

In Thailand you will often see healthy meals sold as “clean food”, but the word has no fixed definition. It usually means ingredients with little processing, little oil and light seasoning. A dish name cannot tell you any of this, so it is better to ask the service directly. For example:

• Do you cook with oil? If so, how much?
• Do you add MSG, sugar or preservatives?
• Does your food meet Thai FDA standards, and who designs the menu?
• If I have a food allergy, can I see the ingredients?

CleanFit uses no cooking oil, no MSG, no added sugar and no preservatives. Freezing keeps the food fresh instead. A nutritionist designs the menu, and the food meets Thai FDA standards. If you have a food allergy, always ask the service's team about ingredients before you order, wherever you buy.

Also look at how many dishes there are. With only a few choices, you get bored fast. CleanFit now has 38 dishes with chicken, pork, noodles, fish and shrimp, and you choose every meal yourself. See the full menu with nutrition facts.

What is a fair price per meal for meal prep delivery?

Do not look at the pack price alone. First work out the price per meal, then add delivery and any extra charge for certain dishes. Then compare that number with what you get, such as protein per meal, whether rice is included, and the time you save by not cooking.

Pork and noodle dishes cost ฿10 more per meal, and fish and shrimp dishes ฿15 more. If you want to try the food first, there is a 9-meal trial pack for ฿540, which you can only order by chat.

How do you read meal prep reviews you can trust?

A star rating alone tells you little. Look at the number of reviews, the recent ones, and reviews about the things you care about, such as whether the food still tastes good after heating, whether it was packed well and whether it arrived on time.

• There are enough reviews, and they are not all from one short period
• Customers post real photos, not only advertising photos
• The service replies to negative reviews and helps fix the problem
• The service has been open for a long time, and customers come back to order again

CleanFit started in 2014. We have more than 100,000 customers, have delivered more than 2 million meals, and have over 10,000 regular customers, with an average review score of 5.0 from more than 10,000 reviews on Shopee. You can read them on our reviews page, and check our refund policy before you order.

A 10-point checklist before you order meal prep delivery

Before you order, go through the list one point at a time. If a service passes almost all of them, you can probably keep ordering from it for a long time without being disappointed.

1. Calories, protein, carbs and fat are clearly listed for each meal
2. You know whether the nutrition numbers include rice
3. The service explains how it cooks, including whether it uses oil and adds MSG, sugar or preservatives
4. The food meets Thai FDA standards, and you can ask about ingredients if you have an allergy
5. There are enough dishes, and you can choose your own
6. It delivers to your area, and you know the delivery day before you pay
7. For frozen food, it is shipped in a way that keeps it cold
8. Shelf life, storage and heating instructions are clear
9. The price per meal, with delivery and extra charges added, fits your budget
10. There are many real reviews, and it is easy to contact the service if you need to change a delivery or have a problem

To order on the CleanFit website, choose a pack, choose your dishes and enter your address to see the delivery date. Then pay by Thai QR or credit/debit card. You can also order through LINE @cleanfit or Messenger and pay by bank transfer or PromptPay. The full steps are on how to order.