EATING IN

Hilary Biller puts two dining-in initiatives to the test.

Founded by Christopher Verster-Cohen, it’s a dinner-kit delivery service where the customer does the cooking.

UCOOK:

A great idea for inspiring people to cook without any hassle — no shopping and little prep as everything is measured out and each dish comes with a recipe card. There’s no compromise on the quality of ingredients.

UCOOK:

They offer a varied selection of meal kits categorised under Easy Peasy, Health Nut and Vegetarian. They have collaborated with musician and My Kitchen Rules South Africa judge J’Something till mid-August, featuring his Portuguese recipes and other favourites.

UCOOK:

I had my money on J’Something and ordered three of his meal kits — caldo verde soup, which came with a large bunch of fresh kale and imported chorizo sausage; rump steak and winter greens spaghetti; and a pork sandwich in a roll with carrot chips. There’s no food wastage as the kits contain the exact amounts to make the meal. Top marks for the kit, which arrives beautifully packaged in an insulated cardboard box, with cooler bricks and a recipe card. Niggle? It takes about five days from ordering to delivery.

UCOOK:

A box of three meals — as I enjoyed — containing two portions of each costs R630 including delivery. Available in all big cities.

FROZEN FOR YOU:

Launched by Karen Short, founder of the By Word of Mouth catering company, it offers a selection of frozen prepared meals that are ordered online and delivered (to certain areas) or collected at their store.

FROZEN FOR YOU:

The promise is a “frozen fresh” wholesome homestyle selection of meals that can simply be heated from frozen in the tray or container. Excellent standby option to have in the freezer.

FROZEN FOR YOU:

A seasonal menu that offers a selection of dishes. Lots of lovely wintry ideas with chicken, beef, fish, lamb, vegetarian, pasta and soups. And some desserts too.

FROZEN FOR YOU:

They offer a good mix of family favourites. I ordered a bobotie, fish pie and coq au vin, which was the highlight. It was a generous portion of succulent chicken in a rich wine gravy and I loved the big mushrooms and bacon in the dish.

Ordering online is a cinch and efficient. My order arrived the next morning, everything frozen and labelled. Niggle? The bobotie was quite sloppy.

FROZEN FOR YOU:

Meals range from around R88 for bobotie (640g) and R140 for coq au vin (640g) to R160 for an 800g fish pie. Delivery is R40 extra (in and around Gauteng) or visit their store in Dainfern.