If the thought of cooking after a long day at work makes you want to tear your hair out, you’re not alone. But now, online dinner kit delivery service UCOOK makes preparing meals a lot more fun. Seriously, my husband is so into it, he checks our subscription each week and takes over the kitchen at dinner time.
So what makes UCOOK different exactly? Well, for starters, you still need to cook. Hang on! Before you sprint away, hear me out.
Each UCOOK delivery contains three meals for the week – with specially designed recipes and all the organic ingredients supplied in the perfect quantities. Meals are categorised into low-carb, rustic or vegetarian with three portion sizes on offer: bachelor, couple or family (for four people).
After a quick registration process, you get to choose from nine different recipes across the three categories. All orders need to be submitted by 12 pm on Wednesday to receive your delivery by the following Monday and recipes are updated each week so you’ll be spoilt for choice. Plus, if you ever want to press pause on your delivery, UCOOK’s got that covered too – with a ‘Pause subscription’ button! Go figure.
After receiving our box, my husband and I couldn’t wait to get started. The recipe cards are beautifully presented with an image, the name of the recipe and the chef who created it, the type of meal, the number of servings and how long it will take to cook. On the reverse, alongside the recipe, there’s even a tip from the chef as well as the number of days you have to cook the ingredients you’ve received (just in case you’ve booked a dinner date elsewhere).
Our first recipe, Moorish-style chickpea and chorizo stew, proved to be a lengthy ordeal since we didn’t read the recipe completely before starting (I splattered tomato everywhere; he didn’t shred the spinach correctly) but it was well worth the effort – we finished every bite!
The next day, the Thai red chicken and butternut curry looked more orange than red but, this time, we followed the instructions to a tee and enjoyed the fruits (or shall we say curry?) of our labours. Yum!
The night of our last meal, I had to dash off but the beau proved he was the man of the house by whipping up spiced aubergine flatbread that, truth be told, I had seconds of – it was just that delicious.
The best part of these meals? My husband and I cooked them together and had loads of fun doing it. Plus, the price tag and free delivery ain’t too bad either (wink, wink).
UCOOK also have a long-standing partnership with Abalimi Bezekhaya Harvest for Hope, a non-profit organisation that trains and sponsors residents in disadvantaged Cape Town neighbourhoods to grow organic vegetables in order to feed themselves and their communities – and, most recently, supply the food industry. So not only will you be saving bucks by staying home to cook a fun and delicious meal, you’ll also be supporting a great cause.
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Contact +27 21 447 4424, [email protected], ucook.co.za
Photography Courtesy image