What are your thoughts on meal replacement shakes and associated services (CW: probably some talk about dairy products)

I bought a bag of monkey chow like from the meme. It's fine but you had to dip it in hummus cause it is dry.

Meal replacements are overrated. Just get a big bag of protein powder from Costco. Mix in whatever other powder you can find and you are set. Better product, probably easier and cheaper to work with. Then just have a multivitamin and a muffin occasionally and you have the superior version of the experience

If you look at the ingredients on all these it's basically just oats, protein powder and a crushed up multivitamin. Silicon Valley basically re-invented gruel/porridge.

Recently I've been making myself smoothies for breakfast, they're pretty easy to make and the keep me feeling sated until lunch rolls around

Here's what I put in them (CW not vegan but could probably be vegan very easily)

A banana A spoon of peanut butter A spoon of Greek yogurt Some rolled oats (I just shake in what looks like a half cup) As much spinach as you want A splash/glug of milk (adjust to desired consistency)

I just chuck everything in a blender and blend till smooth. No idea what the calories are like but it feels healthy to me

I'm a staunch "the best bachelor chow is a can of beans and maybe throw some shit in there" unless your disability prevents you from eating beans

I definitely do that, but I'm concerned I'm not getting the right amount of nutrients when I do that
- Soy milk smoothies with whatever veggies and frozen fruit you like might be the best way to go. The soymilk is often fortified and the fruits/veggies should be good for the rest of the vitamins.
- Is adding potatoes and frozen veggies an option? Both can be just tossed in the microwave and combined with beans would make a pretty nutritionally complete meal. A bit light on protein and maybe calories depending on how much you can eat of it, but then you could supplement that with protein shakes which come a lot cheaper than meal replacement ones

I am audhd and all my life been enjoying some form of these mostly for breakfast/lunch/before a workout, because I often either forget to eat or just don't feel like it, can't be arsed or am not hungry until later in the day.

I love that these are no longer just diet foods with incredibly low calories, lots of diet culture marketing and stuff that can easily slip into ED territory. In the past I would use a marker to cover especially triggering slogans and stuff from the packages as I have a history with this stuff. But these days you can buy decent vegan options that actually hold you over and have enough energy to be a proper meal.

I mostly buy a vegan meal replacement one that has plant based proteins, vitamins, fiber, probiotics and even digestive enzymes added to it and it surprisingly isn't that expensive, I buy it when it's on sale. My go-to flavour is chocolate and I always just mix it with water.

Nowadays I also like eating smoothies with vegan protein after I discovered those go-to smoothie machines where you make the smoothie straight into the bottle and there is no other washing apart from rinsing the blade. (I still do the meal replacement shake on my 100% no spoons days). I also recommend this for easy meals. Just get some plant based protein powder, oat milk, frozen berriers or fruit, some flax meal or psyllium husk for fiber and a sweetener. I typically do mine with frozen lingonberries, banana, psyllium and flax seeds, strawberry flavored protein powder, oat milk, vanilla & sweetener. It is about 350-400 calories, almost all of my daily dietary fiber and lots of protein & omega 3s. I take a probiotic with it as my tummy gives me a lot of grief these days (thanks covid).

I was struggling with depression and ADHD really badly last year, so much that I didn't enjoy eating or cooking anymore, and I usually love both of those things. So I decided to give Huel a try, as a way to start taking care of myself, and as an experiment for my own work (I'm a food scholar and this whole food simulacra stuff is interesting to me as a field)

The shakes aren't horrible taste-wise, but don't expect something really tasty either... They taste mostly like vaguely flavored oatmeal that's been passed through a blender. My main issue with the shakes is that I didn't feel really full after having one, and I would feel hungry 2-3 hours later, and each shake is 400 calories, so I could end up having 1200 calories from shakes alone.

I also had the hot meal thing where you pour boiling water on a couple scoops of what is essentially astronaut food. Everything they do is vegan, and I gotta say, some dishes are pretty good, like their carbonara or the green curry. Spaghetti bolognese tasted like eating undercooked pasta with tomato and cough syrup sauce, 0/10. I vastly preferred these because one portion will fill you up for a long time, and because I personally like savory things more than sweets.

That being said, Huel is 90% marketing and convenience. You can find very similar products for a fraction of the price, or if you're willing to save a lot of money, just substitute what they have for separate, analogous products and make your own ready to eat shakes (you would just have to take a multivitamin and a fiber capsule) with a protein shake more or less.

I still have some bags of huel shakes that I have when I remember they exist. But I can have way more delicious food for a fraction of the price by spending 5-10 minutes more in the kitchen, so it doesn't really come to mind these days. Of course, I understand not everyone is able to do that, and those kinds of foods are great for that situation.

The lack of safety is just based on glutamate and fiber yeah?
- Sorry I don't think I understand what you mean... The shakes and savory meals are supposed to have plenty of fiber, and tbh I never had issues going to the toilet while I was eating them often, so I believe it. As for sodium/glutamate, idk to be honest. I'd have to check the ingredient list or the nutrition facts.

i had to drink them for a week while recovering from gut surgery
they were fine, the strawberry one was nice, but the coffee one tasted awful
i don't remember the brand, the hospital just gave me like a crate of them

is there something you can grab at the grocery store/with your regular grocery order like "Ensure" instead? the "services" you gotta watch out for rate hikes

regardless even if shipping raises the cost if you're doing better than ordering out ($10+ a meal probably?) then a small win is still a win.

Plus, if you're planning on replacing most or all your meals with huel you're likely to get free shipping. They give you free shipping for something like over 70 dollars a month, which is about one shake bag and two hot food bags.
I swear I'm not shilling for Huel. If anything the company and it's clientele seems to be kind of techbro-coded, and that shit makes me very suspicious of it.

i can't really stomach solid food until mid day at the earliest (so i basically fast most of the day)

set up a good routine using those instant breakfast packs (they are basically a multivitamin, protein, and some carbs), adding some collagen for my old ass skin and joints and a scoop of protein powder. then highly diluted milk or just water as a base.

i guzzle it down on my way to work and it's been better then the alternative (which was nothing, followed by grueling physical labor)

rough guess is each liter i mix up costs about $1-1.50 or so but the upfront cost was kind of high (about $50 but lasts 4 weeks)

meal replacements is capitalism cashing in on the eating disorders it itself has created. get like a can of ravioli or soup or whatever

Mostly good for if you have strict dietary needs

I am also disabled and am frequently too incapacitated to cook for myself. I also have a whole host of foods that trigger my migraines, so it's nice to have a backup option in case I've been precluded from partaking in any communal meal. Meal replacements are a godsend for me.

My partner had their top teeth pulled and had to eat soft food for months. They did meal replacement drinks, but found it didn't completely work for them. It was good for boosting calorie intake, but they still felt hungry without some other food.

I tried the huel curry. It was really good with some extra salt.