Huel Ready-to-drink v2.0 Review
In this review, we take a look at Huel's ready-to-drink complete meals and how they can support your workouts
Have you been searching for a drink that can act as a meal replacement?
It can be tricky trying to combine fitness and nutrition when our lives are so busy and you don’t always have time to do meal prep.
You may find yourself taking the easy option on the way to work and stopping by your local cafe or chain to grab a quick bite.
However, there are a number of British companies who offer meal replacement drinks that are “ready-to-drink”.
Website: uk.huel.com
Heul are perhaps the best-known company for providing nutritionally complete food in a convenient drink format.
In this article, we’re going to take a look at Huel, how their Ready-to-drink meals work, what recipes they have on offer, what we thought about their products and what other customers have to say.
Editor's note: The content on this website is meant to be informative in nature, but it should not be taken as medical advice. Our articles and the products featured in them are not intended for use as diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment of health problems. Always speak with a certified medical professional before making any changes to your lifestyle, diet, exercise routine, and/or taking any supplements.
Huel – The Basics
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
Huel was created by Julian Hearn in 2015 to make nutritionally complete, convenient, affordable food, with minimal impact on animals and the environment.
They currently offer six products within their range – Powder, Black Edition, Complete Protein, Hot & Savoury, Ready-to-drink and bars.
For the purposes of this review, we’ll be focussing on their Ready-to-drink product.
A bottle of Huel Ready-to-drink contains all 26 essential vitamins and minerals, carbohydrates, protein, fat, fibre and phytonutrients.
Their website explains that each meal provides the right amount of protein, essential fats, carbohydrates, fibre, vitamins and minerals to promote an active and healthy lifestyle.
Huel go on to add that they’ve added slow-release carbs to provide sustained energy throughout the day, and that their drinks contain Omega 3 and 6 and 22g of plant-based protein. These low-sugar drinks are also made with soluble and insoluble fibre to promote a healthy digestive system.
Huel point out on their website that their drinks are only 5 per cent sugar, low in salt, gluten-free and vegan friendly.
What I like about Huel is their transparency – their packaging clearly states their ingredients and nutritional information with a simple design so you know exactly what you’re consuming.
How Huel Works
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
Huel Ready-to-drink is a convenient way to replace one of your daily meals seeing as their bottled range has been designed to provide complete nutrition.
You start by visiting Huel’s website and selecting 12 bottles for your box – they’ve got variety box or you can select specific recipes.
They offer Vanilla, Banana, Strawberries & Cream, Berry, Salted Caramel, Iced Coffee Caramel and Salted Caramel.
Once you’ve made your selection, you can select your delivery frequency. They offer a lot of flexibility as you can make a one-time purchase or choose to receive frequent deliveries ranging from every week to every 10 weeks.
After selecting your plan, you’ll have to head to the checkout and enter your payment details. At the time of writing, Huel offer a free t-shirt for new customers.
At this stage, you can also try more of the Huel range if you’d like to give any of their other products a try alongside the Ready-to-drink bottles.
Price And Where To Buy
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
At the time of writing, a Huel Ready-to-drink subscription starts at £36.50 per box. However, the price will depend on the recipe and whether you sign up to their subscription plan or make a one-off purchase.
You can save 10 per cent by signing up to regular deliveries and you can get free deliveries provided your subscription plan surpasses £40.
Huel customers are able to update details, skip a delivery and cancel their subscription by logging into their account on the company’s website.
Our Verdict
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
As someone who likes to do a fasted workout in the morning, I like to have a smoothie or some overnight oats once I’m done.
So Huel Ready-to-drink was a convenient alternative that I could grab from the fridge straight after my workout. That’s the great thing about Huel Ready-to-drink – there’s no preparation involved, you just grab and go!
I found this Huel product did satisfy my appetite and kept me going until lunch and beyond.
I tested every flavour within their Ready-to-drink range and I was impressed with the taste. The flavours were pleasantly surprising – banana was my favourite and berry was my least favourite.
They’ve got some fun flavours such as Iced Coffee, Salted Caramel and Cinnamon Swirl, all of which tasted delicious.
The texture of the shake was smooth and it didn’t taste like some protein shakes that can have an artificial flavour. It tastes clean, which I liked.
I could easily see myself signing up for a subscription if life is particularly crazy and I want to save time by enjoying Huel rather than having to meal prep at the weekend or make a smoothie after a workout.
It’s also good that Huel’s bottles are fully recyclable and made from 51 per cent recycled plastic.
What Customers Have To Say About Huel
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
Huel have an average rating of 4.5 stars based upon nearly 13,000 reviews on Trustpilot. At the time of writing, 89 per cent of their reviews are either five or four star.
Cameron admitted that the Ready-to-drink are a little pricey but worth the cost.
“I recently purchased my first order from Huel. I’d tried their bottled shakes from various supermarkets, but to save money, I decided to place an order for their meal replacement powder. It’s a little pricey, at least at first. The breakdown of the cost comes to between £1.50 – £2 per shake/meal, which isn’t too bad. But other than that, I have zero complaints.”
Jamie was impressed with Huel’s flavour compared to their competitors.
“I’ve tried lots of different shakes – the ones claiming to be natural tasted awful and the ones that tasted nice were loaded with sugars and sweetness. Enter Huel. Taste amazing, don’t make you bloated and you look forward to them. On top of this, the Huel team are awesome! Really helpful and quick to respond.”
Fred revealed that Huel successfully managed to change his mind!
“I was exceptionally sceptical regarding it, mostly on the basis of it ‘another meal replacement item’. However, reading into it and actually trying it, it works for me. I use the shakes as a mid morning thing instead of snacking or just being hungry and I’ve found I have more energy come mid afternoon ready for the gym. I eat better at lunch as I’m not choosing items when Hangry, and the flavours are pretty palatable.”
Anything Else To Consider?
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
On their website, Huel describe this product as a “low-carbon food”. What does that mean? Well, Huel say that the food industry is responsible for as much as 26 per cent of all human-created greenhouse emissions.
Because of this, Huel are trying to be transparent about their carbon footprint – and on their site, they say that Huel Ready-to-drink has a smaller carbon footprint than a host of other common food products.
Wrapping Up – Our Final Thoughts
Huel Ready-to-drink complete meals (Photo: The Sport Review)
We’ve reached the end of Huel Ready-to-drink review.
Their range provide delicious, complete and affordable meals in a bottle that can be stored in your fridge for when your ready to consume.
Each bottle contains at least 20g of protein as well as 26 essential vitamins and minerals, carbohydrates, protein, fat, fibre.
Their Ready-to-drink range is gluten free and free of animals products.
By signing up to their subscription, you can save 10 per cent and save yourself time so you can be fuelled whether you want Huel for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
