We’ve all heard this tip before – flavor isn’t the only thing to look for in a meal replacement. And this tip is there because it’s true. From the macronutrient ratio to the ingredient sources, many factors matter more than flavor. Flavor shouldn’t be ignored, though.
A meal replacement is a pillar that supports your diet. And delicious taste is a strong incentive to take it consistently – getting the nutrients you need in time. This won’t happen if your meal replacement tastes like crap. But are there any meal replacements that actually taste good? Look no further than the ones below.
IdealShake by IdealShape
Designed for curbing hunger in a natural way, IdealShake boasts a tasteful selection of flavors. Among them are the time-tested Chocolate, Vanilla, and Strawberry flavors. And several flavors for the dieters with slightly more exquisite tastes. They are Mocha, Cookies ‘N Cream, Mint Chocolate Chip, Salted Caramel, Chocolate Coconut, Snickerdoodle, Key Lime Pie, and Pumpkin Spice. On top of them, IdealShake features two additional flavors for its dedicated vegan formulas: Vanilla Chai and Mocha.
Fantastic. But what’s the caveat?
Sadly, except for its vegan formulas, IdealShake uses both natural and artificial flavors in its blend. Its non-vegan formulas also come with artificial sweeteners: sucralose and acesulfame potassium. As most research suggests, these artificial substances are excitotoxic and damage health. Does IdealShake taste well? Absolutely. But it doesn’t achieve its flavors in a healthy way.
Finally, the texture of IdealShake isn’t super smooth. It certainly calls for mixing in some milk.
All-in-One Nutritional Shake by Orgain
This meal replacement comes in four flavors: Creamy Chocolate Fudge, Sweet Vanilla Bean, Iced Cafe Mocha, and Strawberries & Cream. It also has two other flavors to tap into – Smooth Chocolate and Vanilla Bean – if you prefer Orgain’s vegan blend. And all these flavors taste delicious and authentic.
How so?
Because Orgain uses only natural ingredients from organic sources to flavor its meal replacements. And it sweetens them with real-food components too: organic brown rice syrup and organic cane sugar. To top it all off, Orgain contains high-oleic sunflower oil that ensures an extra smooth texture.
Raw Organic Meal by Garden of Life
With its one-of-a-kind vegan formula, made exclusively from raw organic plant-based ingredients, Raw Organic meal is healthful. And it’s just as flavorful. The supplement has Chocolate Cacao, Vanilla, Vanilla Spiced Chai, and Lightly Sweet flavors available.
All Raw Organic Meal flavors come from real-food organic sources. They’re also sweetened with natural ingredients like organic erythritol, organic stevia extract, and organic cane sugar.
Texture is the only drawback of Raw Organic Meal when it comes to taste. Its blend is low in fat but high in protein and fiber. This makes shakes anything but smooth. An easy and delicious fix is adding some almond milk.
Svelte by CalNaturale
Featuring three flavors – French Vanilla, Cappuccino, and Chocolate – Svelte meal replacement shakes are organic and vegan. Their authentic taste comes from clean real foods, like organic vanilla extract, organic coffee, and organic cocoa powder. And their sweetness stems from organic natural sweeteners, such as organic dried cane syrup and organic stevia extract.
As a result, Svelte meal replacements are rich in sweetness and flavor.
And thanks to its decent fat content, Svelte comes with creamy texture – even though it’s dairy-free.
SlimFast Shakes and Shake Mixes by SlimFast
SlimFast meal replacement shakes and shake mixes come in a whopping number of flavors. The company offers five distinct formulas: Original, Advanced Nutrition, Advanced Energy, Keto, and Diabetic Weight Loss. And across them all, SlimFast has over 15 flavors in total. Some of them even sound delicious: Rich Chocolate Royale, Strawberries & Cream, Caramel Latte, Fudge Brownie Batter, Vanilla Milkshake.
What’s the catch, though?
Except for SlimFast Keto shake mixes, SlimFast meal replacements use artificial ingredients for flavoring and sweetening. Among them are such known excitotoxins as acesulfame potassium, sucralose, and aspartame. These substances make shakes flavorful but undermine health.
Soylent Drinks and Powders by Soylent
Soylent is a plant-based meal replacement with a decent range of flavors. Soylent drinks come in Original, Cacao, Mint Chocolate, Vanilla, and Strawberry flavors. And Soylent powders are available in either Original or Cacao flavor only.
Soylent’s minimalism applies to its taste as well: it isn’t extraordinary and has some mixed reviews. On top of that, Soylent uses partially artificial flavors and it also relies on sucralose as a sweetener.
Ready-to-Drink Soup by FAWEN
FAWEN is a light meal replacement drink that consists of plant-based and organically sourced ingredients. Making for an ideal vegan snack, FAWEN comes in three flavor versions. They are: Beet & Cabbage with Cumin, Broccoli & Cauliflower with Turmeric, and Sweet Potato & Red Lentil with Cinnamon. FAWEN doesn’t offer many flavors. But all its blends taste natural and real.
Lite Protein by Designer Protein
This meal replacement by Designer Protein is essentially a light protein shake. It offers two flavors only: Chocolate Cookies & Cream and Vanilla Cupcake. Either of them comes out smooth and delicious when used with milk. Both flavors, however, use artificial flavors and sucralose.
Whole Food Meal Replacement Shakes by Yumtrition
Flavored with whole food ingredients and sweetened naturally with stevia extract, Yumtrition meal replacements are tasty and healthful. And they come in three delicious flavors: Caribbean Sunrise, Dark Chocolate, and Tahitian Vanilla. Yumtrition’s meal replacements are low in fat, though. But adding a bit of milk makes their somewhat rough texture a lot smoother.
Ultra-Low Carb Meal Replacement Shake Mixes by Keto Chow
Keto Chow makes meal replacements that help sustain ketosis. And the company does so tastefully, offering more than 15 flavors to select from. They include the classic Chocolate, Banana, Vanilla, and Strawberry flavors. Chocolate lovers would appreciate the Chocolate Peanut Butter, Chocolate Mint, Chocolate Toffee, and Mocha flavors. And the picky dieters have Orange Cream, Pumpkin Spice Caramel, Snickerdoodle, Raspberry Cheesecake, and other more exquisite flavors to explore. Sadly, many of them contain sucralose and artificial flavors.
