When we were young, we always thought that life would slow down when we entered the nine-to-five world and that there would be more than enough hours in the day to do everything that we wanted, and needed to. We were wrong. Time isn’t on any of our sides, and if anything, the older we get, the faster life gets. The time that we thought we’d have? It’s nearly non-existent, which makes finding a few minutes to create a paleo-centric menu, let alone the time we need to shop for the ingredients almost impossible.
And that’s before we manage to get around to actually preparing any of the meals on the menu that we haven’t been able to fashion because there just aren’t enough hours in the day. Trying to follow a paleo diet in the frantic modern world, is a Herculean task of epic proportions.
But we’re probably not telling you anything that you didn’t already know or hadn’t become aware of as you slowly, but surely, discovered the same time-centric pitfalls that we did. Like us, you probably weren’t ready to give up and give in without a fight, because when your health and well-being are on the line, you’ll do whatever you can to ensure that nothing compromises them.
And when we found ourselves in the same paleo position that you’re in now, and things seemed to be at their absolute darkest, that’s when we discovered the solution to all of our paleo and time woes.
The Paleo Frozen Food And TV Dinner Mission
That was when we discovered that there are companies that produce microwave, frozen and ready-to-order meals that adhere to the strictest paleo guidelines. They were, and are a lifeline that helped us to navigate our way through the choppiest waters that our dietary requirements had ever led us into, and without them who knows what might have happened.
Because we want to spare you our angst and misfortune, we’re going to tell you about six of the best paleo-friendly meal manufacturers whose products you can either order directly from them or find in your local store. They quite literally saved our dietary lives and made it possible to cope with all the demands that our professional and personal lives made without having to sacrifice any of our dietary choices.
We fervently believe that these companies can help you the way that they helped us, and that’s why we decided to tell anyone and everyone who might find themselves in the same position that we did about the options that are readily available if you know where to find them. All of the companies follow a strict set of paleo guidelines when they create their meals, and every single one of them adheres to rules that we set down before we began looking for paleo-friendly frozen meals.
Paleo-Friendly Frozen Meals And Where To Find Them
Before we start, we think it’s important to take a minute to tell you about the criteria that we used to find the six companies that we’re going to talk about. We made sure that all of the companies we chose only use organic, high-quality ingredients, that they don’t forgo quality in order to pursue profit and that at least some of their products are available in the freezer aisles of supermarkets.
Admittedly, the meals aren’t as easy to find as they should be in an ideal world, and that’s why the six golden children of paleo meal production on our list will also ship directly to you and have a mail order service available on their websites. That’s about it, those were the rules we used, so it’s probably about time that we got down to business and started to tell you all about the paleo-friendly companies that might just change your life.
Grandcestors
There’s something immediately familiar and comfortable about Grandcestors meals, as they look like the microwave, TV dinners that your mom used to serve when she’d roll in from a late shift at work. The packaging and the way they look have that classic early turn of the millennium feel, which means that as soon as you’ve got one of their meals in your hand instinct will kick in, and you’ll flip it over and start reading the “how to cook it in microwave” instructions.
But that’s where the similarity to the plastic, preservative, factory-produced meals of yesteryear ends, as even though you can cook Grandcestors meals in your microwave, they’re nothing like a traditional microwave meal.
This Colorado based company ensures that all of their meals are macronutrionally balanced (which means that they include the perfect combination of fats, produce, and protein) and that all of the ingredients that they use are sourced from organic producers. They subscribe to the paleo school of thought, and the logo on the front of all their packaging confirms their belief in doing things the paleo way.
Pros- There are a lot of things to like, and even love about Grandcestors. They only use the best quality ingredients, their meals are nutritionally balanced, and the fact that they offer six different options (including Jambalaya, Colorado Hash, Grumbo, Chicken Tikka Masala, and more) means that you’ll be able to have a different menu option Monday to Saturday. We figure that you’ll probably take the time to make something from scratch on Sunday, which is why we didn’t include it. And, best of all, their meals are available in the frozen aisles of Bristol Farms, Lazy Acres, and Whole Foods,
Cons – The bad news is that unless you live in California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, New Mexico, Utah, or Washington, you won’t be able to find any of their products in your branches of the aforementioned stores, as they don’t ship to those states. And the even worse news is that since the start of the COVID pandemic, Grandcestors has stopped their online ordering system, so you can’t buy any of their meals directly from the company anymore. That means that unless you know someone who does live in one of the aforementioned states and is willing to ship Grandcestors meals to you, you’re not going to be able to enjoy any of the six paleo dinners that they make.
Beetnik Foods
A Texan brand with a passion for organic produce, Beetnik is one of the few companies that have managed to make TV dinners and microwave meals healthy. They don’t believe that profit should dictate best practice and only use USDA-approved organic ingredients in all of their meals. But that doesn’t mean that they haven’t dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to creating the sort of menus that would make Michelin winning chefs seethe with jealousy. Beetnik has a more extensive and wide-ranging menu than Grandcestors do, and it’s helped them to win a legion of fans who’ll only eat a TV dinner if it has the Beetnik name on the box.
The size of their menu isn’t the only thing that’s slightly more impressive than Grandcestors, as their distribution chain is far larger, and their products can be found in all fifty states, as long as you know where to look. And the best place to start is in the frozen aisle of Walmart. That’s right, you can actually find paleo-friendly frozen meals in Walmart, and it’s all thanks to Beetnik. We know, we were shocked when we found that out as well, and it’s taken us a while to get over it.
Pros – Every ingredient in Beetnik meals is approved by the USDA and certified as being one hundred percent organic. They only use the best possible ingredients and while that means that their meals are far from cheap, at least you know that you won’t be sacrificing your health for the sake of a few dollars. And, regardless of where you live, you should be able to find Beetnik frozen meals in a store near you. If they don’t carry them in your local Walmart, don’t worry as Beetnik meals are available from nearly four thousand different locations in America. So, the chances are, you’ll be able to find somewhere that carries their menu.
If you can’t, you can always order any item from the Beetnik menu directly from Gourmet kitchen who will ship your chosen meals directly to your door. That’s not all, because if your order comes to more than seventy-five dollars, the shipping fees are free, so you’ll only be paying for the food you eat and won’t be slipping a few extra dollars in the pocket of your mailman.
Cons – It isn’t all good news though, as here are some items on Beetnik’s menu that aren’t paleo-friendly. While we can vouch for the Chicken Meatballs, the Beef Meatballs, the Chicken Stew, and the Moroccan Chicken Stew, some of the other meals that they make don’t come with our stamp of paleo approval. If there is something on their menu that takes your fancy, our best advice is to find out as much as you can about the ingredient list of that item and thoroughly check it before you order, or buy it. We’re not trying to rain on your, or Beatniks parade, we just think that it’s important for you to check every meal as thoroughly as possible in case an ingredient or two slips through the net and catches you by surprise. It’s happened to us before now and it will undoubtedly happen to us again.
The Good Kitchen
Founded on a similar set of principles to the paleo ideology, that everyone should be given the choice to eat lean, healthy, and clean and be in charge of exactly what does and doesn’t go into their own bodies, the Good Kitchen is all about creating wholesome, organic meals that are easy to heat and delicious to eat. The Good Kitchen believes food is about more than just fueling the engine and creating the energy that you need to get through each and every day. They believe that food, just like everything in life, should be a journey of self-improvement and that each and every meal can help you to be better than you were before, both physically and mentally.
We were sold on the Good Kitchen philosophy which also firmly believes in variety and constantly rotates its weekly menu according to which seasonal organic ingredients are available. Again, they don’t believe that just because someone wants to eat well, and follows a strictly controlled diet, that they should be limited by menu choice. Best of all though, the Good Kitchen has a full paleo option available on its meal planner and menu choice so that you know that whatever you order from them, will be fully paleo compliant.
Pros – The Good Kitchen was founded on the basis that everyone who wanted to, should be able to eat healthy and well, and all of the ingredients that they use in their meals are one hundred percent organic. They don’t cut corners or make sacrifices in order to reduce quality and increase profit, they don’t have to, as their loyal, and demanding customer base is continually growing. And the Good Kitchen also offers a full paleo menu that you pick and choose from when you’re ordering your meals, so you’ll know that whatever you eat will always be fully compliant.
Cons – The positives far outweigh the only negative that might put you off using the Good Kitchen. They don’t have a supermarket or store distribution network and all of your meals have to be ordered directly from them. That said, their ordering and delivery service is incredibly efficient and as long as you order enough meals to see you through a week, you’ll always have a ready supply of paleo-friendly, easy to heat, and delicious-to-eat meals in your fridge. It’s an elegant, straightforward, and simple to use service.
Paleo On The Go
As their name suggests, Paleo On The Go was founded to help you, and every other paleo devotee in the country find an answer to the work-life balance that suited and suits them. Every single item on their menu, and that’s a lot of different dishes that include entrees and desserts and all sorts of wonderful snacks and other delicious treats, was designed to be paleo compliant.
David Rohde, the company’s founder was, and is a firm believer in the paleo diet and throughout his many years of adhering to it has discovered and embraced the many health benefits that it’s afforded and given him. And because he knows it works, he started his own paleo company to encourage others to follow his lead, eat cleanly and become healthy.
Paleo On The Go is all about transparency, and they’re more than happy to share the list of their organic suppliers with their customers so that you’ll know exactly where your food is coming from and what you’re putting into your body at all times. And whether you want to order a couple of meals to try them out and see what all the fuss is about or are ready to fully subscribe to their model and order a month’s worth of meals at a time. Paleo On The Go has multiple ordering options to suit every budget, appetite, and choice of menu.
Pros – We are fans of the ordering system that lets you set up your orders to suit your lifestyle. You can chop and change your order as and how you want to whenever you want to, right up until the moment it’s packed. One of the things that we love the most about Paleo On The Go (apart from their absolutely divine AIP bakery, but that’s another story for another day and we’d rather leave it up to you to discover for yourself), is that they ship everything with FedEx and nothing ever takes longer than three days to arrive. It’s a paleo fanatics dream made manifest.
Cons – We can literally find no fault with the company. They haven’t let us down or disappointed us and everyone else that we know who has used them is also thoroughly satisfied with the service. If we were pushed to find something that we could point a derisory finger at, it would be that they’re a mail-order company and that we wish we could find their meals in the supermarket. Maybe one day we will…
Eatology
Whether you’re devoted to the paleo school of thought or are interested in trying the Whole30 or a Primal diet, Eatology has you covered. They specialize in creating the sort of entrees that will deliver everything that you want and need them to, thanks to being preservative and gluten-free and made using only the best organic ingredients but taste the “cheat” meals that we all crave every now and then.
Everything that they make is rich in flavor but is designed with one specific purpose, to help you to get fitter and not fatter. Eatology has proved that just because food is healthy, it doesn’t have to taste bland, but as we (and that includes you) are already paleo devotees, we knew that anyway.
They also use a constantly changing menu so that their customer base never gets bored and always has a wide variety of new and interesting opinions to choose from. Their menu is also family-friendly, so you don’t have to take your paleo journey by yourself, and can order enough “meal blocks” (which is Eatology’s patented term for, and fancy way of saying “dinners”) to feed your entire family for as long as you want to. They’re fun and inventive and their paleo menu is always interesting and packed full of taste and flavor.
Pros – They’re a company that believes in treating their customers fairly and they offer returning clients all sorts of discounts and rewards and as their menu is fairly priced anyway, it’s an easy way to make sure that you can stock up on all of your paleo favorites. We’re also more than a little enamored by the fact that they don’t just cater to a strictly paleo-centric clientele and they have expanded their horizons to include all sorts of other healthy, body-conscious diets. We’re hoping that it’s a model that other companies will take note of and begin to follow.
Cons – Fair prices, good food, and excellent service. What’s not to like? Well, the same thing as every mail order, subscription meal service. You can’t get any of their meals in the supermarket. Then there’s the other “problem” that we have, which isn’t really a problem as much as it is us being spoiled for choice. Because the menu is constantly changing, sometimes it’s impossible to order certain personal favorites from it, but it’s a real first-world problem and we’re actually starting to feel bad about it and think that we maybe shouldn’t have even mentioned it at all.
True Fare
We promised you that we’d deliver six options, and we fully intended to, but then COVID became a reality that no one ever thought that we’d have to deal with and the Pandemic resulted in businesses closing and people’s lives being ruined in more than ways than one, And one of the multiple casualties of the pandemic, was our sixth go-to choice for paleo meals, True Fare.
Between the time we started writing this article and reached the point where we were able to talk about them, they were forced to close their doors for good. It was, and is a shame and shows just how fragile the world really is. We’ll miss True Fare and its dedication to helping to improve the health and well-being of people everywhere and we can only hope that one day, they’ll soar high again.
Ice Age Meals
As one company falls, another rises to take its place. Well, that’s not exactly true as Ice Age Meals have been around for a while, just over five years by our reckoning, and they were one of the new kids on the paleo and keto delivery block who brought both diets to the attention of the mainstream when their CEO appeared on Shark Tank.
The reason we’ve used them as a fallback is that some of the forty meals that they make don’t fall within the paleo guidelines and some of the ingredients that they use aren’t one hundred percent organic. So, if you are going to order from them, you’ll need to keep an eye on the ingredients list and make sure that everything is above board and fully paleo compliant.
Pros – This little firm from Reno that could ships to all fifty states in frozen, styrofoam coolers, so it doesn’t matter where you live, you can have a paleo ready to heat and eat meal delivered to your door. They also have their own range of delicious paleo snacks that you can order alongside your meals and some of them are really, really good.
Cons – While they say they’re one hundred percent paleo and keto compliant, as some of their ingredients aren’t organic we’re reluctant to agree with them, so you might want to check the ingredient list out before you order something that looks too good to resist. And, even though they ship to all fifty states, some addresses (we’re looking your way Hawaii and Alaska) have a fourteen meal minimum, which can make orders more than a little expensive.
Finding Frozen Paleo Meals And TV Dinners
As we’ve already mentioned, some of the companies on our list supply their meals to Walmart and Whole Foods, which should make them relatively easy to find in the frozen aisles of those stores, and occasionally you might get lucky and find a paleo-friendly dessert somewhere like Trader Joe’s. It’s happened to us, it could happen to you.
For the most part, though, most stores still view the paleo diet as a fad and think that the frozen meals that are paleo compliant are a specialty item that’s too expensive for them to stock and far too expensive for their usual customer base to be interested in or want to buy. It’s the principal reason why you don’t, and probably won’t for the foreseeable future, find paleo frozen meals in your favorite supermarket.
So what does that mean? Well, realistically it means that the best option for buying paleo meals that you can throw in the oven after a hard day at the office is still the online ordering model. And if we’re honest, that suits us just fine as it wastes less of the time than we don’t, and it’s easier to do, which is what frozen meals and TGV dinners were originally designed to be, and that’s quick, simple and delicious.
