Starting from scratch is no easy feat, but Meal Prep India, a cloud kitchen founded by Achint Kataria and his mother Anuradha, has proven that with hard work and passion, anything is possible.
Achint Kataria, a civil engineer with a keen interest in general nutrition and fitness, realized that ordering healthy but affordable meals every day was difficult, especially during lockdown. That’s when he decided to start Meal Prep India, a cloud kitchen that provides healthy and delicious meals at affordable prices.
In 2015, Achint was overweight and decided to lose fat. He met an online coach who helped him achieve his goals. The trainer makes sure Achint keeps track of his calories by weighing the food on a food scale. Achint fell in love with the process and became certified in general nutrition and fitness, learning how to design meal plans. He found that it was not easy for everyone to cook such meals, and it was too expensive to order online at that time. This is where the idea of Meal Prep India was born – to prepare custom meals and make them as cheap as possible.
With almost zero investment, Achint and his mother, Anuradha Kataria, designed a menu with balanced meals, calorie counting to the T, and even meals tailored to individual calorie needs. They make sure that every meal on the menu is designed to meet an individual’s calorie needs, making healthy eating more accessible.
To calculate the calories for each meal, they used a digital weighing scale and a calorie calculator that took into account the weight and nutritional information of each ingredient. They measure every ingredient and because the operation is process-oriented, they even measure salt by the gram, ensuring customers get the same amount and taste every time they order.
Anuradha Kataria has played a vital role in helping Achint start and grow Meal Prep India. She taught him the basics of preparing meals ahead of time, and her special coriander chutney has become Meal Prep India’s signature side dish, a favorite for its unique flavour. Anuradha’s expertise in making chutneys has helped Achint introduce a delicious and unique side dish to his menu, which is very popular among customers.
Also, Anuradha’s training and involvement of domestic helpers’ daughters in cooking has been instrumental in the success of Meal Prep India. By providing these girls with employment opportunities, Achint and Anuradha not only helped them improve their livelihoods, but also eased the staff recruitment process themselves.
Their hard work paid off and Meal Prep India quickly became popular among customers and within four months of starting their operations from their home kitchen, they moved to their commercial location at NAC Market Sector 13 Manimajra Chandigarh. They have a 4.6 rating on Zomato and a 4.8 rating on Swiggy and even work with celebrities like Parmish Verma and his trainer Guradesh Mann, as well as famous online trainer YVS who posted a piece on Instagram Enjoy the video.
Meal Prep India’s menu offers a range of healthy and delicious meals designed to meet individual calorie needs. Their best-seller is the “Spicy Grilled Chicken Breast” which is equally tender and juicy and is best served with their signature coriander chutney. The total caloric value of this meal is 272, carbohydrate 0g, protein 50g, fat 8g.
They also offer five different flavors of Low-Calorie Chicken Curry, Signature Grilled Chicken Breast, OG Better Burger, Soy Rice Noodles and Chicken Breast, available in three sizes that provide 50 grams of protein, 75 grams of protein and 100 grams of protein.
their meals
Starting from an affordable price of Rs 199, they offer custom meals for around Rs 240. Even though they use organic chicken and other high-quality ingredients, they have managed to keep prices down by cutting expenses, Aching said. One of the ways they accomplish this is by operating as a take-out-only kitchen, which means they require less space and don’t pay for restaurant space or service staff. This helps them save on rent, salaries and other utilities required to run a traditional restaurant.
Achint elaborates on their approach to reducing calories, “We do this by using a number of techniques, such as reducing the amount of oil used in cooking, including more vegetables in our dishes, and using leaner cuts of meat. We Healthier cooking methods such as baking or grilling are also used.”
Taking their OG Better Burger as an example, he says, “We took a traditional burger and made it healthier by replacing the mayo with a low-calorie homemade burger sauce and using lean protein in the form of grilled chicken breast instead of fat. Pie. By doing this, we have significantly lowered the overall calorie count of the meal, making it an excellent choice for those concerned about their calorie intake.”
As they say, less is more when it comes to food. Katarias got it.
