COOK

Let’s get one thing straight, when it comes to cooking: I’m a lazy sod.
Whether it’s my particularly chaotic schedule or that living solo, I can rarely justify the time to plan, buy and make a meal, it’s just something I’ve never really enjoyed (except baking. Banana bread is therapeutic friends.)
But I’ve also learned, that daily take out meals are the fastest way to an empty bank account. So consider COOK my happy medium.
I found these folks via Vino originally. Though exceptionally tasty, I learned very quickly that a diet of mac & cheese and steak & red wine pies, does not a healthy human make. So I popped on their website and put together a more reasonable order.
Here’s what I’ve learned:
1. They have delivery. Which, in the name of lazy sods everywhere, is fantastic.
2. The mac & cheese and steak & red wine pies ARE delicious and you should try them. Maybe not every day, but they both make a great rainy day, lazy lunch or dinner.
3. The OMG pots look tempting. They are healthier options all under 400 cal. Which I thought, well, if i’m being lazy, I might as well be lazy AND healthy. Wrong decision. First off, they’re almost all microwavable — which might seem like a plus but there’s something sad about microwaving dinner. I much prefer things that can be popped in the oven. Plus, they’re not great. Of the six OMG pots I ordered, I didn’t fancy one of them. Pass!
4. BUT, if you’re looking for a healthier option under 400 cal, their classic low cal dishes are quite good. The Beef Bourginon and Chickpea Tangine are two personal favourites.
5. Each meal will run you about £3−4. Which yes, would be much cheaper if you made it yourself, but for an extra £1 a meal, i’ll take the easy route, thank you very much.
6. Pass on their pasta unless it’s the roasted vegetable lasagna (which is delightful).
All in all, after some trial and error, this has become a decent option for a quick meal during the week. I order on Fridays and have back up meals in the freezer for the remainder of the week. Plus, because they’re frozen, they don’t go bad and you can stock up.
It’s definitely not home made delicious — but it is the next best option.

I wavered between 3 and 4 stars because I like the idea but… well… read on I guesss.
Last night The Man decided to go out for a couple of beers and thought that a ready meal would suit us nicely. I remembered walking by a frozen food store in Morningside and suggested we check it out. The Man said «it isn’t Iceland, is it?» I assured him that no, it’s wasn’t Iceland.
And so we visited the Morningside branch of Cook, which has some kind of slogan like «good food for busy people.»
The shop assistant explained that they do a food delivery service and showed us which foods are for one person, for two people, and which are sides. To be honest, we didn’t venture too far into the store because the «meals for 2» are right at the front, so we didn’t see all they had to offer.
In short, Cook serves up a nicer (and healthier, I suspect) version of the kind of ready meals you get in the supermarket. For this, though, you pay a premium.
We decided on a Moroccan lamb tagine because it was so unlike anything we would make ourselves. I had my eye on an Indonesian veggie curry but The Man’s need for meat won out. The curry was reasonably priced at something like £5 or £6, but the lamb tagine was £9. Keep in mind these prices are only mains, they don’t include any sides.
We liked our tagine, we agreed that the lamb was heavenly and tender (a result of stewing for a long time), but the sauce which included dates and apricots was too sweet for our taste. I’ve never had a tagine before but actually think this is pretty standard. The portions were fine as I made rice to go with it and it was late when we ate anyway, but to be honest it definitely wouldn’t be enough food without a side.
I was also pleasantly surprised by the nutrition facts — 10g fat per person for a meaty meal is surprisingly low. I guess lamb is lean? I’m used to ready meals being astronomically fat filled and overall really quite bad for you, so this was pretty good.
So, I liked Cook and I would definitely get a ready meal from here again (their veggie options are reasonably priced and a few sound pretty tempting), but I found the price just a bit too steep to make it a regular date.