Nurture Life Review

For parents, especially those with young children, getting the kids to eat a variety of nutritious foods can be a struggle. Kids are notoriously picky eaters, which is why many meal delivery services for kids tend to stick to the basics (mac & cheese, chicken nuggets, etc.). Nurture life offers the basics, but they offer various choices you don’t see with other services.

With 23 weekly meal selections (including portable, cold meals) and finger foods that can be eaten as snacks, Nurture Life’s menu is diverse and well suited for both picky and adventurous eaters.

compost Vegetarian

grass Vegan

adjust Paleo

pie_chart Keto

calendar_month Whole30

set_meal Mediterranean

breakfast_dining Gluten-Free

local_drink Dairy-Free

medical_information Diabetic-Friendly

monitor_weight Low Calorie

A few examples include their chicken & vegetable dumplings served with edamame instead of the standard peas you’d get with other services. The pot roast and mashed potatoes resemble an adult meal, which is great for kids who are ready to move beyond “kiddie” foods and feel more like a grown-up. 

The one thing that really stood out with Nurture Life’s menu is they seem to have put some thought into not only nutrition but also the psychology of getting kids to eat healthy foods. 

Nurture Life is unique in that they have categories of meals for babies, toddlers, kids, and teens/adults. Meal options for babies are finger foods that are suitable for older babies who have mastered the art of chewing or mashing their foods. Portion size is the main difference between the toddler, kid, and teen menus. 

Nurture Life meals are nut-free, produced in a facility that is 100% free of tree nuts, except for coconut. They have an expansive allergen filter (which includes a picky eater option) but limited meal options for kids that are either gluten-free or dairy-free. 

Allergens are not listed on the menu page, so it is necessary to apply a filter if your child has special dietary needs.

Nurture Life meals are delivered freshly prepared, so there’s no hiding the quality of the ingredients. Overall, the quality is great, winning both parental approval and a thumbs up from the ones eating the meals.

Nurture Life meals are created by a team of registered dieticians and chefs, based on the US dietary guidelines for children. The company sources ingredients from trusted purveyors, using organic and anti-biotic free ingredients whenever possible.

Visually, ingredient quality is on par with what you’d expect in a home-cooked meal. The meals look fresh and appetizing, as opposed to what you’d see in a typical frozen dinner from your grocery store.

Overall, the textures were great except for a few that were a bit soggy, which can be an issue if you have a textural eater on your hands. In this case, the Chicken & Vegetable dumplings had an overall good texture, except for one that seemed soggy and mushy compared to others. This was probably the result of coming in contact with too much steam/condensation when cooking.

One thing we liked about Nurture Life is that they include a range of flavor profiles to satisfy picky eaters and also introduce new flavors and styles of cuisines to young eaters.

For example, their Chicken Biryani, which is traditionally made with warm spices like garam masala or curry, might normally be a bit too flavorful for younger eaters was made with just the right amount of warm spices to add flavor, without being overpowering or off-putting to your average 5-year-old.

Nurture Life tries to pack as much nutrition as possible into their meals, meaning that sometimes they get a little creative with “sneaking” in ingredients. The Veggie Ragout Pasta had a good texture on its own, but the discerning palate of preschooler was able to pick up on the fact that something was a little different about the sauce (lentils blended in for added protein and fiber).

The meals from Nurture Life that were more traditional were well-accepted across the board. Considering that Nurture Life offers meal portions for teens and adults, some selections might be viewed as being a bit bland. This is something that could be easily remedied with sprinkling on a bit of your own seasonings, and not something that would be considered a deal-breaker.

As far as meal prep is concerned, it couldn’t be easier. The meals are easily heated in the microwave and can be on the table in a matter of minutes. While we didn’t try their cold meals, they do offer meals that are designed to travel well for school lunches or as meals/snacks on road trips that don’t require cooking at all.

Nurture Life meals are individually priced with a bit of a range within each age category of meals. The cost of Nurture Life meals is about $8 each serving. The more meals you buy each week, you’ll get free shipping and more discounts as you go.

Nurture Life’s packaging is designed to keep your meals at or below standard refrigerator temperature for at least 48 hours as they are in transit to your door. They accomplish this with minimal packaging by using an appropriately sized box that keeps the meals packed tightly together and including two heavy-duty frozen gel packs.

All of the meals arrived fresh and intact. The packaging was minimal, which is nice. Almost all of Nurture Life’s packaging is recyclable and can be included in your weekly recycling pin. The only exceptions are the seals and the interior of their gel packs.

The gel packs are reusable, although they are large and would take up a significant amount of space in the average freezer. If you want to recycle the gel packs instead, simply thaw them, cut them open to dispose of the non-toxic gel contents, and then recycle the outer casing.

Nurture Life provides brief instructions for recycling their other packaging materials on the FAQ page of their website.

Nurture Life’s customer service is overall positive, although there are a few things about the platform that busy parents would change.

First, Nurture Life is available through subscription only. It’s easy to pause the subscription, but once you sign up, you have to contact the company directly to cancel, even if you just wanted to try it out to see if it was a good fit for your family. If you purchase with a gift certificate, you’re also locked into a subscription until you contact them to cancel.

If you do decide to cancel, you need to do so by an individually assigned cut-off date to ensure you don’t receive a shipment for that week.

The Nurture Life website is intuitive and easy to use, which earns them bonus points from parents and caretakers who want to change their weekly meals, set new preferences, skip weeks, or pause their subscription.

We didn’t need to contact Nurture Life directly for a customer service issue. However, overall customer service reviews for Nurture Life’s customers service a good, with customers recommending them based on their attentiveness and fast response times.

Nurture Life is a meal delivery service for kids of all ages and even adults too. Registered dieticians and chefs create Their meals to meet the standards of nutritional excellence. They’re a good option for busy families who want to provide their children with nutritious meals that feature various flavors and textures.

What We Liked:

• Nice range of flavors and dishes to choose from
• Varied portions sizes for different age groups
• Easy to prepare, heat & eat meals
• Fresh ingredients
• Nutritionally balanced

What We Didn’t Like:

• Cost prohibitive for budget-minded families
• Limited options for gluten and dairy allergies
• Teen and adult portion sizes offered, but some dishes would be considered bland to more developed palates
• Subscription only