V on Wheels has always put quality first. We understand the importance of nutrition, and care about the health of the most vulnerable in our community.
That's why we try to avoid the use of preservatives and processed ingredients...which also means our meals demand more time and investment when cooking (for example, we make our own curry pastes and vegetable stocks instead of getting them from a packet).
There are lots of "healthy" or "natural" meals out there that use all sorts of nasties, and we’re proud to stand by V on Wheels as a real healthy option. It's the way we learnt to cook at home - and the only way we enjoy!
Our meals are a few bucks more than other supermarket-ready meals or fast food options like a kebab (say $13 ish). But for $16, you get almost a half kilo of wholesome food, which can easily feed two people if you add a few extra veggies or a side salad.
The question of ‘expensive’ comes down to your values. We’re here to help people live healthier and longer lives through high quality food - being able to operate as a small business is really just the cherry on top for us.
Meals are delivered to any urban address in New Zealand (just not rural). This can be your home or your workplace - ideally somewhere where there will be someone home to pop them straight into the freezer.
Commercial addresses will receive deliveries earlier than residential addresses, too.
Check if your address is urban or rural here.
We are unable to deliver to rural addresses at the moment as it takes 2-3 days to arrive and it would not be safe for frozen food. We can send your meals to a relative address, maybe? Your or someone's workplace?
Please check the alternative address: https://www.nzcouriers.co.nz/address_checker.html
We deliver every Thursday and the order cutoff is on Wednesday 12PM. After you place your order, you’ll receive a link by email to track your order online.
For the safety of your frozen food, we recommend getting your meals delivered to a commercial address if possible. Once meals are delivered, they can’t be refunded or replaced. Once your meals are in the courier, the risk of them getting stolen or lost is passed on to you.
1) Leave a cooler outside for the meals if you are not home.
2) Add this, or any delivery instructions at checkout to make it easier for our Courier driver.
2) Ideally, get the meals delivered to your workplace or any commercial address. It's safer and faster.
3) Keep an eye on the Courier tracking link that will be sent by email.
Our meals come in 2 types of different tray shape (both 450g each)
- "Smaller" tray without sleeve: this tray can be recycled.
- "Bigger" tray with sleeve: the tray is home-compostable and the cardboard sleeve is recyclable.
The box itself where your meals come and the sleeve, can be recycled along with household goods. The soft plastic ones, like film and insulation wrapping, needs to be checked with your local Council if this can be recycled or can be taken to a drop-off point. Depending on where you live, you can find different stores.
Here you can find the points' locations: https://www.recycling.kiwi.nz/solutions/soft-plastics/store-locator
Sure have - we were incredibly honoured to win the 2018 LINKT Innovator of the Year Award. Check out our award win here.
The meals last up to a year frozen from the day they are made. Check the "Best Before" date in the packaging. Always remember to store your dishes in the freezer at -18°C. If you're heating from chilled in the fridge that's no problem at all - it will certainly be quicker to heat BUT please make sure you consume within 5 days of it going into the fridge.
It’s better to let it thaw in the fridge overnight if you can, but you can heat and eat from frozen if you need to! Pop that bad boy in either the microwave or oven:
MICROWAVE
Place the meal in the middle of the microwave (both the meal tray and film are microwave safe).
Pierce the heat-proof film.
Heat for approximately 3 minutes.
Continue to heat and check on it in 2-minute intervals until it’s the perfect temperature.
Try not to overheat your meal.
OVEN
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
Remove the stickers on the film.
Place the meal in the centre of the oven.
Pierce the heat-proof film.
Allow the meal to cook for 20 minutes and check.
Continue to bake and check on it in 5-minute intervals until it’s the perfect temperature.
STOVE
Easy! Click here to watch a video
All dishes are made with plants. Vegetables, grains, fruit, nuts, legumes, spices, and herbs. Most recipes are oil free, dairy free and gluten free too. We avoid artificial and processed ingredients and every single recipe is made from scratch.
So our regular customers have variety, choice and exposure to new and exciting Vegan products, we do stock an adjustable range of special dishes, sides and treats that change all the time. We're actually on interested in food that mirrors our own values however if from time to time there are variations to the core principals, that's very clear in the product descriptions.
V on Wheels isn’t just great for vegans or vegetarians, but for anyone who cares about their nutrition, wanting to give their taste buds a thrill AND loves the convenience that frozen Heat N Eat Meals brings to your lifestyle.
Phill, our Food Technologist, about the sugar content of our meals:
"They all really low in sugar. You can even make a low in sugar claim when it is less than 5g sugar per 100g (5%). Some meals contain tomato, tomato paste, beetroot, and those are quite high in natural sugars. The sugars section of the NIP is added sugars and natural sugars combined. This can be confusing for some, since V on Wheels meals are massive serves, and people are looking at the amount of sugar per serve. It doesn't mean they are high in sugar."
What a happy statement!
Thanks Phill
The meals are BIG, about 450 grams each and they come without that "rice side" because not everybody enjoys their curry with rice or any starch for that matter! Curries are just Curry with our own special hand made paste - so it’s 1 big serve if you’re hungry, or 2 serves if you’re adding your own side or sharing across 2 meals.
Most other meals in the frozen heat n eat category are far cheaper either because of their size 200-350g, they're made overseas, mainly in Asia or the ingredients themselves are highly processed. V on Wheels delivers the opposite of ALL that!
A real healthy meal doesn't need processed ingredients, which is why we try to reduce them. Oil is a highly refined processed food and extremely calorie-dense. It’s not needed in our diet and it’s certainly not needed to create delicious meals (it offers little health benefits and is deprived of its nutrients in the refining process).
Do you want to learn more? Click here