For those of you who know me, you know that food is my love language. It stems from having a very diverse, multi-cultural background. My first exposure to food started in my birth city of Amsterdam, which means I was fed a healthy mix of Caribbean, Dutch, Indonesian, South American, and just general European foods. We definitely ate traditional Indian food on occasion, but I wasn’t fully introduced to it until I moved to the US and (much later) met my husband, who is an American-born Indian. Many years of learning how to properly cook Indian food (the kind that my husband grew up with), putting my own healthy twist on Indian dishes, and figuring out how to make vegan Indian food taste good made me realize one thing….
Even if you know how to cook Indian food, it’s still takes a lot of time and effort, and when you eat at a restaurant or get take-out, it’s always loaded with ghee, butter, or, even worse: seed oils and conventional dairy. Fast forward a few years later and I was introduced to Arti Mala of First Seed Foods by a mutual friend. We chatted over the phone and I was immediately intrigued by her business acumen and her mission of delivering plant-based Indian Food without oil, butter, or ghee! Healthy Indian food that actually tastes good?
Of course, I had to taste some, so I placed an order for a Custom Mix and Match box.
First, let’s talk about the packaging the food came in: Dry ice in a larger box and then the actual food containers came in a carton box that came with instructions to turn it into a….wait for it….soccer ball! Very creative, eco-and-kid-friendly.
The first meals we tried were the Dal Makhani (organic black lentils) and Rajma Masala (organic kidney beans). I served this with some gluten-free roti since the boys and I eat mostly gluten-free. The dal makhani was so rich, it was really hard to believe there was no butter or ghee in it. The rajma was very close to the version I make at home. Rich, perfectly spiced, and balanced. Unbelievable really. If you feel like you need tons of salt, oil, and spices in your food all the time, it’s likely that your taste buds have become worn out and accustomed to these ingredients – not necessarily good or bad, just an observation I have from working with clients that I’ve coached over the last few years as a certified holistic health coach. I loved that all meals were still tasty, without a ton of salt and without any oils. For those of you are avoiding salt as well for health reasons, First Seed Foods carries an entire salt-free line of foods as well!
So, on to the other foods. My boys thought the Plant-Based Palak Paneer in Spinach Sauce was a bit watery, but I think that may have been user error and a result of me not stirring it up properly. By the way, I heated up multiple containers on the stove since I was feeding the entire family, but you can also microwave individual portions, which is super convenient. The actual paneer might have been the most mind-blowing part. If you’re familiar with Sakara’s pumpkin tofu, which is in some of their meals, this is very similar to it. You don’t even realize that you’re eating something that’s not dairy-based. I absolutely loved it. It was even better in the Plant-Based Paneer Makhani (SO creamy!). The Chana Masala was appropriately spiced, without the chickpeas being too hard or soft – just perfect, really.
All in all, as a wellness company founder and mom with more school emails than I can ever keep up with (you hear me, mamas?), I wouldn’t hesitate to try First Seed Foods. It’s convenient, fast, delicious, and healthy. So much healthier than you can get from any fast-casual or even nice restaurant. I’m putting a reminder on my calendar right now to get another box for when we return from Europe. When we’re out of fridge meals and I can’t figure out what to cook, I’ll be reaching for one of these….and I think you should too!
PS – Keep up with Arti’s founder journey and more here: https://www.instagram.com/firstseedfoods
