Chalky texture - Any way to remove?

I finally brought Huel after a year of oohing and aahing. I’d heard great things about it from several friends and thought it sounded like a simple way to improve the diet of myself and my partner and also to aid in weight loss, or at the very least prevent any further weight gain, by using Huel as a healthy snack or light meal (instead of being unhealthy and sticking chips and burgers etc. under the grill). However, like many, the hefty price tag put me off due to fears of not liking it and then having wasted a lot of money. But I finally took the plunge!

I brought the vanilla version after reading that the UU has a more chalky taste and texture, that vanilla is recommended for first timers and also because I have a sweet tooth and am planning to add sweet flavours such as fruits.

I had my first version on Thursday afternoon whilst at work and decided to opt for the ‘basic’ experience, which meant I used water, no added flavours and mixed by hand in the shaker provided. It was horrible! I wasn’t keen on the natural flavour, it was full of lumps and left a very powdery feeling in my mouth. I only managed 200ml out of 600ml. However, I had done plenty of reaserch beforehand so knew that the first week or so can be the most difficult, whilst still experimenting in finding flavours and methods that work for the individual.

I tried it again the next day but using a blender to mix and with milk rather than water, plus added a frozen banana and a handful of frozen blueberries. I found the taste much improved and of course the texture was now smooth but the powdery feeling remained. I drank it all over the duration of the evening. Friday I did the same but replaced the blueberries with a few teaspoons of 100% cocoa powder and drank it all in one sitting while on my break at work.

Whilst it seems I have now found a way to make Huel bearable, my partner seems to be ultra-sensitive to the powder texture. We blended another batch on Friday evening with blueberries and milk but this time added plain Greek yogurt after reading that yogurt can help. I also left it in the fridge overnight and wow! The reviews about the texture mellowing out even more were definitely true. But still my partner doesn’t like it.

I know that the vanilla has a much less chalky taste and texture than UU, I know that blending helps to make it smoother by removing lumps, I know that adding flavours including yogurt can help and I know that leaving overnight in the fridge has a huge effect. Yet still my partner cannot abide by the powdery feeling left coating the roof of the mouth (which I admit is not nice but I at least can somewhat ignore as long as the flavours are nice and there are no lumps). However, I brought Huel more for my partner’s benefit than my own as they are unable to exercise due to chronic illness so controlling diet is important.

Therefore I suppose the purpose of this long post is twofold:

  1. Is there ANYTHING further I can do to try and help my partner to at least tolerate Huel or is it simply not for them? :frowning: I’ll try baking/cooking with it as a flour substitute at some point, but I’m hoping for them to be able to use it as a drink.
  2. Can anyone recommend more sweet flavour combinations for me to try? Particularly those that work with milk i.e. Huel smoothies? (But not strawberries as I’m intolerant).

Thanks in advance.

Make the night before and leave in the fridge? Blend it, sip it and spit water immediately afterward it’s a pain but it helps sip Huel sip water sipe Huel sip water and so on and so forth