First taste & why it took till now

I’ve been seeing Huel pop up on Facebook for quite some time now. But it never really appealed to me.
At the time, it kind of seemed like a gimmicky thing that would probably taste horrible. (The ads didn’t really sell it to me…)

But one day, I realised I’ve been working so much recently that I’ve been forgetting to eat!
So I thought, hey ho, I’ll give it a try. I hate having to prepare meals sometime. Even though it really doesn’t take that long to make like a tuna and mayo sandwich.
I also didn’t get it as a meal replacement, more of an easy meal until I have time a little later. (I don’t want to lose weight at all, I’d rather gain weight!)

So I ordered the vanilla, unflavoured and flavours. And after just a couple days, it came!

In a crushed box…

With a shattered shaker/mixer…

I didn’t really care for the shaker to begin with, just the Huel, but it was still a little annoying.
Anyways, I decided to open the unflavoured one first, shook it up in an old shaker but the lumps were pretty gross… I shook it longer but it was still pretty lumpy. So I blended it up to make it smooth.

But then I thought “wait, the whole point was to have something quick. If I can spend time blending, I might as well make a sanswhich!”.
Maybe it would have been different in another shaker? Possibly the one that was broken upon arrival. :sweat_smile:

Afterwards, I guess it kind of tasted okay. Oaty and chalky, but bearable.
Then yeah… alright… I could get used to this.
So I chucked in a random flavour packet.

But oh my gosh.

I felt so sick. That strawberry was… so bad…
I forced myself to drink a few more gulps, but I hadn’t even finished it before I felt REALLY sick. And I had to pour it down the toilet in the end…

So, so far the experience isn’t going too well. I’ll see how things go with the other flavours packets, fruits etc.

But if it takes more than a shake, I might as well eat actual food. I mean a sandwich takes 2 mins, noodles takes a minute and a half… although I guess there’s the whole going shopping thing…
Idk. We’ll see. I really want to like this. It’d make things so much easier.

Especially for someone like me who finds it hard to gain and maintain weight.

You’ve come into the world of Huel at an unfortunate time.

The current release version is 2.2, which has been described as having an overall texture akin to slime, with small lumps which have been described as anything from ‘tapioca lumps’ to ‘frogspawn’. Either way, not pleasant.

Had you come in at v2.1 you’d have got what you expected: A 10-20 second shake in the provided shaker produced a pleasant texture similar to a thinned porridge, and with no lumps.

Sadly, Huel came under pressure from a small group of users who were unhappy with the use of v2.1’s gelling agent, carrageenan, based on what they’d read on the Internet, and pressed for carrageenan to be removed. Despite substantial, credible studies proving the safety of carrageenan, Huel chose to side with these expert “Internet readers”, and Huel v2.2 is the result.

I have it on good authority from a senior member of the Huel team that they’re well aware of the issues, and actively working on a resolution, but what or when that will be is yet to be announced. If I was in your position, I’d use Huel’s money-back guarantee for your unopened bags, citing the texture and lumps as the issue, and consider trying Huel again when the next version is released.

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hi, I was in a similar place to you, I kept seeing adverts for Huel and thought, is it just another meal replacement for weight loss that’s full of sugars and processed crap etc.

But I’ve looked into it as much as I can and it seems that it’s a great meal replacement that’s only putting in good nutrition.

For health reasons, I’ve found that wheat, meat and dairy are not ideal for a daily meal plan and either avoid or abstain totally from them. for that Huel is great.
My issue was similar to you in that finding the time to make and eat good nutritious food, so in that respect Huel is great, blend/shake and drink.
Sure a sandwich or noodles are simple and easy to make but imo, those foods are processed (unless you make your own bread/noodles) and thus going down the path of un-optimal nutrition.

I’ve only started using it this week and it’s been great for either lunches where I have little energy or imagination or for evenings out where I’d normally end up eating out.

It’s a little lumpy but personally they don’t bother me but maybe that’s just me. I hope you find a way to deal with that or they resolve this soon.
I’ve not used any flavour packets, just sticking to unflavoured and vanilla right now. I like a 1 scoop vanilla with 2 scoops of unflavoured, seems a good mix for me.

I hope some of that helps

H

Thanks @xpz393 & @himji,

I actually opened up both bags to taste the difference between unflavoured and vanilla, so no refunds.

And I’ve been trying out different ways to make it bearable.

I used hot water with the unflavoured one with a spoon of honey, and it was… not terribly bad. Just like blended porridge.

But the only other way I actually enjoy it is when I add 400ml milk, 2 scoops of vanilla, and a medium banana. So much for the vegan part lol…

I probably wont buy Huel after these bags. It isn’t really what I expected. In fact, the soya protein powder I just got is what I thought Huel would taste like… lol
And doing all this to try to make it taste edible/drinkable is effort as it is. I should just stick with normal food. Maybe until it turns into something that actually tastes good, preferably less protein and more carbs too…

Good to hear you’ve found a couple of tweaks to make it palatable. It would be a shame to waste!

I couldn’t agree more though that having to go to all of the faff completely defeats the intended convenience of Huel, meaning that just buying a sarnie and a bit of fruit suddenly become much easier and more appealing. As I near the end of my last v2.1 bags after having used Huel daily at work for almost a year, it’s going to feel like a huge step backwards, but the texture of 2.2 really is truly awful without the tweaks you mentioned, or a blender, neither of which I have access to or time for whilst at work.

BTW: you mentioned that your shaker bottle was smashed in transit. If you email the Huel team to let them know, I reckon they’d almost certainly send you a free replacement. Obviously no point if you have no other use for it, but thought you’d like to know :slightly_smiling_face:

Putting the ice mesh in when using the shaker has solved the lump issue for me when shaking up v2.2. I personally dislike unflavoured Huel and would encourage anybody new to start with Vanilla and then start experimenting with the flavour pouches.

Regarding the source and fix for the lumps I think they’ve figured it out now :wink:

Agree with you 100% on both points, @Coup. Many folks dismiss the grid in the shaker as only being needed if you have ice, but I too find that it reduces clumping of the mixture no-end, in both 2.1 and 2.2.

Re your comment “I think they’ve figured it out now”, does that mean it has been implemented? Any more info/links? I’m really keen to make a 2-bag order and try it again.

Came to same conclusion re mesh/grid too. I find shaking upside down is best.