I know before I started I was interested to know what the space food was like and I saw lots of other people asking, so I thought I'd describe each - although these are just my opinions of course.
One thing to add first though, and I know others always try to stress this - they're not the nicest things you'll ever eat in your life. It's a means to an end, so don't expect them to be delish, but they're not vile either!
Vanilla shake
Don't expect this to taste like vanilla ice cream. It's a more grown up or old school vanilla. It reminds me of ready brek or Ovaltine or something like that. It has an almost floury taste for me. Not undrinkable, but not my favourite.
Some people have this one hot and add coffee or cold with coffee like an iced latte.
Banana shake
I think this is the most milkshake-like. It tastes a lot like a bannana milkshake - not an overpowering flavour, but enough to really taste it. I like this one thick with ice.
Strawberry shake
The strawberry flavour is very mild, so I think you can taste some of the floury-ness a little bit like the vanilla. It does still taste of strawberry, just not to the same degree as the banana. This one benefits from a sweetner added I think.
Chocolate shake
This is fairly chocolatey but not very sweet. Somewhere between the strawberry and banana on the flavour scale. If you have this hot I think it actually tastes pretty much like a real hot chocolate.
All of the shakes turn out quite thick if you use the recommended amount of water, so most people use more. Some people make half a shake and have the other half later. I tried this but it ended up a little too thin and watery for me, but good if you don't like drinks thick. They can all turn out very lumpy if you don't whisk them properly. Even when you use boiling water if you're having the shake hot, you need to whisk it.
Choc orange bar
The bars look kind of like rice krispie bars or to the untrained eye, a flapjack. I'm trying to think of something that they're the same size as... maybe a bar of soap. I think they're the best for taking to work because they don't require any prep and because they look a bit like a flapjack, nobody really notices that you're eating special diet food. The texture was a bit odd to me the first time I tasted one - it seems to break down into tiny bits in my mouth in an unpleasant way, but the second time I ate one I didn't notice it. The choc orange is lovely. It tastes quite strongly of orange essence, is fairly sweet and it has real dark chocolate chips in it. Yipee!
Raisen, toffee & nut bar
The texture and look is the same as the orange bar. The toffee flavour is quite mild and the nuts are so small you'd almost miss them, so don't worry if you don't like nuts. You get real raisens in this one - they're nice and juicy!
Mushroom soup
The soups are all pale and opaque in colour and turn out quite milky or creamy. I like to make them with much more water than is recommended to make it go further. You do have to whisk to get the lumps to disolve. Some people make the soups in a saucepan if they want to feel like they're cooking something.
Mushroom was the first one I tried and I really like it. About to have one! The mushroom flavour is apparant enough and there are little mushroom pieces. You could add salt and pepper to this if you like.
Thai Chicken soup
This soup is a pale orange colour and has a mildly spicy flavour - not too hot if you don't like that sort of thing. You could add salt and pepper or chilli flakes. I think some people add tabasco etc.
Vegetable soup
This one has a pale green colour and a plesant but non-descript vegetable flavour. I added lots of salt and pepper, because I like it, but it was fairly tasty without.
Tomato and basil soup
A lot of people don't get on well with this one. I found it very similar to the others. A pale peachy colour and creamy consistency. The flavour is very mild and I couldn't taste any basil but I added my favourite flaky seasalt, sracked black pepper and some of my garlic and chilli grinder and I thought it was fine.
I hope this helps some new people who are thinking about starting. I've had lot of support so just wanted to try and give something back
One thing to add first though, and I know others always try to stress this - they're not the nicest things you'll ever eat in your life. It's a means to an end, so don't expect them to be delish, but they're not vile either!
Vanilla shake
Don't expect this to taste like vanilla ice cream. It's a more grown up or old school vanilla. It reminds me of ready brek or Ovaltine or something like that. It has an almost floury taste for me. Not undrinkable, but not my favourite.
Some people have this one hot and add coffee or cold with coffee like an iced latte.
Banana shake
I think this is the most milkshake-like. It tastes a lot like a bannana milkshake - not an overpowering flavour, but enough to really taste it. I like this one thick with ice.
Strawberry shake
The strawberry flavour is very mild, so I think you can taste some of the floury-ness a little bit like the vanilla. It does still taste of strawberry, just not to the same degree as the banana. This one benefits from a sweetner added I think.
Chocolate shake
This is fairly chocolatey but not very sweet. Somewhere between the strawberry and banana on the flavour scale. If you have this hot I think it actually tastes pretty much like a real hot chocolate.
All of the shakes turn out quite thick if you use the recommended amount of water, so most people use more. Some people make half a shake and have the other half later. I tried this but it ended up a little too thin and watery for me, but good if you don't like drinks thick. They can all turn out very lumpy if you don't whisk them properly. Even when you use boiling water if you're having the shake hot, you need to whisk it.
Choc orange bar
The bars look kind of like rice krispie bars or to the untrained eye, a flapjack. I'm trying to think of something that they're the same size as... maybe a bar of soap. I think they're the best for taking to work because they don't require any prep and because they look a bit like a flapjack, nobody really notices that you're eating special diet food. The texture was a bit odd to me the first time I tasted one - it seems to break down into tiny bits in my mouth in an unpleasant way, but the second time I ate one I didn't notice it. The choc orange is lovely. It tastes quite strongly of orange essence, is fairly sweet and it has real dark chocolate chips in it. Yipee!
Raisen, toffee & nut bar
The texture and look is the same as the orange bar. The toffee flavour is quite mild and the nuts are so small you'd almost miss them, so don't worry if you don't like nuts. You get real raisens in this one - they're nice and juicy!
Mushroom soup
The soups are all pale and opaque in colour and turn out quite milky or creamy. I like to make them with much more water than is recommended to make it go further. You do have to whisk to get the lumps to disolve. Some people make the soups in a saucepan if they want to feel like they're cooking something.
Mushroom was the first one I tried and I really like it. About to have one! The mushroom flavour is apparant enough and there are little mushroom pieces. You could add salt and pepper to this if you like.
Thai Chicken soup
This soup is a pale orange colour and has a mildly spicy flavour - not too hot if you don't like that sort of thing. You could add salt and pepper or chilli flakes. I think some people add tabasco etc.
Vegetable soup
This one has a pale green colour and a plesant but non-descript vegetable flavour. I added lots of salt and pepper, because I like it, but it was fairly tasty without.
Tomato and basil soup
A lot of people don't get on well with this one. I found it very similar to the others. A pale peachy colour and creamy consistency. The flavour is very mild and I couldn't taste any basil but I added my favourite flaky seasalt, sracked black pepper and some of my garlic and chilli grinder and I thought it was fine.
I hope this helps some new people who are thinking about starting. I've had lot of support so just wanted to try and give something back
