Review: Tovala Steam Oven & Meal Plan

Today I am reviewing the Tovala Steam Oven ($299 USD) as well as their Meal Plans ($36 USD a week or $72 USD a week for 2 people–so double the meals).

As soon as I got this and set up on my counter my wife used it before I had a chance and she loves it. So, like they say, “Happy Wife, Happy Life.” Enough said. Everyone go buy one right now. End of review…Just kidding–though my wife really does love it.

So, how does it work. Well, first you need to go to Tovala.com and you can buy just the oven if youd like and then cook your own meals if that’s what you’re into. They also offer recipes in which case you would put your meal in the oven, press start on the iPhone or Android app and wait for it to be done, and then enjoy your delicious meal. But, at the time of purchase of the oven you can also sign up for meal plans. You can subscribe to either a 3 meal or 6 meal plan per week–for one or two people. Note, though, that you are not getting 6 different meals. You’re just getting duplicates of the 3 meals you ordered. So pretty much 3 meals for you and 3 for your significant other.

If you choose the Meal Plan meals, there is pretty much no prep work on your end. The one I had the other day took maybe 30 seconds of prep time, if that. You just scan a QR code the oven then knows the proper cooking time and starts cooking. You go back to your TV to watch Rachael Ray and your phone will alert you when your meal is done.

Once you’re done eating, cleanup is a snap. All you need to do is wash your plate or bowl–assuming you even bothered to transfer the food to one. You can just throw away the cooking containers. If you did not transfer to a plate/bowl and ate just out of the container cleanup, it’s as simple as throwing away the cooking containers. Voila! Clean up is done.

The Meals

All 3 of the meals Tovala sent me to test the oven out were delicious. My wife loves the meals so much she wants to subscribe to the meal plan.

The portions are a nice size–plenty for one person, but also not to much that you felt like you ate too much. If you’re watching your figure, this is probably a good service. If you’re a busy person and do not have time for meal prep–let alone cooking time and cleanup–this is probably a good service for you.

Cooking Time

They advertise that all of their meals are ready to eat in under 25 minutes. My experience confirms that. My first meal took 18 minutes, the second was 12 minutes, and the third meal took 13 minutes and 25 seconds.

My wife cooked some potatoes in there using one of the recipes. In a standard oven it would have usually taken 45 minutes to an hour to cook. In the Tovala Steam Oven it took 20 minutes.

The Bad

I’ve only got 3 bad things to say about this and they are not even deal breakers.

1. At $12 USD per meal, the cost of the Meal Plan meals is a little to high. If you went to the grocery store and bought all of the ingredients to make the same meal it would cost a fraction of what Tovala is charging. But you’re also paying for the convenience.
2. There are no Meal Plan options  that cover a full 7-day week. I would love to see a plan for those that work a full time job of 5 days a week and just want a quick, healthy meal when they get home–or better yet a full 7-day plan.
3. They only offer dinners. I would like to see Meal Plans for for breakfast and lunch as well.

So, overall I give this a 9.97 rating out of 10. It really is an amazing device that I highly recommend–lack of meal variety and high cost of meals notwithstanding.