The tagline for The Edibles, ‘healthy doesn’t have to be boring’, seems to be the driving principle for Kochi-based diet food providers. What was earlier limited to salads, ‘healthy’ smoothies and juices has now grown to include most cuisines — Asian, mediterranean, continental, Indian, and naadan, of course. Kochi has hopped on to the Fit Foodie trend.

The Fit Foodie trend, unlike conventional, restriction-based dieting, embraces diverse cuisines prepared with healthier alternatives: ingredients and/or processes. It makes ‘diet food’ fun, with variety, flavours, and even colours. So, pasta, spaghetti, tacos, enchiladas, noodle bowls, burritos, et al became accessible, guilt-free. Food is air-fried, cooked in foil, baked and/or broiled, among other things.

Lee Funke of Fit Foodie Finds is one of the pioneers of the digital brand/website which started the trend in 2010. With their focus on ‘healthyish’ food with ‘food freedom’, they made most foods accessible to those watching calories or with specific diet goals. 

“When we started, back in early 2020, it was a hard sell. The concept of subscription-based diet food services was familiar in Tier 1 cities at the time. It was new in Kochi. Post-COVID, people understood. After the first wave, there was a realisation about the importance of health and what we eat,” says Joji Babu Maliakel, who co-founded The Edibles with Tom Tharakan, who is a chef.

With the focus shifting to health — more people hitting gyms, taking up some sport, and actively making healthy lifestyle choices — the focus has shifted to food. Rather than curative nutrition, the focus has shifted to a preventative nutrition-led system. 

When nutritionist and clinical dietitian Amritha Sankar launched Beyond Calories a year ago, in September 2025, she felt the gap her clients felt in reaching their fitness goals. Says Amritha, who divides her time between India and the UAE, where she works, “People as young as 20 or 21 are afflicted by lifestyle diseases. By the time you hit 35, you should start taking care of your health. Medical conditions like diabetes, childhood obesity and polycystic ovarian disease (PCOD) are all on the rise. Preventive care is the way to go, taking care of one’s health is of utmost importance.”

How meals have changed

In the past, a typical Keralam lunch meant rice, a couple of vegetable dishes or fish/meat of choice, but that has changed today. Paucity of time and busier schedules mean no time to cook or a lack of inclination to. “Now people end up having one dish with rice or a chapati. Meals are not balanced as they used to be,” Amritha says. Inevitably causing a nutritional deficit. She acknowledges the emotional connection with food, especially what people eat growing up. She has incorporated foods such as kachil puzhungiyathu and fish curry, chicken biryani, and even Malabar parotta. The Edibles menu too has traditional Keralam fare.

For film producer/businessman Bineesh Chandran, a co-founder of Dietado, another Kochi-based diet food provider, the impetus came from his own love of food. “There are two kinds of food — healthy and junk. The former is perceived as, and historically is, bland — taste-wise and visually. What does one do? Pick the tastier option! I love food and I would like to eat ‘junk’ food but if it is cooked the healthy way, then why not?” He spent three years researching the subject before launching Dietado three months back with partners Ginu Mathews and Neji. 

“There is also the notion that diet food has only two or three colours — anything green, brown or white! We also wanted to change that,” Bineesh adds. Although subscription-based, Dietado is available on food aggregator apps. The intention is genuine, tasty and clean food.

Balanced meals

The emphasis is on balanced meals, with the incorporation of healthy substitutes, for instance, air frying, baking, and grilling instead of frying. They use rice or buckwheat noodles instead of maida, and make ingredients like yoghurt in-house rather than buying them off the rack, which also makes economic sense. These companies have either a trained chef/nutritionist or a nutritionist on board who helps design the menu based on clients’ dietary requirements. The subscription meals aren’t designed only for those on a weight-loss diet. Therapeutic meals are provided depending on medical conditions and dietary restrictions. 

At the outset, one can pick a diet; like The Edibles, which offers options for high-protein, balanced and low-carb meals, while Dietado lists a daily nutrition plan, high-protein muscle-building, weight loss and even a fatty liver plan. The Dietado meal box carries the entire breakdown of micro, macro nutrients, carbs, protein and fibre. 

Beyond Calories, however, works differently. A prospective client has a mandatory consultation with a clinical dietician/nutritionist; the diet plan is then recommended based on their findings. “There is no instant ordering with us. The blood work would give us insight into the kind of diet that would work for the clients — whether they are gluten or lactose intolerant. Or if they have some other medical conditions that need to be addressed. Only after these processes are clients on-boarded,” says Amritha.

No-repetition menu

The USP is delicious meals without repetition. While Amritha says Beyond Calories has a 30-day no-repetition menu, Dietado says 25 days of no repeats. Beyond Calories provides meals on Sundays too, which the others don’t. Each company has its own meal plan you can choose from. There is the option of two meals daily or all four, including snacks. Prices depend on the plans, with a monthly three-meal plan coming up in the region of ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 a month.        

Those who use the services swear by the convenience and not having to spend too much time thinking about what healthy meals to cook daily. “This takes the load off me. I don’t have to constantly think of what to cook, whether I have got all the macros and micros in, the fibre and the protein in. It becomes a chore!” says Sheela Maria, a working professional.   

Air-brosted paneer from Dietado
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Gaadha Madhav, a fitness coach, used a meal subscription service to meet her fitness goals at the time. But she discontinued a couple of years later; she says, “My fitness goals have changed, so I now cook at home. I stopped due to several factors, such as the food wasn’t delivered on time, and the quantity left me hungry. I would end up ordering food from elsewhere. Also, they told me things I knew were factually wrong because I work in the fitness industry. Like a combination of chapathis and okra cooked in coconut milk curry being protein-rich. How? Also, it is not financially sustainable in the long run.” 

Another factor that got her off was her craving for Keralam food: “A large part of the menu of the service I used did not have as much naadan fare. My palate was craving that. I cook my Kerala meals at home — rice, thoran, fish curry kind of thing. It also depends on the nutritionist on board. If it’s someone with a background in sports nutrition, they might be able to curate a more balanced menu for those who work out and have specific goals!” She recommends people do their due diligence before committing.

Amritha makes a strong case for balanced meals rather than blindly following fads, and for getting assessed before following a diet plan indiscriminately. “We see content creators on social media who post fitness-related content. They might be posting what works for them. You have to choose carefully. For example, protein is the current trend. Everybody is loading up on it, whether it is protein shakes, protein-rich foods, smoothies or powders. One cannot decide on their own how much protein they need to consume unless they are being guided by a trained professional. Protein shakes or smoothies cannot be a substitute for food. For example, protein shakes are meant for people who need protein to beat the protein crash after a workout. Same goes for an excess of fibre…too much of these can mess up your gut and upset your other parameters.”