The Real Meal Deal
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About

Hi, my name is Claire, welcome to The Real Meal Deal, my sustainable recipe blog to help you on your Eco journey. Whether you're new to the concept of eating sustainably or this is something you've nailed, I'm confident you'll find many helpful tips and inspiring recipes.

profile picture of Claire in her kitchen.

About Me

I'm a Home Cook, with a passion for the environment! I've got three teenage children and cooking tasty, nutritious family meals for my husband and kids is super important. As a Mum, I also want to cook and eat sustainably and make good food choices that minimise our environmental impact. I love creating great family meals and I'm keen to share with you just how easy and delicious it is to eat in an environmentally friendly way.

logo for the real meal deal globe with fork to the left and knife to the right

What You'll Find at The Real Meal Deal

  • Easy no-fuss family-friendly recipes.
  • Helpful tips on how to cook more sustainably.
  • Seasonal Recipes
  • Tips and recipes to use up leftovers.
  • Recipes that use everyday ingredients.
  • Shortcuts!
  • Tips on reducing food waste.
  • Ways to easily reduce meat.
  • Budget Recipes
  • Ways to incorporate Fairtrade ingredients
  • A non-judgemental relaxed way of cooking.
  • Eco Living Tips beyond the kitchen.

We're all at a different places when it comes to eating a sustainable diet. That's why you'll find Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes as well as Fish and some Meat recipes. I've also included Snacks (did I mention I have three teenagers).

Eating in season is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint and is often cheaper too so I've included an easy way to browse recipes by season

  • Spring Recipes
  • Summer Recipes
  • Autumn
  • Winter Recipes

Most of the recipes include easy adaptations for different diets as well as suggestions for substitutions, since using up what you have is a great way to reduce food waste.

What is a Sustainable Diet?

A sustainable diet simply means choosing foods that have the least impact on the planet and the lowest carbon footprint. For more detailed information on this, see my How to Eat and Cook Sustainably post.

Around 30% of all the world's Greenhouse Gas Emissions come from food. Making changes to our eating habits is easy and can have a significant impact. Lots of small changes all add up.

 

My Food Philosophy

I love this quote by The Zero Waste Chef, Anne-Marie Bonneau. She says

"We don't need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly"

And that’s precisely where I’m at. Living life sustainably is a journey. The Real Meal Deal is all about trying to make that journey as easy as possible. When it comes to writing recipes, my approach is always ‘What’s simple but still tastes good?’ There are no weird ingredients, nothing you’ll buy, and only use once, and nothing that is in any way complicated. Just easy family-friendly stuff we can all manage in our busyness.

A sustainable way of eating is not only good for the planet, it's good for our health too

FAQ's about The Real Meal Deal

Why have you included Meat Recipes on your site?

People are in different places when it comes to sustainability. For some, moving away from Beef and Lamb which have the highest carbon footprints is a first step. Chicken and pork emit lower levels of greenhouse gases and are good alternatives. Many of the meat recipes are useful for using up leftovers. If food waste was a country, it would be the third highest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world so sharing handy recipes for minimising food waste can help.

I don't have Organic or Fairtrade ingredients - can I still make the recipe?

Yes of course! I like to highlight when an ingredient is available as organic or as Fairtrade so you can make a choice but everything can absolutely be made with non-organic and non-Fairtrade.

I have an ingredient to use up - can you help?

Yes, just click the search icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen and type in your ingredient. You'll then see a collection of recipes that all use your ingredient.

Some of the publications my recipes and blogs have been featured in.

logos of brands that have featured content by the real meal deal.

Why not get started with some of my most popular recipes?

Let's Connect

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube, or just drop me an email and I'd love to chat or answer any questions.

Climate change is the biggest challenge of our time, so I’m pleased you’re here. I hope you feel encouraged to make a difference and enjoy some good cooking too!

Claire xxx