Dec. 27, 2018

When Chef to Plate closed earlier this year, one of the cooks bought the equipment and took over the kitchen, starting a similar business called Healthy M.E.

Owner Yung Ring and her husband have three children, and they’re busy with work and family, so the concept of her business — providing healthy, ready-to-eat meals in individual portions– makes sense to her.

“We would do our meals at the beginning of the week, so we could grab and go,” she said. They also found themselves with less time to exercise, so they wanted to eat food that wasn’t loaded with calories.

Healthy M.E. takes care of that meal prep for other busy families and customers such as young professionals, college students and people who are trying to lose weight or gain muscle, she said.

Customers select their meals online at healthymellc.org, without a minimum order. Ring cooks three days a week in the kitchen near 26th Street and Minnesota Avenue and delivers the meals for pickup at Science Nutrition stores on the east and south sides of the city. She also makes a few extra meals that the stores stock in their coolers and sell.

With individual portions, customers can have variety. “You don’t want to eat the same thing every day of the week,” Ring said.

She also changes her menu every month. In December, options ranged from meatloaf-stuffed bell peppers and Parmesan chicken nuggets to pork carnitas and Thai chicken. She also makes breakfast meals such as gingerbread pancakes with cookie butter syrup, and biscuits and gravy with turkey sausage. Meals can be reheated in the microwave or frozen to be eaten later.

“My cooking style is more of a home, comfort style,” Ring said. “You’ll feel like you’re eating your mom’s cooking.”

She takes those recipes, though, and “I figure out how to make it so they’re less fat.” Ring wants her customers to have food that sounds indulgent but isn’t. “They can enjoy, and it’s not typical diet food.”

Meals are $8.50 for breakfast and $9 for lunch/dinner. Calories range from 200 to 500 depending on the ingredients, she said, and they’re packed with protein to keep diners feeling full until the next meal.

Ring, whose family immigrated to the United States from Vietnam when she was 4, grew up immersed in the food service industry. Her parents own Kowloon Chinese Restaurant, and her aunts and uncles also have restaurants where she worked over the years.

“Cooking was a hobby and a passion, and I was able to turn it into a career.”