About Us
Chef on Board is owned and run by Jonathan & Olivia Parker. After 10 years in publishing, Jonathan retrained as a chef at the world famous Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland, before settling in Herefordshire and setting up Chef on Board in 1999.
The emphasis at Ballymaloe is on using the best and freshest ingredients sourced locally where possible. These ideas formed the guiding principles of Chef on Board. Our aim has always been to produce ready meals for peole who love "real food". To do this, we cook everything by hand, in small one-pot batches, using only natural ingredients, and no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. Then we fast-freeze the meals, which locks in the freshness and flavour.
About the food
All our beef, lamb and pork is sourced from local farms in beautiful Herefordshire.
We only use free-range chicken, reared naturally by Rick Stein "Food Hero" Ron Mee at Springfield Farm in nearby Leominster. The chicken is also killed and dressed on the farm to reduce stress.
Many of our dishes are gently simmered for 2-3 hours to allow the meat to tenderise and the flavours to develop fully. If you don't have time for that sort of cooking yourself, we hope you find that Chef on Board's range means you don't have to.
News History
Our website is now listed on ShopSafe - the directory that checks online shopping sites to make sure they are safe for people to use. The majority of sites that apply to be listed on Shopsafe get rejected, so getting a listing is difficult to do. It means you can shop with confidence on our site!
We are now featured in the Online Shopping Town - check it out for the best in online shopping.
7 Jan: Snow news
23 Dec - Merry Christmas
That's it now for pre-Christmas deliveries. Feel free to order in the usual way over the holiday period - the next date for dispatch is 4th January for delivery on the 5th. We wish you all a very festive Christmas and a happy 2010.
16th Dec - Christmas Gift Ideas
If you haven't finished your Christmas shopping yet, don't panic - there's still time to order one of our Gift Vouchers. They come in a range of prices and will provide the recipient with succour and sustenance in the bleak mid-winter...
12 Nov - New Mum Gifts
10 Sept - New Addition to the Menu
The latest addition to our menu is a wonderfully warming Moroccan Beef Casserole. The rich sauce of tomato, chickpeas and prunes with spices will transport you to a sunnier place...
20 July - Local Food Hero
Chef on Board has been nominated as a Local Food Hero in the competition run by UKTV to champion small regional food producers, retailers and restaurants. You can vote for us by clicking on this link. Thanks very much! The closing date is 7th August.
March 2009 - Time to start thinking about your old mum, with Mothers' Day sneaking up fast. How about sending food instead of flowers this year? A box of delicious meals is both tastier than tulips and a lot more thoughtful. Show me a mother who wouldn't like a few days off cooking dinner and l'll show you..I don't know, Jools Oliver maybe. You could make up a box of your mum's favourite meals, or send a Gift Voucher....
March 2009 - If you're going on a self-catering holiday this year, particularly with young children, you probably don't want to do too much actual, you know, cooking. In which case, Chef on Board meals save you the trouble - ta-da! We can deliver to your cottage or you might want to stay at one of the lovely places we supply with our meals already. One such, Eaton Manor, featured in the Independent recently, with a nice mention in dispatches for the Chef on Board service ...[Read more...]
Jan 2009 - If you've visited us before, you'll see we've redesigned our website - we hope you like it and find it easier to get around. We've got lots of new dishes on the menu - including Sweet & Sour Pork and Roast Vegetable and Chickpea Curry as well as our new great value Family Meals....[Read more...]
December 2008
NEW WEBSITE - We have redesigned our website and we hope you like it - no more log ins or passwords to buy online! Why not check out our new Family Meals - larger portions of some of our most popular dishes. And you can now sign up to a regular newsletter on the Home page, to receive special offers and discounts.
CHRISTMAS DELIVERIES - The last order date for pre-Christmas delivery is Sunday 21st for delivery on Tuesday 23rd. The next delivery date after that is Tuesday 30th December.
November 2008
NEW DISH - The latest addition to our menu is a delicious Roast Vegetable & Chickpea Curry - a selection of vegetables in an aromatic curry sauce with lentils and chickpeas - wonderfully warming for chilly Autumnal Evenings. Click here to go to the Vegetarian page of our shop.
September 2008
4 STARS - The Environmental Health office now has a rating system for Food premises, which is available for public view on the EHO website. We are pleased to say that Chef on Board has been awarded "Four Stars - Very Good" so you can be confident that all our meals are made in a clean, modern and hygenic environment.
Posted 18 Jan 2010: Normal Service Resumed