Submitted by Amy Sercel MS RD CD
Edited by Marcia Bristow MS RDN CSSD CD
Meal kits definitely take the guesswork out
of cooking dinner. Signing up for a
subscription to a meal kit means that every week, you’ll receive a box with all
the ingredients you’ll need to make 2-6 meals that serve 2-4 people. There are lots of different meal kit services
available. After writing this blog, which breaks down the features of
some (not all) popular meal kit
options, I decided to try some of them out for myself. Here are my impressions of each one.
Green Chef - $26.98 for the first week, $71.94
– 98.94 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Spanish Egg ‘n’ Hash with Saffron-Porcini Spices, Potato, Carrots, and Arugula
- Tamari-Glazed Salmon with Wasabi Edamame, Rice and Pickled Ginger, and Bok Choy
- Italian Mushroom Bowl with Lentils, Tomatoes, Kale, Basil Pesto, and Parmesan Fricos
Green Chef was the first meal kit I tried,
and it was certainly impressive. The
ingredients were familiar but prepared in ways that I had never tried before,
so the recipes felt novel. Even so, the
cooking techniques required were not difficult.
None of the recipes took more than about 45 minutes to make and they were
easy to follow. Many of the vegetables
were also sent pre-cut, which helped reduce the cooking time even more.
The three recipes were very filling,
averaging about 600 calories per serving. Additionally, some of the plastic containers
used for packaging were re-useable, so it didn’t feel like the meal kit
generated a lot of waste.
The most significant downside to Green Chef
is the cost. After the introductory
rate, the omnivore plan is about $80 per week.
The vegetarian plan is the least expensive option at about $72 per week. It’s also important to note that Green Chef
does not allow you to choose the specific recipes you’ll receive each week,
although you can change your dietary preferences to exclude a certain
ingredient if you don’t like one of the recipes you’re scheduled to get that
week.
Sun Basket - $33.94 for the first week,
$71.94 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Salmon in Parchment with Shiitakes and Mango-Cucumber Salad
- Miso Ramen Bowls with Braised Tofu and Bok Choy
- Quinoa and Kale Fritters with Sweet Potato-Mushroom Hash
Sun Basket did not disappoint with the
variety and flavor of their recipes. The
number of ingredients each recipe called for felt manageable, and every meal
was delicious. Pre-made spice blends,
sauces, and marinades helped to add an interesting dimension to each meal. Out of all the meal kits I tried, Sun Basket
introduced me to the widest range of new flavors. A third bonus of this service is that Sun
Basket sends you the recipes for all of the week’s possible recipes, so you could
potentially re-create them on your own if you feel inspired.
These recipes were also very satisfying,
averaging about 550 calories per serving.
I easily shared one among three people and did not feel like I had
under-eaten. The meals were also
relatively high in protein, ranging from 16-44 grams per serving.
Some of the recipes I made with Sun Basket
were rather challenging. The recipes
required a lot of steps that were not always the easiest to follow. One recipe in particular took almost two
hours to finish. For this reason, Sun
Basket would probably be best for two people cooking together, or for someone
who has more time to spend perfecting a meal.
Blue Apron - $24.94 for the first week,
$59.94 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Spiced Cauliflower and Jasmine Rice with Poblano Pepper and Cilantro-Yogurt Sauce
- Crispy Buttermilk Catfish with Roasted Delicata Squash
- Spicy Poblano and Mushroom Quesadillas with Baby Romaine and Avocado Salad
- Penne Pasta and Beef Bolognese with Pecorino Cheese
Although I only ordered one box for my
introductory week with Blue Apron, I arrived home to find that the meal kit
service had mailed me three! The
customer service representative who answered my confused phone call was highly
amused by the situation and told me that I could keep all three boxes for no
additional charge. I later received a
handwritten card thanking me for being a Blue Apron customer.
These meals were all very straightforward,
with the recipes broken down into simple steps that included photos to follow
along with. It took between 30 and 45
minutes to make these meals, and they were easy to complete by myself.
Similar to the other meal kit services, these
meals averaged about 630 calories per serving.
Unfortunately, I didn’t feel that any of these recipes introduced me to
any new spices, ingredients, or cooking techniques. The recipes also seemed to be lacking in
whole grains, which was reflected in their relatively low fiber content of 7-12
grams per serving. I was also surprised
by the number of times the recipes stated to “season with salt and
pepper.” This direction appeared between
four and seven times in each of the recipes I was sent, and I would have
preferred to see the recipes flavored with herbs or spices instead.
Plated - $31.85 for the first week,
$71.70 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Roasted Vegetable Tikka with Toasted Naan, Sautéed Spinach, and Coconut Chutney
- Fish Tacos with Avocado Sauce and Crunchy Slaw
- Maple-Roasted Delicata Squash with Burrata and Quinoa-Arugula Salad
Of all the meal kit recipes I tried, the Roasted
Vegetable Tikka ended up being my favorite because of the delicious blend of
spices and the variety of vegetables it included. I found that each recipe contained a pleasant
balance of flavors and textures, and I appreciated the combination of raw and
cooked vegetables in each meal.
Overall, the recipes were relatively easy to
follow. The directions were broken down
into six steps, and each step was accompanied by a photo. It took about an hour to finish cooking each
meal.
The dinners Plated provided could easily have
made leftovers or been divided among three people, averaging about 830 calories
per serving. This would be important to
keep in mind if you are working to reduce your calorie intake. Aside from this, the most significant
downside of Plated is that the majority of the ingredients are sent in plastic
bags. These can be recycled at most
grocery stores, however, it would be ideal if they could provide some reusable
containers instead.
Purple Carrot – about $45
for the first week, $72 – 78 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Refried Butternut Tacos
- Fall Vegetable Hash
- Loaded Burritos
Purple Carrot is an entirely vegan meal kit
service. When I signed up, I immediately
skipped the first week of delivery and didn’t get the introductory discount
they offer, which would be important to keep in mind if you’d like to try this
service.
Without knowing ahead of time, it would have
been difficult to identify that these recipes were all vegan. The recipes were unique and required me to
use ingredients in ways I would never have considered before. For example, the tacos were topped with
roasted grapes, adding an element of sweetness that nicely complemented the
butternut squash. That recipe also led
me to try plantains for the first time.
The recipes were broken down into six
manageable steps and were fun to cook. I
really enjoyed the combinations of ingredients they put together, especially
because the result was that I tried many new vegetables that I wouldn’t usually
have cooked with. This meal kit would be
an excellent introduction to vegan cooking for someone who is typically a
meat-eater. As an added bonus, almost
all of the containers Purple Carrot sends are re-useable, so this meal kit
feels less wasteful than some of the others.
These meals could easily serve more than two
people, averaging about 800 calories per serving. It was surprising to see that the recipes’
protein content ranged from 8 – 39 grams per serving. I had expected that a vegan meal kit service
would make an effort to provide high-protein meals each night rather than
allowing such a wide discrepancy.
Hello Fresh – About $20 for the first week,
$59.94 for subsequent weeks of 3 meals for 2 people
Recipes Made:
- Shepherd’s Pie with Mushrooms, Peas, and Roasted Carrots
- Bell Pepper and Black Bean Quesadillas with an Arugula and Heirloom Tomato Salad
- Butternut Squash Agnolotti with Kale in a Sage Brown Butter Sauce
Hello Fresh’s recipes were fun to make, taking
about 45 minutes each. The recipes were
not complicated, and it was easy to follow the six-step directions. Overall, the meals I made with Hello Fresh
felt like familiar comfort foods, and it would probably be impossible not to
find something you like in their recipe database.
This meal kit service advertises that their
recipes are approved by a Registered Dietitian, and this is reflected in the
meals’ nutrient facts. The recipes
average about 600 calories per serving and contain a variety of
vegetables. Hello Fresh would be a great
choice for someone looking for quick, delicious dinners. I was a little disappointed that the recipes
didn’t include a wider variety of herbs, spices, or unusual ingredients, as it
felt like the recipes sent by the meal kit were very similar to the types of
dinners I would prepare on my own.
Final Impressions
My meal kit experiment was a lot of fun. Meal kits definitely make dinner preparation
a lot easier by reducing the amount of time you will spend planning meals,
shopping for ingredients, and actually cooking.
For the most part, the recipes are all broken down into simple steps,
which can really help increase your confidence if you don’t always feel
comfortable cooking new things. Best of
all, meal kits offer a low-risk opportunity to try unfamiliar foods.
Each meal kit service offers its own variety
of positives and drawbacks, and the service that works for one person may not
be ideal for someone else. If you’d like
to try a meal kit, think about the amount you’re willing to spend each week and
the types of recipes you want to make.
If you’re having trouble making up your mind, pick a few you’d like to
try and make up your mind after you’ve sampled some. Just make sure you skip one meal kit on the
weeks that you’re getting the other one delivered. If you’re not sure about keeping the meal
kit, it’s also a good idea to skip the next few weeks after you order the
introductory box. You can always go back
and “un-skip” them later, but this way you will have time to cancel the service
before you’re locked-in and charged for the next week’s box.
