Meal kits are the fun, easy way to bring your loved ones a fresh new meal each night of the week, without all the pesky shopping and kitchen prep. We tried six of the top meal kit services currently on the market but should note that each of the foods delivered just tasted like an assortment of raw, cold ingredients and various dry spices, so can’t say we’ll be ordering again any time soon.
At least when you order takeout the food is cooked. I guess it’s back to Uber Eats.
Here’s what we dug our forks into.
Blue Apron
First up was Blue Apron’s Smoky Chicken & Creamy Cilantro Sauce over Spicy Carrots and Farro. We expected a fragrant, zesty Mediterranean dish, but all we ate was raw chicken (can you say “bellyache”?) and a handful of dry cilantro that made me cough a lot. Smoky Chicken? More like NOky Chicken.
HelloFresh
After a particularly hectic workday, we were excited to bust open a box of HelloFresh’s Salmon Limone, and while we fancy some raw fish (sushi, anyone?), eating a tablespoon of straight lemon zest doesn’t quite punch the ticket. All sour, no sweet.
Sun Basket
We went with Sun Basket for an organic, extra mindful choice. The Pork Chops with Dried Apricot Mostarda sounded tasty, but its uncooked nature left the pork rubbery and harsh (can you say “bellyache”?). The apricot was a nice change of pace, but paying $32 a box for a single piece of fruit doesn’t seem quite worth it.
Freshly
Turkey-Mushroom Meatballs with Zoodles & Spring Pesto? I would have loved to try it, but instead, I was treated to more cold, bitter produce. Plus, a little sheet of paper describing how they made it. Meatballs seared on all sides? I guess we have different definitions of the word “seared”.
Purple Carrot
As the only vegan option on our tasting board, we were excited to open the box, plate some of their BBQ Pulled Jackfruit Sandwiches, and have a healthy Spring barbecue. Instead, it was just slimy cold vegetables and several dinner rolls (can you say “bellyache”?). Yeah, I think next time I’ll just have a hot dog, thank you!
Gobble
At this point, something had to change, So, when we saw that the Soy-Rizo Stuffed Poblano Peppers were yet another carefully separated and measured collection of adjacent ingredients, we decided to try and methodically combine them to create what actually was a really fresh, easy-to-make dinner for everyone. PRO TIP: Use that smug little sheet of directions to copy their recipe exactly. That’ll show em’.