Recently, I reported on our
experience with Blue Apron that my son, Wally, had been given as a gift. Since then, we have tried a couple additional Blue Apron meals with him which were coordinated with the Weight Watchers (WW) Freestyle program.
Independently of this, Miss Landers decided to try Green Chef, another meal service that is very similar to Blue Apron but
focuses on organic ingredients and current diet trends including keto, paleo, and gluten free. She gave us a couple of those to try.
Below are some of the meals we've made.
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| This is the meal we tried from Green Chef- barramundi fish with lemon, caper sauce. Miss Landers signed up for a pescatarian plan because she is trying to incorporate more fish into her diet. |
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| The pan fried fish was topped with lemon caper sauce and came with sides of roasted potato wedges and sauteed carrots and onions. It was all quite good, but took a while to prepare with lots of chopping and different cooking steps. |
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| As chance would have it, the next day Wally gave us another fish with lemon caper sauce meal to try. This one was talapia and part of a WW Freestyle meal. It was served with zucchini and pepper orzo. Both fish meals were good and the crowd was divided between the two as to which one they liked better. For those of you keeping track, this meal had 15 WW Smart Points per serving and a couple hundred more calories that the barramundi meal. |
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| Wally decided that preparing these meals was more than he wanted to do by himself, so we cooked more of them together. This was an orange chicken stir-fry. Lots of chopping but a good flavor (although Theo wasn't sure about the orange pieces in the dish) and a low point value for anyone on the WW program. This was 4 points per serving. |
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| Another Blue Apron meal of creamy shiitake risotto. I had never cooked risotto before or used carnaroli rice, but may try it again. This was also tasty, but higher in WW points, 12 per serving. |
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| On deck. Another one Miss Landers is sharing with us from the Green Chef. This will probably be made tomorrow. |
As you might have guessed, there has been more food preparation going on in our kitchen recently than there has been in a long time. While we have enjoyed all of these meals, we will probably not sign up for one of these plans. All of the meals have been flavorful, but often use onions and peppers which not everyone here likes. Also, as I have mentioned before, they involve a lot more prep than I (and Ward and Wally and Theo) want to do.
If I keep talking about food in this blog, I'm going have to figure out how to take food pictures. Still not sure what's the best angle or lighting.
My first thought when I read this post was, "Those food pictures look so good". All I know is that it made me feel hungry and I am snacking on cold beef curry, as I type this! I am not sure if I should be eating curry at 3:12 a.m. (never mind about what I am doing up at 3:12 a.m. - I hear some birds chirping, already!)
ReplyDeleteYes, cutting and chopping can take some time; often, the preparations take longer than the cooking! But, everything looks delicious!
If I were still awake at 3 am, I think I would be hungry, too. However, I'm not sure that cold beef curry would be my first choice for a snack. I'd probably go for some unhealthy sweet, but good for you for not succumbing to that.
DeleteThese are interesting posts about all these trendy food services.
ReplyDeleteI am finding it all quite interesting and am getting a little more used to preparing them. I am lucky that I am getting to try these without paying for a big subscription.
DeleteI had looked into the food subscriptions before, but decided if I am going to have to do it all myself anyway, I might as well pick the foods out at the store myself. Of course I like to cook and actually do like going to the grocery store, as long as rain is not pouring down.
ReplyDeleteThe only benefit I can see for you in these box meals is the chance to try something new without buying everything needed to try it in larger quantities that you need, especially spices. Buying a whole jar of spices for something that you only use a teaspoon or so can be expensive.
DeleteI'm not sure I would be in the market to try one of these services but it's interesting to read about your experiences.
ReplyDeleteI read an interesting statistic today. More and more people (can't remember that number) are trying out these meal services and 70% of the people who try them continue to use them. They are definitely filling a need/want in the market.
DeleteDon't think I'll ever subscribe to any of these. My husband is a meat and potatoes guy, emphasis on meat -- mostly fried.:( He is 72, and not interested in changing, although his waistband is telling him to eat less of it! So is mine, so he did eat some of the chicken I roasted this week.) Even the breast was tender, so yay!
ReplyDeleteI guess we have the same weekly menus we've had for 53 years now, and since our children left the nest years ago, things have only gone smaller, not different! I would absolutely love to do new things, but he'd say, "I don't like that." He has never tried " that", but he knows he won't like "that"--whatever it is!! So when I make stuffed peppers-they're for me, stir fry--for me; baked fish --for me, so I have to fry his, and on and on. Whew!
I really don't mind chopping up veggies, but I am generally chopping them for me-- making enough stirfry, etc., to freeze for another meal or two!! He will eat roast and veggies on occasion. Sorry for the long comment.