Our food system, how food is grown and distributed, is complex, and making good choices for your family can be challenging. Blue Apron is changing that by collaborating with farmers to raise the highest-quality ingredients, developing a distribution system that delivers ingredients at a lower cost, and investing in what matters most, our environment and our communities. This will take decades, but with each Blue Apron home chef’s help, we can build a better food system.
It can be difficult to tell whether food is of high quality and grown sustainably at the grocery store. We are collaborating with leading sustainability experts to develop better standards for food production and animal husbandry. This results in better environmental outcomes, guaranteed markets for farmers, and higher-quality ingredients for home chefs.
Their farmers and ranchers treat their animals with kindness and respect, and they never use subtherapeutic antibiotics. Blue Apron requires that all of its meat, poultry, and egg suppliers treat animals as soon as possible if they become ill and their welfare requires it. Furthermore, no Blue Apron suppliers support the use of growth promoters such as added hormones*, sub-therapeutic antibiotics, or beta-agonists.
If you’ve used any meal kit service, Blue Apron operates similarly to the majority of others in the category, a category it pioneered. You’ll begin by entering your email address and selecting a plan. Blue Apron meal plans are straightforward and easy to follow: You can select two, three, or four recipes per week and meals for two or four people. Meals become less expensive as you order more.
Only when ordering meals for two can you log dietary preferences such as vegetarian or wellness. The four-portion or family-size meal plan does not accommodate special diets as well, but it is significantly less expensive.
Meal kits include everything you need to make dinner (except salt, pepper, and cooking oil) and are delivered on a day other than Sunday of your choosing. Remember, this is a subscription service, so unless you pause or cancel, meals will be delivered every week and you will be charged for them. Blue Apron will choose meals for you based on your initial plan if you do not manually select the recipes through the website or app.
If you choose the Signature Meal Plan, which includes all recipes, you will have approximately 12 meal kits to choose from each week. One or two of those 12 are labeled premium meals and include a higher-end cut of steak or seafood at an additional cost. If you choose the Vegetarian Plan, you will have plant-based options for roughly three of the twelve meals. Four or five of the twelve meals are classified as Wellness.
The majority of Blue Apron meals are fairly healthy, featuring lean proteins, fresh vegetables, and whole grains. If you want to splurge, there’s always a pasta dish or two to choose from, as well as comfort foods like meatloaf with mashed potatoes or French bread pizza.
Blue Apron incorporates some unique ingredients and side dishes that you may not find in other meal kit services. For example, photogenic Romanesco broccoli is served with tofu Banh Mi sandwiches or a pan-seared steak dish is served with crispy gnocchi instead of tired mashed potatoes. Blue Apron’s culinary team also experiments with spices and sauces. While many of the flavors and dishes will be familiar, you may encounter some that you’ve never seen or tasted before.
Blue Apron meals are generally simple to prepare and do not necessitate any special cooking skills or extensive kitchen experience. Some more involved recipes can take up to 45 minutes to complete, but the majority take between 25 and 35 minutes. Blue Apron recently introduced a market for cooking supplies, primarily cookware, gadgets, and gear, as well as some proprietary spice blends. The market prices are fairly reasonable. Yes, you can purchase a Blue Apron “blue apron”.
For an additional $66 per month (including shipping), you can receive six bottles of wine specially selected to pair with your Blue Apron recipes. Depending on your existing preferences, you can choose red, white, or a combination of the two. Blue Apron meal kits are ideal for families because the price per serving drops to under $7.50 if you select four recipes for four people. With a WW integration built into the menus and app, it’s a good option for those on that diet (but not for most other diets).
Blue Apron meals cost $10 per serving if you’re a couple looking for two, three, or four recipes per week. Blue Apron will pay for shipping if you select two or three recipes. Otherwise, each box costs $8. Choose recipes for four people, and the price per serving for two meal kits starts at $9. Order four meal kits for four people and pay only $7.50 per serving plus free shipping. Blue Apron Spoon’s website and mobile app make it simple to skip weeks, swap out recipes, or pause your subscription. Any modifications must be made at least six days before the next delivery date.
