Couples Cooking with Plated: Curried Lamb Tacos
with Cabbage Slaw and Cilantro-Lime Yogurt

Since I last wrote about meal kits–those boxes of goodness (recipes and ingredients, all shipped to your door)–they have continued to be in the news.  There's been some consolidation in the industry (referenced here), continued speculation about whether the industry is sustainable (for a negative view, see here), and ongoing interest in what meal kits are all about (here).  Now, there even is an industry information page dedicated to meal kits (here).

A central concern in much of what is being written is competition.  But I have my own perspective on competition in this industry: if enough of these firms can find a financially sustainable, cost-effective business model (and I certainly hope they do), I have a good feeling about the continued survival of a few of these firms.  Why?  Because each of the three firms I have ordered from–Blue Apron, Hello Fresh, and Plated–has evolved toward each other a bit as time has gone on, converging toward better service norms.  Among the areas of convergence: segregated ingredients (put in a separate bag or mini-box)…

Just over a month ago, I published a post on meal delivery kits, describing the nature of the service and noting a few points about the market, including some information about legal claims.  In that post, I promised more–specifically, a review of the kits themselves.  That review will come in two parts.  This is the first.  Today, I want to note some of the advantages and disadvantages of using meal kits, from my perspective.

First, the advantages:

• delivery to your doorstep
• the convenience of food and recipe in one box
• little food waste (tailored quantities of food and fixings)
• exposure to new recipes
• introduction to new ingredients (most recently for us, spaghetti squash)
• the chance to learn new cooking techniques
• recipe cards that
  • lay out sequential steps
  • include helpful pictures and tips
  • have a glossy finish and wipe clean
  • fit in a magazine rack or storage unit

Now, the disadvantages:

• undue packaging waste? (box, internal containers, cold packs)
• uneven quality instructions (e.g., herbs divided . . . how–by type or by volume?)
• expense (depending on what your household would do instead)

I have included below some pictures (click on any for full-size images) of the packaging for Hello Fresh…

As I earlier noted, I have planned to write on meal delivery kits.  What is a meal delivery kit, you ask?  It is a delivered-to-your-door box of ingredients and recipes for meals.  All of the ingredients (except pantry essentials) needed to produce the meals shown and described in the recipe cards are included in the box.  All the recipient has to do is follow the recipe instructions and produce the meals.  Reviews of meal kits that describe additional features can be found here (July 2017), here (October 2016), here (May 2016), and here (May 2015).

My husband ordered us our first meal kit (from Blue Apron) last year as an anniversary present to me.  The idea (which has worked exceedingly well) was that we would be able to more easily prepare meals together, since I often design meals on the fly and cook based on what I sense is needed.  It's pretty hard to assign tasks consistently and continuously using my natural method of meal preparation.  The meal kits solved this problem neatly.  So, having found success with Blue Apron, we decided to try a few other brands.  Specifically, we also have ordered meal kits from Plated and…