When I tried Blue Apron I found the helping had I needed in the kitchen. I recently used the service and have a lot to say about its features, the food, and the pros and cons overall. If you’ve heard of Blue Apron and have been considering it, or love the idea of being able to have fresh food and recipes delivered straight to your doorstep, you’ll want to check out this detailed Blue Apron family plan review.
The Cost
Blue Apron has two different plans: a two-person plan and a family plan that feeds up to 4 people. With the two-person plan, you get 3 recipes per week and with the family plan, you can choose between getting 2-4 recipes per week. The 2 person plan costs $59.94 per week and the family plan ranges between $69.92 and $139.84 per week.
When I first looked at the pricing for the two different plans, I thought it was a little high compared to how much I spend on regular groceries at the store. Since I have a little one, we would definitely need the Blue Apron Family plan to ensure we had enough food.
However, I do think the pricing is pretty fair considering the fact that it includes packing, shipping, premium ingredients, and detailed instructions for preparing the food. It adds convenience and cuts out the task of running to the grocery store. With Blue Apron, everything you need down the seasoning and garnish is delivered in your box so there’s no need to run to the store in the middle of preparing your meal because you need something else.
Fresh and High Quality Ingredients
Another thing I noticed about Blue Apron’s meals is that the ingredients are fresh and high-quality. The meat is farm raised without and antibiotics and the produce and vegetables are organic (clicky). This can also contribute to and justify the price of the plan.
When I received my box, I decided to prepare the salmon dish and thought it was pretty easy to follow the directions I was given. Blue Apron provides you with just enough ingredients to prepare your dish and this helps eliminate food waste.
Like I said, the instructions were pretty easy to follow and even included things to do to prep the food. I noticed it did take me a little longer than usually to prepare each meal (about an hour for each). I figured it required more time because I was using whole ingredients and trying out something new. I’d never cooked with many of the ingredients before, so it was interesting to try out and the food turned out pretty good.
The one thing I did notice was that the meals I received had a lot of rice and starches for sides. It was delicious, but I’m personally trying to stay away from rice and heavy carb dishes. Luckily, Blue Apron allows you to adjust the type of meals you receive each week based on your dietary preferences.
I’m not positive if there’s a low-carb option, but I know there are options for vegetarians, pescetarians, people who don’t eat red meat and so on. I’ll have to look into this more next time but Blue Apron does state on their website that if you have serious food allergies, the meal service is probably not right for you.
The Specifics
When you sign up for Blue Apron, you get to choose your plan and schedule your first delivery. You can’t necessarily pick your meals one-by-one, but Blue Apron shows you the options you’ll receive based on your dietary preferences.
If you love to try new recipes, you’ll actually like this.
It’s preferable to schedule your delivery for when you’ll be home, but the Blue Apron box is insulated and includes two giant ice packs so even if you’re not home at the time of the delivery, your food will stay cool.
From my experience, the box is just dropped off at your doorstep and someone either knocks on the door or rings the doorbell, then runs off. I was home at the time of my delivery and my box almost got delivered to my neighbor who has a similar unit address as me (we live in an apartment). I ran down the stairs to snatch the box quickly before someone else ended up with my food 🙂
Anyway, what’s important is to realize that Blue Apron meals will be delivered weekly (Tuesday – Friday) and you’ll be charged automatically whenever a shipment goes out. If you shop for food weekly already, this should work with your schedule but if for some reason you want to pause a Blue Apron delivery, you need to log into your account and skip it.
You must skip it with enough time in advance so you don’t get charged – preferably 6 days before your next shipment date or right after you receive your weekly box of meals.
Pros and Cons
Pro: Fresh and quality ingredients and recipes delivered to your door weekly
Pro: Blue Apron sources food from family-fun farms so you can support them when you use the service.
Pro: You can skip your delivery for a week but you must do so manually.
Con: Somewhat limited dietary accommodations (not sure if they have a low-carb option).
Con: Can extend the time you spend in the kitchen preparing the meal which can pose a problem if you don’t have a lot of time to cook (took me about an hour for each of the 3 meals I received).
Con: Price per serving is a little high, but you have to factor in the convenience the service provides and the quality of the ingredients.
Final Verdict
Overall, my Blue Apron family plan’s final verdict is I think Blue Apron is a solid option if you’re looking for healthy ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes delivered to your doorstep weekly. If you get overwhelmed with grocery shopping and meal planning, this service can definitely help.
However, you must consider the price, your dietary needs, and how much time you’ll have to cook each night. All in all, Blue Apron could provide you with that extra kick you need in the kitchen throughout the week especially with the 3 meal per week plan. That way, you can still cook your convenience meals on other days. I
Finally, if you’re interested in signing up, please use this link, it is good for $30 bucks off your first order.
Have you ever heard of Blue Apron? Do you sometimes get overwhelmed when it comes to grocery shopping and preparing meals like I do?
More of Blue Apron from our friends, the cleverdude, thousandaire, and budget and invest.
Chonce is a freelance writer who’s obsessed with frugality and passionate about helping others increase their savings rate, eliminate debt, and work toward financial stability. She chronicles her journey to becoming debt-free on her blog, mydebtepiphany.com.
