Blue Apron Meal Delivery Service
Last updated: January 16, 2024
Instructions for each of the meals are easy to follow, helping you create tasty dinners in minutes. Serving sizes are plentiful and the options make it easy to find something even finicky kids will like. All ingredients are fresh and responsibly sourced, and the packaging is designed with recyclability in mind.
We looked at the top Meal Delivery Kits and dug through the reviews from some of the most popular review sites. Through this analysis, we've determined the best Meal Delivery Kit you should buy.
Product Details
Key Takeaway: Consumers who are focused on the environment will love this service, which uses sustainable ingredients.
In our analysis of 177 expert reviews, the Blue Apron Meal Delivery Service placed 10th when we looked at the top 24 products in the category. For the full ranking, see below.Expert Reviews
What reviewers liked
The rest of the Blue Apron offerings look to be just as filling and have full-sized ingredients. It’s ideal for feeding a hungry family, or for the culinarily-inclined who like to know exactly what ingredients they are using and from where they came.
Inexperienced cooks will find Blue Apron particularly easy to use and reliable. Its straightforward recipes will appeal to a wide range of tastes (including kids) and it’s one of the more affordable services.
The dishes were creative, included more international spices and did a good job of pairing items that I might not have considered. As with HelloFresh, you can choose from different types of plans, but you do have to create an account and enter your credit card information to see the various plans and menu options.
The directions are so easy to follow our editor had her six-year-olds help her out. The company has a mission to improve our country’s food system at large by focusing on sustainable farming, direct shipping, and less food waste. Its chefs work directly with farmers to create the meal plans and provide the stories behind the ingredients so you know where your food actually came from.
- Self
The menu is second to none, with new recipes and incredible meals inspired by the Mediterranean diet. Bonus: You can add a wine pairing to your order.
- Glamour
The cook times were either spot-on, or we were able to finish in even less time than indicated. In fact, the three Blue Apron meals we cooked were all super fast and very easy. The recipe cards were well designed and easy to follow with helpful step-by-step photos. Two of the recipes took 25 minutes to make.
I found Blue Apron to be simple yet creative. Za'atar chicken was precisely what you might expect from a chicken dish, with a well-cooked protein, roasted vegetables, and a fluffy couscous base. But what saved it from boredom was the truly delightful Za'atar spice. I often complain about foods being under-spiced, this certainly wasn't the case.
It's the top pick because it works well for most people. The service is flexible with lots of dietary lifestyles, it isn't too expensive, the weekly menus have plenty of choices, and the recipes aren't super difficult.
- Wired
We love Blue Apron for its variety of flavors, helpful instructions, convenience, and competitive pricing. We also love that it sells wine, too, plus cooking equipment, spices, olive oils, and a few other pantry items.
What reviewers didn't like
Isn’t great for vegetarians, partly because it offers only three vegetarian options each week. This means you get what you get, and unfortunately what you get is a lot of variations on pizza, pasta, and sandwiches. For the most part the options are high in starch, low in protein, and not interesting enough to justify the $10 per serving price.
Ingredients for a single meal weren't necessarily grouped together. There were three bags of "Knick Knacks" (sauces, spices) with the corresponding dish's name on them as well. Everything fit in the fridge, but I could see myself potentially forgetting about some of the food, since it's not in the individual meal bags like HelloFresh.
We were surprised to find out that we only had the option of six to eight meals to choose from each week in the Signature plan. Other services we tried offered options in the double digits. And the company’s other plans had even fewer options. The Signature for Four plan includes a vegetarian option only occasionally, and not even the same meals that are offered in the Signature plan for two.
Some recipes may not justify the price point, given that ingredients are quite straightforward and easy to find in your local supermarket.
Blue Apron, are experiencing high demand, shipping delays, or reduced menu options due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
- Wired
Where it comes up a short, however, is catering to specific diets. There is a vegetarian line, but there isn't much for vegans or people who follow a keto or paleo diet.
View our Meal Delivery Kit buying guide for in-depth advice and recommendations.