Blue Apron, the grandfather of US meal kits, has overhauled its business model. The company eliminated the subscription requirement and revamped its menu offerings. No more recurring monthly fees. But does the food still hold up? We tested Blue Apron from multiple perspectives and found that it ticks a lot of boxes. It offers good value with steak and seafood recipes alongside vegetarian options. Most meals cost between $9and$9and13 per serving, and the quality remains impressive.

How Blue Apron Works

Unlike most meal kit services, Blue Apron no longer requires a subscription. You simply enter your email and select meal kits for two or four people. You can order as many or as few as you like. Shipping costs $10 per box unless you subscribe to Blue Apron Plus, which offers free shipping and more perks. You can change or cancel orders through the app easily, but any changes must be made six days before your delivery date.

What Blue Apron Meals Are Like

Most Blue Apron meals are healthy, with lean proteins, fresh vegetables and healthy grains. The box includes a Produce Origin List showing where all fruits and vegetables come from. There are also comfort foods like meatloaf with mashed potatoes or French bread pizza. Blue Apron’s standard weekly menu often includes a steak recipe or fish like trout, salmon or tilapia. Of all meal kit services tested, Blue Apron had the most interesting steak and seafood recipes available in the standard plan. The service also incorporates unique spice mixes, sauces and side dishes that you might not find elsewhere.

How Easy Are Blue Apron Meals To Prepare?

Most Blue Apron meals are easy to prepare and do not require advanced cooking skills. Some recipes like mushroom risotto take up to 45 minutes, but most take between 25 and 35 minutes from start to finish. The sauce packets have cut lines that are easy to open, which saves time and helps people with dexterity disabilities. The packaging is labeled with ingredient weights, making them easy to identify. Newer cooks found that meals were fairly simple to prepare but still boasted unique flavors and looked impressive when plated. The oven ready meals are the fastest, requiring less than 10 minutes of work and then baking time.

Is Blue Apron Good For Vegetarians?

Yes, Blue Apron is good for vegetarians. After testing four vegetarian meals, reviewers were impressed with the variety and flexibility. The produce tasted fresh, and the sauces were incredible. You can adjust spice levels based on your preference. While recipes do have you season every layer, you can be mindful about salt addition to reduce sodium intake.

Is Blue Apron Healthy?

Blue Apron offers nutritionist approved and Weight Watchers recommended recipes. There is a good variety of dietary options including vegetarian friendly meals. Recipes include fresh produce, healthy grains like farro, different protein options, and a nice variety of ingredients. However, you should check the nutrition label online to make sure you are not adding too much salt and that the recipe works for your specific diet. The recipes are easily adjustable.

What We Cooked And How It Went

We tested 12 Blue Apron recipes in total. Boxes arrived undamaged with everything neatly packaged. Produce, fish, meat and other ingredients all seemed fresh, with only one red pepper showing minor signs of being past its prime but still usable. Nothing was missing, although one replacement was made with customer service notifying in advance.

Standout recipes included bavette steak with caper aioli, which was restaurant quality tender and flavorful. The Thai peanut curry chicken oven ready meal required only five minutes of prep. Garlic shrimp over Spanish style potatoes was fast and filling. Gochujang steak lettuce cups took less than 20 minutes. Shawarma cauliflower grain bowls were healthy but delicious. Sesame hoisin chicken was a hit at home. Seared salmon included the internal temperature needed, which helped first time salmon cooks.

Vegetarian hits included white bean and veggie grain bowls that took only 15 to 20 minutes. Roasted cauliflower and farro salad was a favorite with incredible tahini yogurt sauce. Loaded veggie burritos were filling, though one cook found the brown sugar made it slightly too sweet. Thai style curry noodles with a fried egg were delicious and provided leftovers.

One premium recipe, pan seared scallops with capers and orange salsa, was a miss due to competing flavors. But overall, most recipes were successful.

Prepared And Ready Meals

The red curry noodle bowl had tender beef despite being microwaved. The creamy mushroom chicken with orzo and peas had good cheese and mushroom balance. Four cheese enchiladas with rice were filling but had less cheese than desired. Sweet and spicy tofu udon noodles had tender tofu and a good variety of vegetables.

Who Should Try Blue Apron?

Blue Apron is great for families since the price per serving drops to $8 a portion if you choose four recipes for four people. With Weight Watchers integration built into the menus and app, it is a good choice for someone following that plan. It is also good for anyone looking to cut corners at dinner or improve cooking skills. The recipes are elevated yet easy to prepare and offer good value, making them great for new cooks or picky eaters hoping to expand their palate.

There are better meal kits for vegetarians or vegans. Purple Carrot offers 100 percent plant based meal kits. Even non vegan services like Sunbasket and Green Chef have more meat free options.

Packaging And Environmental Friendliness

Blue Apron has improved its packaging with less wasteful plastic wrapping. The company partners with Feeding America Network, allowing them to send 32 percent of food that would be wasted to local food banks. However, there is still room for improvement. The ice packs cannot be sent back for reuse. Some reviewers wish for compostable or biodegradable alternatives to plastic packaging.

Pros And Cons

Pros ✅

• No subscription required, order a la carte
• Good balance of comfort food and healthy recipes
• Standard plan includes steak and seafood recipes
• Good value if you order a large plan
• Eco friendly packaging with less plastic waste
• Easy to use app for changes and cancellations
• Oven ready meals require less than 10 minutes of prep

Cons ❌

• Does not allow for much customization
• Expensive if you only order two meals per week
• Extra shipping cost of $10to$10to11.49 per box
• No vegan options
• Some recipes took new cooks closer to one hour

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Does Blue Apron require a subscription?
No, Blue Apron eliminated the subscription requirement. You can order a la carte.

2. How much does Blue Apron cost per serving?
Most meal kits range from $9to$9to13 per serving. Premium meals cost more.

3. Is Blue Apron good for vegetarians?
Yes, there are good vegetarian options, but vegans may want to look elsewhere.