Since I started using Blue Apron, many readers and followers have requested a review. Here's my Blue Apron review.
I hate meal planning and grocery shopping, although some of this has been alleviated by grocery delivery services. This used to not matter because I had a husband who enjoyed grocery shopping and cooking. Now that a husband is no longer in the picture, all this unpleasantness falls on me.
The good news is that I've found a solution: Blue Apron.
Subscription shopping has long been a part of my strategy for household staples like paper products, non-perishable foods, and personal care items. I stumbled across Blue Apron when researching grocery delivery services like PeaPod. Blue Apron takes it to the next level. Rather than simply deliver the groceries you choose, Blue Apron creates a meal plan and sends you the ingredients and recipes.
As someone always looking to find ways to make more time, the idea of someone else taking care of the planning and the shopping thrills me. I've been using Blue Apron for a few weeks now, and I've received requests to share my experience. Here's my Blue Apron review. Because I love you all.
Healthy Meal Planning and Convenience
Convenience represents my main concern as I put together my healthy meal plans. Luckily, Blue Apron uses good ingredients and most of the recipes are reasonably healthy. The meal options include a two-person plan and family planning options.
The two-person plan provides ingredients and recipes for three meals per week. The family plan offers meals for four people, and you can choose four meals per week or two meals per week. (You can learn more about pricing on the Blue Apron website.)
When considering which option to choose, I had to consider my small family of two. However, the two-person plan didn't quite have what I needed (with three meals a week), especially since we occasionally have company. I also didn't like the idea of getting two meals for four people each week. In the end, I settled on getting the family plan for four meals a week.
It's more food than the two of us need, but it also means leftovers. We can eat the same thing the next night, and it offers flexibility if I want to invite someone over for dinner some night. Other leftovers can be heated for lunches or used in other ways.
Some weeks, if I know I'll be out of town, I've frozen the meat for use later. Most of the other ingredients can be kept for a couple of weeks without too much trouble. Some of the fresh produce has been a little wilted or moving toward less than fresh when it arrives (the food is delivered in a cold pack each Friday for me, but your schedule might be different), but most of it is pretty good. Other than a couple of small issues, I've been happy with the quality of all the ingredients when they arrive.
Tweaking My Blue Apron Experience
One of the things I like about Blue Apron is that all of the ingredients are included. If a recipe needs vinegar, a little vial of vinegar is included. Pre-measured flour, breadcrumbs, and other items are all included. It's a nice touch, and you can also adjust the recipes slightly as you see fit.
Sometimes I skip deliveries. You're not locked into getting your meals every single week. I've noticed that my four-person, four meals a week plan allows for even greater flexibility. Each week, my plan is broken down into two different deliveries. You can look at the menu weeks ahead and decide if you want to skip something. If you will be out of town, you can skip all your deliveries until you return. Sometimes, if I haven't used everything from one week, I'll go in and skip one of my two Friday deliveries, so I only end up getting half my normal delivery.
Of course, Blue Apron only provides you with what you need for these dinner meals, and fruit usually isn't involved. My milk, eggs, and bread are delivered from the local dairy each week, and I do make one quick trip to the local grocery once a week for produce, snacks, and what I need to fix my son's lunches. This saves me a great deal of time, with my trips to the grocery store averaging about 15 minutes, instead of 75 minutes (yes, I timed it), with most of my food delivered to my door. That's a time savings of an hour a week — an hour I can use more profitably than wandering the grocery aisles.
How Blue Apron Saves Me Money as Well as Time
My plan costs $139.84 per week. However, you aren't charged for what you don't have delivered. If I only take one delivery, my credit card is charged $69.92. And, of course, if I skip the week entirely, I pay nothing.
I've discovered that I'm actually saving money each week, thanks to Blue Apron. When I lived in the Philadelphia area, my husband and I spent more than $300 a week shopping at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. On an expensive week, here's what I spend for my groceries now:
- Blue Apron: $139.84
- Reed's Dairy delivery: $14.21
- Quick grocery stop: $36.79 (that's from my most expensive week so far)
Now my weekly cost is $190.84. On an expensive week, that's still a savings of $109.16. On less expensive weeks, when I skip a Blue Apron delivery, the savings are even greater. The important thing is that this move to letting someone else plan my meals and do the major shopping on my behalf saves me more than $5,600 per year. Not to mention the time I save.
Sometimes the menu isn't quite what my son and I enjoy (but we eat it anyway), and there are times we supplement with fruits and vegetables I buy at the store (most of the vegetable side dishes don't make it to leftover status because we finish them off), but overall I see Blue Apron as a win for my family.
What do you think of my Blue Apron review? Are there are things you'd like to see me address? Have you tried this type of service? What did you think?
I’ve never tried Blue Apron, mostly because of the cost. I have used Plated when they offered a special deal for your first order, and I liked it, but it still isn’t worth the money to me when paying full price. I find that with a bit of planning I can easily get by with $100/week for groceries for me and my boyfriend.
I think the best part of these programs is exposure to new ingredients that might be hard to track down at local stores or expensive when you have to buy a full size for a recipe that only requires a small quantity.
That’s a great point about exposure to new things. I love that the menu is varied and I’m not the one who has to be creative with it! I could spend a lot less than I do, but the bottom line is that I don’t care if I spend less in this area. There are other areas I spend less in because they don’t matter as much. I think it’s healthy to know your priorities so that you can do what works for you.
I’ve been following your Facebook posts about Blue Apron and I am so glad you published a review. Blue Apron isn’t available in the small town I live in but I definitely want to try it out if it ever does.
I was surprised to see it available here, honestly. Hopefully you’ll see it soon! I’ve been happy with it.
That quiche looks really good! I’ve got some goat cheese, feta, and gorgonzola in the fridge that might be really good in a quiche. Mmmm almost lunch time. 🙂
We get by on around $125/wk for a family of 5. That’s shopping the sales and at Aldi a lot. We eat pretty well. This week we had sushi, marinated chicken, lo mein, and stir fry, tacos, salads, etc. I like the Blue Apron idea, just couldn’t stomach the cost versus what we’re already paying.
I guess I do spend at least an hour in the grocery store each week (sometimes 2 hours if I go 2-3x). I enjoy it. And since I’m early retired and not trying to free up time for more productive applications, I’m not really “losing out” by spending time in the grocery store. It’s also nice to browse and try new stuff on a whim (by hitting up the Mexican or Asian food section for example 🙂 ).
Seriously hungry now…
I think it really depends on what matters to you, and where you are willing to spend your time and money. I’m cool with spending more money because I don’t enjoy shopping or meal planning. I think it’s awesome that you like those things. And your cheese selection sounds delicious. Go make a quiche!
It is not only about not going to the store…That saves you time and money.
It is the fact that you are learning good wholesome meal prep with the finest of the finest ingredients that I would guess you could not find any of this quality in your town.
Check out their videos and information on their suppliers.
Plus establishing an on going cook book folder ..the meal prep instructions cost $.
I save the containers for my RV for for meal prep on the road or camping.
A meal of this quality would cost …..”With their top of the line ingredients” well over $20 per serving plus tip in any top end restaurant….That is $ 120 plus tip driving to the restaurant than home for six meals.
This is not a fast food replacement!
This Grommet cooking at home and a learning experience.
One of the things that puts me off is the lack of variety of meals that are meat free. Do you think from the selections that you have seen available, that there is enough variety for a vegetarian / pescatarian?
I usually end up with at least one vegetarian and one fish meal per week, out of the four meals that I get. That’s probably pretty low for someone who wants to focus on vegetarian/pescatarian food. You can choose a Vegetarian option with Hello Fresh, so that might be a good alternative to Blue Apron for you. I’ve been meaning to try some of these different options. Another one is Peach Dish, which offers you a selection of meals, including veg/pesc, so you can get another option. Green Chef has vegan options.
I’ve been following your Facebook posts about Blue Apron and I am so glad you published a review. Blue Apron isn’t available in the small town I live in but I definitely want to try it out if it ever does.