I’m sure you’ve heard of the trend of meal kits that are shipped to your door, such as HelloFresh, Blue Apron, etc. I have tried them, but don’t use them on a regular basis, as I prefer to have more control over my meal planning (naturally!) as a nutritionist. But I'm not going to make that decision for you! This post is to help you decide which meal plan strategy would work best for your lifestyle.
Both meal kits and meal planning are options to consider if you need help planning dinner, want to get better at cooking, etc. Both can help you break out of a cooking rut with the excitement and possibility of new cooking experiences and be tailored to any specific dietary needs, but if there are allergies to consider, meal kits may not be your best bet! Let’s get into the pros and cons of each:
Meal Kits
Pros:
Easy, often healthy and quick recipes that you pick from a set list
Help you learn to cook and/or if you’re too busy to plan dinner and shop for it
Possibility of less food waste
Conveniently delivered to your door, saving time and gas on grocery store runs
Cons:
More expensive (cost vs. value)
Requires responsibility - usually must commit to a subscription, or be charged if you forget to cancel
Produce quality isn’t always great; they sometimes still need you to go to the store to buy an ingredient
The food needs to be prepped within days, so if you forget to cancel, it could go bad
Can’t accommodate serious food allergies
Severe environmental impact
Meal Plans
Pros:
Easy, often healthy and recipes that are selected to meet your specific needs and preferences
Less expensive
Much less environmental impact
Cons:
Would have to set up grocery delivery to get the same convenience factor
Meal planning services provide you with recipes (selected based on your needs) and grocery lists for less money (and much less paper & plastic waste) as compared to meal kit delivery. This also gives you more control over the ingredients you get and the quantity of food you can cook. You can have a mixture of cooking methods such as slow cooker nights, sheet pan meals, batch-prepping oats, salads and bowls, etc or just a variety of sheet pan meals every night.
A lot of the meal plans you can find online aren't sustainable long-term because they don't allow for flexibility - some days you just need to order takeout, and some nights you go out for a date or with friends! Life happens: bad days, birthdays, etc. I don't believe in making you eat the same thing every day, or very little calories. While I can give you a handy guide for what to make & eat each week, you aren't chained to following it every day for the rest of your life!
Meal kit delivery services send you 3 (or more) recipes plus the ingredients to your door, every week. There’s a possibility of less food waste, since the ingredients are measured for you and you don’t have to buy a jar of cardamom to only use 1 teaspoon of it for a recipe, then never use it again (been there, done that). Basically, they promise to help you make better dinners with less effort than trying to plan dinners and go shopping on your own.
Within the meal kit world, there are several companies with their own pros and cons:
Easy, kid-friendly recipes
Good quality ingredients
Great for beginner-level cooks
Good price: $7.50 - $10 per person, for 2-4 people, 2-4 meals/week
Limited menu – 8 options for a two-person subscription; 5 for a four-person subscription
Sponsored by America's Test Kitchen
Uses more plastic packaging for ingredients
Ready in 30 minutes or less
Large portion sizes
15-20 recipe choices each week
~$10 per person, for 2 people, 3 meals/week = $53.94 per week plus $6.99 shipping
Add-ons available for an additional cost
Sponsored by Jessica Alba
Uses paper bags for ingredients
Easy recipes
Good vegetarian options
More for intermediate-level cooks
Higher-quality ingredients
Sometimes requires you to have other ingredients, such as eggs or sugar, on hand when you may not have those readily available because they're on your grocery list!
$9-$10.25 per serving, 2-4 people, 2-4 meals per week - also gives the option to add additional servings up to 12
10 recipe choices per week
Dinnerly:
2 people, $6.50 per serving ($5 per meal plus shipping costs)
Quality is not as good compared to other, more expensive boxes
20-40 minutes to prep and cook
Easy recipes
Quicker
Focuses on organic ingredients
Best for those with various dietary restrictions: gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian, paleo, soy-free
$11-$12 per serving, 2-4 people, 2-4 meals per week
6-18 recipe options per week
Focuses on organic ingredients
Accommodates various dietary restrictions: gluten-free, vegan, keto, paleo
Provides more veggies than average
Limited recipe options - 6 choices at the most (if omnivorous)
Organic, plant-based recipes available with different plans
Ready in 30 minutes
$8.25+ per meal
2 - 6 people, unlike other companies
13 (sometimes rather boring/repetitive) recipe options + quick lunches for $8 per serving
Sends you a binder to store all of your recipes
Doesn't require a subscription; one-time order minimum of $45
High quality ingredients
Provides a list of every farm or producer who supplied ingredients for your box
~$12.50 per serving
Recipes are more extensive - not great if you're busy or inexperienced
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