We Tried A $5, 30-Minute Meal Kit, And We’re Not Looking Back

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Update: The folks at EveryPlate are extending a special offer to our readers! Follow this link to get $20 off.

It seems like you can’t go anywhere without hearing about all these dinner delivery kits that show up on your doorstep with pre-planned dinners and groceries, neatly organized and ready to cook. All the buzz is perfectly timed — over the past few years, making dinner has become more and more of a chore for me. I do like to cook, but as work has become more time intensive, I’ve been too tired to constantly shop and decide what to make for dinner (my roommate is in a similar boat) and I revert to the same boring meals every day. Plus, we live in NYC — where calling eating out cost-prohibitive is a massive understatement.

So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I’ve been around the meal subscription block. But EveryPlate, which came recommended by a friend (greatly appreciated), totally changed my lifestyle for the better in five key ways.  

Time

EveryPlate recipes take just about 30 minutes and the dinners are just as flavorful as anything you might find on Seamless (and definitely beat Sriracha over noodles any day of the week). Some of the other meal kits companies had me chopping vegetables for 20 minutes and spending more time cooking than I’d planned for. But EveryPlate allowed me to cook my dinner, stress-free, with minimal setup and cleanup, and plenty of time to sneak in a full episode of GOT before bed (I have a strict 9 p.m. bedtime). P.S. — each EveryPlate box comes in an insulated box with cool packs, just in case you can’t get home until later.

Money

My roommate and I did the Dinner For Two plan, which provides three nights of dinner for two people each week. At $4.99 per serving, we’ve greatly reduced our shopping/ takeout costs. The price is sustainable enough for me to continue the service after my roommate moves out (she’s not renewing the lease), at which time I’ll just use the extra servings for lunch.

Flavor  

My favorite recipe was the Pork Poblano Tacos. We followed the steps—there’s only 6—and were seriously surprised at how filling and flavorful the dish ended up being. The meat was perfectly tender and the cumin was the perfect, tasty touch.

Variety
My roommate is a simple steak-and-potatoes kind of gal, and I like my salmon and veggies, so we needed something we’d both be into. Not easy, I know. Neither of us has the time put on our gourmet chef hats or the energy to come up with fancy meals, but we want to know and enjoy what we’re eating. EveryPlate helped us accomplish this goal with ease.  Each week’s menu has food that appeals to both of our taste buds, and we feel a lot better about what we’re eating.

Flexibility
Last but not least, EveryPlate allows you to skip a delivery for those weeks when you know you might be out of town or come into some extra money and feel like treating yourself to a $40 steak.

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