Review of Blue Apron and Awesome Promo!

Blue Apron is the leading fresh ingredient and recipe delivery service in the United States. By delivering step-by-step recipes and seasonal, pre-portioned ingredients sourced directly from farms and suppliers, Blue Apron makes it fun and easy to cook incredible meals at home.

Blue Apron is building a network of family farmers that champion sustainable farming practices. These direct farmer relationships allow Blue Apron to give customers access to hard-to-find seasonal produce (e.g., fairytale eggplants, fiddlehead ferns, watermelon radishes and micro-basil). Through innovative partnerships, Blue Apron works with artisanal purveyors to create custom ingredients that are
included in deliveries nationwide.

I was sent Spicy Spaghetti and Shrimp Marinara with Broccolini & Basil as well as Seared Chicken with Turnip, Apple & Barley Salad. I selected these meals because I figured my children would each enjoy parts, if not all, of the dishes. And I was correct! They were both major winners in this house. The broccolini was delicious and fresh and the “spicy” part of the shrimp pasta was up to us, so I left it on the very mild side and then had my husband add more red pepper to his own portion. The warm salad for the chicken dish was unlike anything I’ve ever cooked before. Have you ever cooked with Hakurei Turnips? I sure haven’t! And thanks to the extra insert in the box, I learned a lot about turnips, in general! The meal was remarkably healthy and flavorful! I’ll definitely try to recreate it on my own one day.

“A recent study showed that when customers purchased the ingredients in one Blue Apron delivery at grocery stores (from local grocery stores to Whole foods) in five different cities, the ingredients were 60% more expensive than a Blue Apron delivery, and fewer than 75% of the ingredients were available at any one store on average.” I totally believe that. I also bet there’s a lot less waste! I was delivered only what I needed for my recipe. I often times buy bunches of vegetables or herbs for a recipe and only need a portion of it. Feels so wasteful, even with composting it.

Want to try your own Blue Apron meal with zero risk? Click this link to access your 2 FREE meals! (New members only)

Blue Apron’s philosophiy “…is to make incredible home cooking accessible. We call our company Blue Apron because chefs around the world wear blue aprons when learning to cook, and the blue apron has become a symbol of lifelong learning in cooking. We encourage this lifelong learning by introducing
customers to new ingredients, flavors and cooking techniques with every recipe we create.” This mission of theirs is evident in their instruction cards. On the one side is the ingredient list, along with prep and cooking times and images. There’s also a brief description about the meal and ingredients used. Then the other side has step by step instructions with numbers and images. It was very easy to follow. I did feel like my style of learning would have preferred linear bullets versus several sentences in a task. But, regardless, it worked! I also needed more than the predicted total time, it took me an extra 10 minutes to make each meal. Though I’ll blame my children and their interruptions, not my skills or the directions.

Want the nitty gritty on “The Business”? “Launched in 2012, Blue Apron has been backed by top venture capital firms including Stripes Group, Bessemer Venture Partners, First Round Capital and Fidelity Management and Research Company. The company has received support and counsel from innovators in the food tech space, like Dave Tisch and executives from companies such as Invite Media, Seamless Web, IAG Research, and Facebook. Blue Apron has raised four rounds of investment funding, including:
$3 million Series A, $5 million Series B , $50 million Series C , $135 million Series D. Currently delivering over 5 million meals per month nationwide.

Disclaimer: Blue Apron let me choose two free meals in order to conduct this honest review. I received no monetary compensation for this post and all opinions are my own.

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