Cooking is a fun hobby and an essential skill. But cooking at home can take time. It requires planning and several trips to the grocery store to buy the ingredients you need. Fortunately, you can now order grocery items online and have them delivered to your doorsteps in no time. No need to go back and forth to the supermarket to get the things you need.
But then again, some online grocery stores don’t have every ingredient you need for your dish. Help from a meal delivery service, like Blue Apron, can minimize the hassle of cooking your favorite dish, especially if it’s your first time. Blue Apron aims to help home cooks make their time in the kitchen worthwhile.
It’s true, you can find a lot of cooking tutorials and recipes online. It now begs the question: is it worth it to use Blue Apron? Learn more about this service in our guide below.
What Is Blue Apron?
As a meal or food delivery service, Blue Apron has a variety of recipes you can choose from every week. Unlike other meal delivery services like Grubhub, Blue Apron will send you the ingredients you will need to prepare your chosen meal.
Blue Apron prides itself on offering chef-designed recipes and responsibly sourced quality ingredients. Each recipe comes with step-by-step instructions to make your cooking quick, easy, and entertaining. The ingredients are also portioned properly so they stay fresh and reduce food waste.
Each week, Blue Apron changes its menu. This helps you learn how to cook different dishes, instead of sticking to one meal only. You also get to use seasonal ingredients and the service will source hard-to-find ingredients for you.
Each recipe will indicate the kitchen tools you would need to prepare the dish. In case you don’t have a certain tool, you can visit Blue Apron’s online market for tools like knives, peelers, and cutting boards, among others.
How to Create a Blue Apron Account?
To get Blue Apron’s recipes, you need to create an account. It’s quick and easy. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create an account so you can start cooking with Blue Apron.
- Go to the company’s official website.
- Click on the “Get Started” button to go to the Sign Up page.
- Enter the email address you wish to use and set your password.
- Choose your preferred menu.
- Select how many recipes you want per week.
- Fill out the form with the correct delivery information and billing information.
- Click on the “Place Order and Choose Meals.”
- Choose the meals you want to be delivered to you.
The meals are available in two or four servings. Make sure to select what applies to you so you’ll get the right amount of ingredients. Blue Apron delivers to different states in the US. Available delivery options may vary depending on your area.
How to Download Blue Apron for iOS and Android?
Blue Apron has an app you can download for easy access. The app is available on iOS and Android platforms. Here’s a guide on how you can download it to your smartphone.
For iOS Devices
- Search for Blue Apron on the App Store.
- Download and install the app on your phone.
- Open the app and create your account if you haven’t already.
For Android Devices
- Search for Blue Apron on the Play Store.
- Install the app on your device.
- Open the app and create your account.
You can also download the app from the Blue Apron website. Simply look for the App Store or Play Store’s logo and click on one of them, depending on your device’s OS.
Blue Apron Features
Blue Apron is ideal for individuals who just started cooking and want to enhance their skills in the kitchen. The app is packed with features you need to make home cooking more fun and exciting.
Discover Unique Chef-Designed Recipes Weekly
Blue Apron allows you to choose from a range of chef-designed recipes, from Mediterranean meals to one-pan dinners. You can include simple meals, like pasta or sandwiches, to your weekly box. Some recipes also contain vegetable, protein, and starch. They also offer wider selections of vegetarian meals compared to other meal delivery services.
If you want to upgrade your home-cooked meals, Blue Apron also offers Premium recipes. That may include steak and premium chicken meals. These recipes, however, may cost you extra cash. Seasonal recipes also pop up from time to time where you can cook meals using ingredients you don’t regularly see in supermarkets.
Blue Apron has a wide selection of wines, as well. They will suggest what kind of wine you can pair with your meal and vice versa.
Manage Your Account and Schedule Deliveries
One of the advantages of using Blue Apron is that once you create an account, you’re not required to order meals every week. If you don’t like any of the meals from this week’s menu, you can adjust your delivery date. You can also skip a week if, for example, you’re following a fasting schedule.
You can change your delivery schedule by going to the Account Settings. You’ll only receive deliveries on the days you set.
Get Easy-to-Follow Instructions
Blue Apron does not only send you the ingredients you need for the meals you want to prepare. They also provide you with complete instructions to make sure you prepare your dish correctly. They include images of the finished products so you know how it will look. You’ll also see the time needed to make the dish.
Blue Apron also gives home cooks tips to help them improve their cooking skills. You’ll learn new techniques that you can apply in your future meals. That’s why this app is suitable for beginners.
Take and Save Photos of Your Meals
Cooking a delicious meal at home by yourself is a proud moment. The app allows you to take photos of your completed dish and share it online. You can add special effects and filters to make your food images more mouthwatering.
Save Your Favorite Recipes
Not because Blue Apron changes its menu every week, you no longer be able to cook the meal you have ordered again. The app allows you to save all your favorite recipes so you can go back to them when you’re craving for a certain meal. You can also print out the step-by-step instructions for a particular recipe from your computer.
How to Use Blue Apron?
Make your meals extra special by cooking them yourself in your own kitchen. Blue Apron is easy to use. Here’s a guide to help you get started.
1. Choose a Plan
Once you have created an account, you need to select a plan that suits you. You can choose three different plans, namely:
- The Signature Plan for Two
You will choose two to three recipes every week with a serving size for two people. Blue Apron can choose the recipes for you based on your dietary preferences and restrictions, but you can also choose yourself. - The Signature Plan for Four
This plan allows you to choose up to four recipes from the weekly menu. The serving size of each recipe will be good for four persons. - Vegetarian Plan for Two
Non-meat eaters can choose from Blue Apron’s vegetarian-friendly recipes every week. The recipes will feed two people.
Each meal kit comes with all the ingredients needed and cooking instructions regardless of the plan you select. Choose a plan that suits your lifestyle, especially if you’re trying to lose weight and monitoring your calorie count.
2. Customize Your Account Preferences
After selecting the right plan for you, proceed to check out. A form will then show up, and all you have to do is put all the necessary information on it. Make sure to put the right zip code to see if Blue Apron delivers to your area.
The price of Blue Apron’s plans ranges from $47.95 to $119.84, depending on the number of meals and serving size. The billing occurs every week, but you can stop the delivery and payments at any time.
When you’re on the checkout page, you can select the days of the week you want to receive your meal kits. It also lets you leave special instructions for the delivery.
3. Select Your Meals
Once you have checked out, you can start selecting your meal kits from the week’s menu. The subscription allows you to order up to five weeks in advance.
Your orders will come on your preferred delivery dates. Blue Apron packs all the meal kits in a recyclable cardboard box lined with ice packs and insulating materials. These will keep the ingredients fresh until it’s time to cook.
Pros and Cons of Subscribing to Blue Apron
Blue Apron is an excellent app for people who are starting to learn how to cook. But like other services, it also has its advantages and disadvantages. Look at its pros and cons to see whether or not it’s worth it to subscribe to its services.
Pros
Easy Recipes
Blue Apron offers easy to follow recipes perfect for those who don’t have enough experience in the kitchen. They give home cooks helpful advice and teach them new techniques.
Meal Kits Delivered at the Ideal Temperature
All the ingredients are packed with insulating materials and ice packs to keep them fresh and avoid food waste.
Properly Portioned Ingredients
You get the right amount of ingredients for the recipe, which means you won’t have to worry about leftover ingredients that you might not use anymore.
Cook Delicious Meals at Home
Blue Apron offers chef-designed recipes to ensure you’ll have delicious dinners. They also provide high-quality and sustainably sourced ingredients to level up your meals. It gives you the opportunity to use interesting ingredients you wouldn’t normally pick up at the supermarket.
Cons
Lack of Dietary Plan Options
Blue Apron offers meals for vegetarians, but that’s it. They don’t have options for vegans, paleo, or keto. The service does not also cater to certain allergies.
Complicated Plan Canceling Process
If you wish to cancel your plan, you need to send an email to cancel your subscription instead of doing it on the website.
Few Choices
Blue Apron changes its menu every week. Each menu, however, you only have to choose from eight meals.
Blue Apron vs Competitors
Meal delivery services have been popular over the years. Blue Apron is not the only company that delivers meal kits to home cooks. But how is it compared to other companies in the same category?
HelloFresh
HelloFresh is one of the leading meal delivery services today. Like Blue Apron, it also offers a flexible subscription service. This allows you to skip a week and cancel your subscription at any time you want to. Both services offer a minimum of two meals and two portions. HelloFresh has 17 new recipe options every week, which is more than its competitor’s eight meals per week.
HelloFresh also provides easy-to-follow recipe cards you can save, reuse, and improve later. Their recipes, however, are easier to follow compared to Blue Apron. They also provide full nutritional facts for every meal.
When it comes to taste, Blue Apron has a slight advantage over HelloFresh. Their recipes have a more balanced flavor and texture compared to the latter.
Peach Dish
Peach Dish is another meal kit delivery service available in the market. Peach Dish is unique compared to most of its competitors as it allows you to get multiple servings and they don’t require a set number on orders. Also, no subscription is required to use their service.
Plated
Plated is also a popular service in this category. Just like Blue Apron, this weekly subscription service allows you to change meal plans and skip a week if you want to. Plated will also allow you to cancel your subscription at any time. Their menu is usually made up of six dinners and two desserts.
Purple Carrot
For better vegan options, Purple Carrot is an ideal place to get them. They curate the meals for you. This means you don’t get to choose your meal kits and you can’t swap them. Like most meal delivery services, you can also skip a week or cancel your plan at any time.
Cook Meals at Home With Blue Apron
Overall, Blue Apron is a worthy app to have, particularly for those who are new to the culinary world. It helps you cook delicious dinners for yourself and your family or friends. You also get to learn new techniques on how to cook certain dishes and use interesting ingredients. But some instructions may be too technical, especially for those who totally have no experience in cooking.
Blue Apron, however, may not be suitable individuals who are more experienced in the kitchen. This service offers simple recipes that experienced cooks may find too easy.
If you are looking for more app reviews on other food delivery apps, you can check out our articles on Grubhub, DoorDash vs Grubhub, and Uber Eats today.
