I Tried A Meal Kit Delivery Service For A Week, And It Saved Me *So* Much Money

Grocery shopping is expensive. All those times I’ve purchased big bottles of sauces only to throw them out a month later after making one recipe that called for them. I was basically taking a wad of hard-earned cash and lighting it on fire. Luckily, there’s an alternative: Meal kits!

With meal kits, you get a weekly box filled with already prepped and pre-portioned ingredients, and all you have to do is throw them together, and ta-da! You have an easy meal without all the waste. No more spending money on too many ingredients, no more wasting plastic and paper bags from the grocery store. I wanted to try EveryPlate, a meal kit delivery service that’s the most budget-friendly, eco-friendly, and offers a lot of delicious, fresh options.

So, I gave it a whirl for an entire work week! FYI, right now if you subscribe to EveryPlate, you get 18 dinners for $3.33 a meal. I signed up online, picked out the meals of my choice, and waited for my box to come.

Day 1

It’s Wednesday morning and before leaving for work, I see that my EveryPlate box has been delivered. Score! Inside, my meals are:

1. Steak with potato wedges and green beans

2. A vegetarian risotto with zucchini and shallot

3. Sausage and pepper pasta skillet

4. Hoisin glazed pork meatloaf with wasabi mashed potatoes and green beans

5. Chicken breast with BBQ seasoning, zucchini, and sweet potato

These are all meals I’d make if I had the time, so I’m psyched. I leave the box at home (it’s insulated, so none of the ingredients will go bad when you get home from work), and head to work. Work is SO much less stressful knowing I don’t have to go to the grocery store later.

When I get home, it’s 7 p.m. and I’m starving. I decide on the steak, because why TF not?

Everything is prepackaged and prepped for me, so I don’t have to worry about measuring things out myself. It’s like having my own personal prep cook. The perfect amount of Yukon potatoes, green beans, fry seasoning (which is some kind of delicious blend of spices I never would have thought of myself), chili flakes, and steak are included, and it’s divine. The only thing I’m expected to have is oil and butter (which I do, I’m not a monster).

The instructions are easy to follow — the only thing I forgo is the garlic butter, just because I’m trying to healthify my life before my June vacation to Miami. (And yes, eating steak and potatoes without extra butter is my way of being healthy, I’m just living my truth!)

And the dinner is delicious. I have an extra steak and green beans leftover, so I pack that for lunch the next day.

Day one with EveryPlate is complete. And my belly is happy.

Day 2

Thursday is usually my longest work day, so I’m extra #grateful that I have dinner ready to make. If I had to go grocery shopping, I might have cried. On the menu is creamy risotto with zucchini ribbons and shallots.

Again, everything is pre-prepped, including a super adorable lil’ bottle of balsamic vinegar! (I don’t have an entire bottle on me, so this is much appreciated.)

It’s also my first time making risotto, and, don’t judge me for this, I was surprised to learn that you don’t just dump the arborio rice into a pot of boiling water. You have to cook it in batches, first cooking the rice with butter, and then adding cupfuls of broth at a time, waiting for the rice to absorb the liquid.

It looks like this:

And okay, I didn’t have a peeler around, so I didn’t end up making ribbons out of zucchini. Nevertheless, my dinner was delicious, and I enjoyed it sitting outside in my backyard.

Like the day before, the portion sizes are so big, I ended up taking some risotto with me to work the next day.

Day 3

It’s Friday, which means I’m going to eat so much pasta, I will never want to see pasta again (as if that could ever happen). I’m also dead tired, so making something simple that doesn’t technically require plates (I ended up eating this directly from the skillet) or multiple bowls is a dream come true. Less dishes, more nomming.

Again, this was another easy-to-make recipe that required little inventory on my end. It’s a sausage and pepper pasta skillet and it does NOT skimp on the cheese.

Day 4

I skip cooking on Saturday so I can go out to eat. I always get the case of the Sunday Sads (you know, when you’re just bummed the weekend is over and thinking about adulting again makes you want to crawl into a very deep hole), so when I remember I already have dinner (and Monday’s lunch) prepped out and ready to go, I immediately feel relieved. Still sad it’s the day before Monday, but a little LESS sad. What’s on the menu tonight? Hoisin glazed pork meatloaf, which I decide to make into meatballs, because I’m a grownup and I do whatever I want. (Also, the meatballs cooked faster.)

Look at this cute lil’ meatball!

The rad thing about EveryPlate is that you actually learn new things so you can become a better cook. Now I know a super simple sauce trick: Mix ketchup and hoisin. Do it. You will thank me. The flavor is amazing and so unexpected from two condiments.

Meatballs with green beans and mashed potatoes (that had a kick of wasabi mixed in — sooo yummy) was the comfort meal I needed to face Monday.

Day 5

Ughhhhhhh it’s Monday. Groan x 1,000. I love my job, but sometimes you just want to keep sleeping in and wearing yoga pants all day long. After a day of editing articles, leading team brainstorms, and pulling reports, I want nothing more than to boil some elbow macaroni and pour Cheez-Whiz on top. But I don’t, because my body deserves better, and I also need to hit the gym. I have one more meal left: chicken breast with BBQ seasoning, zucchini, and sweet potato. The perfect high-protein meal that will give me enough energy to get through at least 45 minutes of the StairMaster.

The only thing that took a little longer was chopping the sweet potatoes, but only because I have weak AF arms. The rest was a breeze, and usually chicken breast intimidates me (it gets dry so fast!).

I eat dinner, save a piece of chicken for Tuesday’s lunch in some Tupperware, and then head to the gym. And just like that, I feel like I’ve already kicked this week’s ass.

Try EveryPlate and get your first 18 meals for only $3.33 each!

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