It seemed a good idea at the time. I ordered Blue Apron — one of those home-delivered “fresh ingredients” services. I even wrote a blog post about it, bragging how I was cooking constantly (okay, twice a week) and being so erudite and adult and kitchen-literate. But truth be told, Blue Apron turned into a horror show for one huge, inescapable reason.
I hate cooking.
Damn. It’s hard when you come up against your limitations. The strange thing is I love watching culinary shows like Top Chef and even once in a while, Gordon Ramsey.
I enjoy those Facebook videos that let you view — in fast motion — the making of pineapple-upside-down cake or pesto or rosemary-infused chicken.
In this stressful, chaotic world, there’s something serene about many cooks that I envy. They have a love of fresh produce, are usually patient, kind and easy-going people. They like to share good wine.
But alas, I wasn’t up to the Blue Apron challenge. And I had to finally realize – I will never like to cook.
This is especially hard for women. We’re hard-wired to be nurturers and providers. You feel a little “less than” as a female if you don’t enjoy stirring things in pots — like there’s something flawed and ungenerous in your character.
Isn’t one of my greatest joys supposed to be the look of happiness on my family’s face while they dig into homemade chicken potpies?
(I console myself with the fact I don’t mind cleaning and making things pretty. I like putting flowers in vases. Thank God, I have some natural, female tendencies).
But, here’s what happened with Blue Apron…
Everything started out fine. One box a week arrived. Two dinners were contained inside. Ingredients were fresh and delicious-looking. The recipe sheets were beautiful with full-color pictures of the dishes.
The first few meals I cooked in a happy mood! My husband came out to watch (after all, this was an event). Wine was poured. Cool jazz played. Since I don’t have small children anymore who need food… every…damn…night, I figured I could do this. Without the pressure of providing daily ravioli and chicken fingers, this would be a breeze.
And what do you know? I made the first few meals like the best of them. I prepared Pork Chops with Apricot Sauce and Pesto Shrimp and Gnocchi and Thai Chicken Noodle Soup. They were good!
But because this is a subscription service, those boxes kept coming… and coming. And coming. Food started piling up in the fridge because I wasn’t always in the mood to cook on demand.
What became a fun diversion soon morphed into a living hell.
By the third week, I was stepping up to that stove, feeling like Marie Antoinette facing the guillotine. It was 5:00 p.m. I was tired and cranky. I wanted to put my feet up and have a wine spritzer.
But no.
Good God, I have to wash and chop produce… again? Didn’t I do that last night? I have to make my own Tzatziki sauce? Know what? I’m happy to buy some. I’m not proud.
It started annoying me how every meal involved 17 ingredients and 27 steps. Even if they were delicious, I didn’t want to work this hard. I didn’t have the energy. Our happy little kitchen times morphed into me wild-eyed, chopping onions, swearing under my breath, “I hate *effing* cooking.”
My lucky husband and son tried slinking away, but I made them stay and help slice bok choy and pound garlic cloves. (Yes, everything was made with love).
Guess what? Shockingly, after five weeks, I cancelled Blue Apron. They wanted to know on their website why. I had only one word… incompetence. Instead of cooking bringing out my inner nurturer, it left me frazzled and snarky.
I’m sorry, cooking, but we’re through. As Gordon Lightfoot sang, … “I don’t know where we went wrong, but the feeling’s gone, and I just can ‘t get it back.”
So I’ve returned to my old, dysfunctional way of providing dinner – begging my more talented son Paul to cook (when he’s not tired out from his kitchen job), take-out, and the occasional, “go wild” turkey burger night.
Yes, I’ve realized we must accept who we are in life – the good and the bad.
With the help of Blue Apron, I’ve learned to stick to what comes naturally… cleaning and putting flowers in vases.
Do you like cooking? Have you tried one of those dinner ingredient delivery services? Comments are always welcome and if you like, please share. Thank you.
Arlene Guest
We decided to try Hello Fresh during the pandemic to reduce trips to the grocery store to like once every 3 weeks. So that would give us some fresh veggies in between grocery store trips. As for the cooking, I agree it would be hard for one person to do all the steps and get it done in the time it says, but with 2 of us doing it together it worked out pretty well. What I liked was making the decision on what to eat the week before and then not having to decide what was for dinner for those meals. To me that’s the hardest part – planning and deciding. And by the time it came, we had forgotten what we ordered so it was a nice surprise ;-).
Laurie Stone
Arlene, I agree that planning is the hardest part. Just give me ingredients and tell me what to make — except, do it once a week, not three and four times. Glad it worked out for you and your husband.
Carol Cassara
I enjoyed this eevn more all these years later!
Laurie Stone
Thank you, Carol!
Diane
I’m with you, Laurie! When we get together, let’s order takeout!
For some reason, when I read this, all I could think about was Lucille Ball working on the line in the chocolate factory! 🙂
Laurie Stone
Diane, That’s exactly what it was like! The food never stopped coming.
Lauren
Thanks for the laugh! I like to cook but this would annoy even me. Once or twice a week I can be down with but as soon as food piled up in the fridge I would hate it too. I have tested these but they send me like 2-4 meals and then I am done. More than that and I would hate it.
Laurie Stone
Lauren, I wouldn’t mind trying the healthy “to go” meals that come frozen. Might try that once a week.
jae
This is awesome. I love to cook but I wouldn’t want to have a service dictate when.
Laurie Stone
Jae, That was exactly the problem. It got to be too much of a ‘should.’
Rebecca Forstadt Olkowski
That sounds like more work than if you just went to the store and cooked something yourself without all the instructions. I think there are some food subscriptions that focus on 5 ingredients at the most, but subscriptions can be a pain.
Laurie Stone
Rebecca, It definitely wasn’t for me. And I agree, getting a few ingredients at the store would’ve been easier.
Greeting the New Year with Blogging Boomers - Unfold and Begin
[…] (okay, twice a week) and being so erudite and adult and kitchen-literate. But truth be told, Blue Apron turned into a horror show for one huge, inescapable […]
Laurie Stone
Thanks, Jennifer!
Arlene Guest
Laurie, I’m totally with you on this. Even if they delivered up here, which I’m sure they can’t. My son gets Blue Apron with his roommate though and likes it.
Laurie Stone
Arlene, I think it works best in a house with several cooks. If your son and his roommate like to cook, that would be ideal. Thanks for commenting!
Linda Luke
I had a similar experience. It was never a good fit. Besides I’m vegetarian and I learned after signing up that only 2 options per week were veggie and I was on a 2 meal a week plan. That left me with no choices and I was appalled at the fat and calorie counts in the pasta dishes they sent. One good thing. I had lots of tasty left over cheese to use after I quit.
Laurie Stone
Linda, Glad I’m not the only one. If they had one meal a week, that would be more my speed. Even two was too much and lots of people feel the same way. Sorry your vegetarian options were so limited, but that cheese sounds good!
Cathy
No..I don’t like cooking. Even though I CAN cook. We went from Empty Nesters that required about 2 meals a week and we ate the leftovers the rest of the time to having a daughter and 2 grandchildren moving in with us for a season. The children need dinner every night. What’s up with that? Any blogger who quotes a Gordon Lightfoot song in their post is tops to me!
Laurie Stone
Cathy, So funny, those Gordon Lightfoot lyrics just popped in my head! I’m the same way as you. I can cook and even put out a decent meal. I just don’t like doing it. Enjoy your daughter and grandchildren!
Shari Broder
This is SO the opposite of me. I would never try Blue Apron mostly because I don’t want anyone telling me what or how to cook! I hate that. Plus all of that waste they make. But mostly I love to create in the kitchen, and Blue Apron is not a creative outlet!
Laurie Stone
Shari, Blue Apron is for people (like me) who need as much hand holding as possible. My son Paul is a good cook and loves making things up as he goes. Most of the time, everything’s delicious.
Darlene
I hate cooking too! ( We should start a no-cooking club) LOL. But I do LOVE to bake. Cooking just seems messier to me, too much to clean up after PLUS you have to stay there and watch the pot ( or it burns). Been there, done that…way too often. I do feel attracted to slow-cooker cooking though. Drop the ingredients in and GO! On the other hand, baking gives me that sense of serenity and accomplishment that many cooks seem to have.
Laurie Stone
Darlene, My problem with baking is I’d eat everything I made. I’d probably gain 20 lbs. in a month. You look skinny in your picture so not sure how you do it!
Carol Cassara
I feel ya! Not sure how much of a time saver it really is, given all that.
Laurie Stone
Carol, Except for the shopping, I didn’t feel it saved any time. If the meals were super simple, maybe it would’ve.
shelley
I really enjoy your writing! This one made me laugh because sometimes I feel the same way about cooking. I’m sharing this in a roundup post to publish on Dec 2, 2017,
Laurie Stone
Shelley, Thanks so much! I enjoy your writing too.
Karen BakingInATornado
I don’t think it sounds like you were incompetent at all, just not willing to live with the pressure the constant arrival of those boxes ended up putting you under. The schedule took away all the fun. Good reason to stop.
Laurie Stone
Karen, You’re so right about that. I find that once (maybe twice) a week, I actually want to cook. Then I find it fun. It was the constant “should” feeling that broke the spell.
K. Elizabeth
LOL. This sounds like my mom. She really has to be in the mood in order to cook. I on the other hand love cooking! I cook mostly from scratch every day and I love Sun Basket in terms of meal kit delivery services.
Laurie Stone
K. Elizabeth, I envy anyone who truly loves to cook. You cook from scratch every day? All I can say is you must be a very popular woman.
Jennifer
This made me laugh because I would be you if I subscribed. I don’t cook. Let me rephrase that, I have one dish that I make well. Then I have Healthy Choice dinners and take out. But I grew up with a Father who was a chef. As far as I’m concerned, men are supposed to be the cooks, so that was part of the criteria in my husband electing process. My ex-husband was a cook in his family restaurant. My current husband is a CIA trained chef. Mama didn’t raise a fool.
Laurie Stone
Oh my God, Jennifer, you’re the luckiest woman on the planet. What incredible kitchen karma. You’re obviously very good at picking out husbands and fathers!
Lisa Ricard Claro
This was hilarious. I used to cook all the time when our kids were little, and now that we’re empty nesters, the only time I like to cook is when there are enough leftovers that all I have to do is press “cook” on the microwave. lol
Laurie Stone
Lisa, You sound like my kind of woman!
Laura
It takes 90 minutes to prepare their “easy” meals? That would drive me crazy and I love cooking.
Good to know, stay way from Blue Apron 🙂
Funny post. Good for a laugh.
Laurie Stone
Laura, Thank you. Yes, I realized cooking is relative. What’s “easy” for one is a nightmare for another.
Jess
Haha, I love to cook and are repeat Blue Apron subscribers for this reason. We love it at first, life happens, we get busy, the fridge over fills with rotten squash and baby carrots, we toss it out, we cancel the subscription, catch our breath, then subscribe again. It’s a vicious cycle he have been taking in for a good two years or so.
My frustration is the recipes seem to always seem to leave some important detail out, leaving you going, wtf, were these brussel sprouts for? Until the last piece detail of adding the caramelized BS to the final concoction. What? Caramelized?! Where was that?! My husband and I both will look back over the instructions again and again and either not find it, or find it brutally misspelled or out of place.
That and who wants a boring sear salmon four times a month. That seems to be their favorite.
Laurie Stone
Jess, My problem is there are too many ingredients and too many steps. I can do a meal like this maybe once every two weeks, but twice a week? Good God, no. Sounds like you and your husband share the same love/hate relationship with this service.
Bryce Warden
This had me laughing. I can’t do the peordered meal thing because it requires that you follow directions. I’d much rather chance it with the ingredients in my pantry and do it ala Frank Sinatra – My Way!
Laurie Stone
Bryce, I came to the same conclusion. Too many steps and too many ingredients does not a happy cook make… at least in my house.
Diane
Love this post! I always feel a bit guilty when my boyfriend brings me delicious treats he’s baked at home, and I don’t bake anything for him. Why is it that we think women are genetically wired to enjoy cooking?
Laurie Stone
Diane, So true! We’re supposed to be nurturers, which I’m glad to do in other ways. But the cooking/baking thing? Never got the gene, unfortunately.
Beth
We also tried Blue Apron for a while. Even though I do enjoy cooking, there were a few things that annoyed me, including the 27 freaking steps. Why did it have to be so complicated? And every meal took 90 minutes or longer to prepare, no matter what the directions said. I didn’t think I was than inept.
Plus, I do have kids at home still, and turns out they don’t care for mole sauce or catfish. Go figure.
Laurie Stone
Beth, It was way too fancy for me, but for anyone who truly loves gourmet cooking, this would be a hit. Sigh. Unfortunately, that person wasn’t me. I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought it was too complicated.
Carol A Cassara
I had a disaster with Methodology food delivery service just this week. In fact, I cancelled before I began. Sigh.
Laurie Stone
Carol, I think its a great concept, if you love to cook, but hate to shop. Unfortunately, I dislike both!
Andrea Bates
I totally get it. It makes me laugh reading this because I SO KNOW. I did Hello Fresh and eh. It was similar. A few great meal ideas, but mostly I kept the ingredients and made other things w. them. Blah. Thanks for the truth!
Laurie Stone
Andrea, Its funny, but I think Blue Apron would be great for a real cook. Unfortunately, as I discovered, that’s not me.
Linda Hobden
I do enjoy cooking – but I have some old favourite recipes that are pretty straightforward – I love making curries, spaghetti bolognese, chillies, casseroles, pasta dishes & roasts. I only occasionally try out a new recipe – but as long as I can follow it easily then I’m happy. However, if my husband takes me out for lunch or dinner then my love of cooking goes temporarily out of the window – I never turn down a chance not to cook! I have never tried the food subscription route though so can’t comment 😊
Laurie Stone
Linda, Sounds like you have a good repertoire. I’m the same way. I tend to do the same simple things over and over. That’s the only way I can provide food, it seems.
Risa
I am so glad to have read this! I’m one of those women who is so over cooking too! My husband likes to cook, and I’m happy to let him do it, but I wish he didn’t have a scorched earth approach to prep. Sigh. I would happily order take-out (or go out!) most nights. After so many years, I just don’t get a lot of pleasure out of food preparation. All that work, and it’s gone in twenty minutes. We’ve sort of reached a compromise: he cooks and I don’t complain about the mess (too much). He makes good cocktails too, so I guess he’s a keeper.
Laurie Stone
Risa, Sounds like you have a wonderful man! He’s definitely a keeper. I know couples who switch off cooking and cleaning. Personally, I don’t mind cleaning when my son Paul cooks. I feel that’s a fair trade.
Kathy @ SMART Living 365.com
Hi Laurie! Thank you for this review. I have been tempted to try it but now I won’t even go there! It’s so easy to think it will all go as planned but obviously, it doesn’t. And good for you for freely admiting it isn’t your thing! ~Kathy
Laurie Stone
Kathy, I highly recommend it if you like to cook. I can see how some would really like it. But there was way too much work for lazy me.
Stephanie Weaver, MPH, CWHC
Great post. I feel the same way about swimming. When I was in grad school there was a free pool. Swimming is great exercise, it’s a life long sport, it’s low impact, yada yada yada. I swam three days a week. I made the lifeguard teach me how to breathe every third stroke so I didn’t feel like I was drowning. I got up to 1/4 mile, which in swimming is FAR. I swam for an entire year. And then one day, walking in there, I had to tell myself the truth. I. HATE. SWIMMING. I love cooking though!
Laurie Stone
Stephanie, Funny how there are things we think we’re supposed to like and then realize we hate them! I guess we all have those moments. At least you got some good exercise with swimming.
michelle
Oddly enough, i am taking delivery of 3 meals TODAY. Hahaha. We will see how it goes.
Laurie Stone
Michelle, Three meals! You’re ambitious. I wish you luck and good cooking.
1010ParkPlace
I’m betting they hear a lot of that! Too much, too often… I haven’t looked on their sight, so I don’t know the least amount of meals/days you can order, but the fewer the better for me. What about one of those services where you order already completed meals and just heat them up?
Laurie Stone
Brenda, I’m looking into other alternatives. Yes, Blue Apron was too intense, perfect for real cooks, but not for the likes of me!
Carol A Cassara
I feel your pain. I got taht way with my organic produce box. every Wed, so much produce to wash and dry. Sooo much! And so much more $$ than even Whole Foods. I mean, No. Just .. NO.
Laurie Stone
Carol, Laughing. No… that’s the perfect word.
Diane
I love making pie. All else, yikes!
I’m grateful for your experience, and even more grateful you told me.
Now I can totally give Blue Apron a miss!
Laurie Stone
Diane, Unless you love to cook, and I mean LOVE to cook, I’d give Blue Apron a pass. Still, for anyone who loves culinary stuff, I’d highly recommend it.
Leanne | www.crestingthehill.com.au
A woman after my own heart – and all I can say is that I admire you for even wanting to try! After 30 years of cooking (very basically) I am more than happy to let my husband do more of it and to have easy throw it together meals. I don’t even watch cooking shows – I just don’t care. So you still beat me in the kitchen 🙂
Laurie Stone
Leanne, So jealous you have a husband who knows his way around a kitchen. That’s a huge plus. Randy barely knows how to boil water, so 99% of the cooking (before my wonderful chef son came along) was from yours truly. I’m so gratified to hear I’m not the only female out there who hates the stove.
Stacia
You’re not alone regarding the craziness of Blue Apron, I’ve heard many complaints about the difficulty level of the recipes. I use Terra’s Kitchen–mostly all prepped (as in veggies cut, premeasured everything), every recipe is easy to make (even for the non cook) and usually only takes less than 30 minutes! (Not sponsored by them, just love them haha)
Laurie Stone
Stacia, Will look into this service! Sounds right up my alley. Yes, I realized I don’t need to make everything by scratch for every ingredient in a dish. I’d even settle for 90% done and I add salt or pepper. Thanks for the tip.
Tomi Rues
I love this post! We had a similar experience. We were so excited to try Blue Apron: what a cool concept, how convenient, how healthy, how wonderful…..not. We had some meals turn out nice, but when it said “30 minutes” I knew it would take an hour. And, the food started piling up for us too. Had to let it go.
Great job painting a picture with this post. Life is about trying new things and deciding what to keep and what to let go to make our lives easier and happier!
Laurie Stone
Tomi, Thanks so much for your kind words. I’m so glad I’m not the only one who caved to the “Blue Apron” challenge. I think its for people who LOVE to cook. Unfortunately, I’m not one of them.