Plated March 2016 Dinner Subscription Box Review + Coupon

Plated sends weekly dinner kits with high quality ingredients and chef-created recipes. Each week you’ll choose from a variety of quick gourmet meals that range from meats, chicken, seafood, and purely vegetarian options. There’s enough selection to please all palates, and the recipes are seasonally focused. We love the way each meal incorporates only a couple key herbs or spices; the flavors shine through, and the recipes remain easy to follow.  We love getting boxes most weeks to try new recipes –our favorite recipes always remain available in our account if we want to look them up to make again ourselves.

Important to note: whereas Plated has been a subscription, you could previously turn off auto-shipments. You can no longer do that. No big deal for us, because we like to go in and select what recipes we’re receiving anyways. You can skip at the click of a button.

Plated uses recyclable/compostable jute for its insulation. I have a stack of it in the garage that I’m planning to use to border some trees in our yard and create a weed barrier.

Boxes are always packed with the meat on the bottom, underneath a few big ice packs — the rest of the food is set on top with more ice.

Plated sends a weekly email — it doesn’t tell you much about your meals, other than what you need from home. There’s now no reminder of the ease of preparation and all the other subscriptions provide some version of that.

We get asked a lot – Sometimes we order Plated and sometimes Hello Fresh. It just depends on what meals we’re interested in. [Hello Fresh: Take $40 off your first box with coupon code 7UT7K8] We have also started ordering Home Chef ($30 off with link). We love all of these boxes – try them out and pick your favorite.

Plated has new branding – but we’re still bummed they don’t put the ease of preparation on the recipe card.  They could put it right there where it says serves 2 people – because [nearly] all of Plated’s meals serve two people (I discuss the one exception below)!

Plated’s recipes rely on mise en place and then cook – we often mix up the steps from how the recipe is written, but we’re both experienced cooks and know what can be accomplished while something else cooks. So, read your cards if you need the step by steps.

All the food comes bagged up and separated (mostly) into the recipes — meat and some large or delicate items are bagged separately.

Caramelized Pear Shortcakes with Whipped Cream. 20-30 mins, 550 cal.

We like getting the desserts occasionally, as they are yummy, easier to make than the meals, and often are served with a pile of fresh whipped cream!  This dish met all three criteria — my son called it “super yummy,” the highest of compliments.  Brandy thought the shortbread tasted too “biscuity,” lacking in sweetness.  The caramelized pears were sufficient to compensate.  I usually don’t bother with the oven if it is only used to warm bread — my toaster saved me a step on this recipe, making it super easy, too.  Hand-whipping the cream is actually quite easy, and totally worth the effort!

Chicken Pad Thai Burgers with Shishito Peppers and Peanut Sauce. 25-35 mins, 790 cal.

This burger was very tasty, and it had everything you look for in pad thai — except the noodles!  I thought that was a glaring omission, since that is the heart of the dish (like getting a Philly cheesesteak salad and having no steak on it — just cheese, onions, and croutons).  The seasonings and toppings mad a great-tasting burger; it just needed a less evocative name.  The roasted peppers were a great touch.  The had a wonderful not-hot flavor and were fun to munch.  I used the grill to prepare this meal (oven issues at our house that day), and it worked perfectly for both components of the meal.

Whole-Wheat Pizza with Mission Figs, Caramelized Onion, and Taleggio Cheese. 25-35 mins, 700 cal FOR THREE PEOPLE.
 

This dish was the first, glaring exception to the serves-two-people rule.  The nutrition info was provided for a portion equal to a third of the total recipe — presumably broken into three servings to preserve a semblance of caloric restraint.  Pictured above is roughly half the pie (one and a half servings according to the nutrition info).  This would be a great dish to serve as and appetizer for a small group.  The fig, onion, and balsamic were a perfect counterpoint to the ever-so-slightly stinky cheese (I’d put the Taleggio equivalent to a very ripe Camembert – it wasn’t stinky enough for Brandy to turn it down!).  The dough was easy to work with and made a cookie sheet sized pizza if stretched shy of translucence.

We had a good time with these dishes — they were creative and satisfying.  The whole family got in on the dessert.

Plated has been offering both middle-of-the road and very creative options each week, so we nearly always find a few things that suit our tastes.  Our choices this week were interesting spins on classic comfort food dishes, lending some sophistication to American mainstays.

Visit Plated to find or more or to subscribe. Currently you can get 2 free plates when you buy 4 when you sign up with this link (no coupon code required).