As you most know, I am around the corner from giving birth while chasing after my one year old & let me tell you, I have got my hands full! That, along with moving into a new home, last thing I am able to think of is anything but planting myself to the couch and eating the day away. With that being said, this post is actually all about food and the new "meal kit" industry that has been booming. If you haven't been living under a rock, I am sure you have all seen the meal kit commercials on TV and on Facebook ads. Personally, I've never given it a second thought when seeing them. That is until I, number one, I felt so unhealthy always ordering delivery, along with it costing an arm and a leg! Number two, it being such a drag to run (or should I say pregnant penguin walking) to the groceries every day and spending two hours just preparing to make a meal that was going to be devoured in minutes!
I've tried a different meal kit delivery service in the past (a local Miami service that gears towards healthy eating), so I was interested to see how Jchef stacked up. The previous meal plan kit I received did not impress me, and was also not kosher so I had to stick to the vegan friendly option. Jchef impressed me immediately because, hello, its CERTIFIED KOSHER! . I have a kosher home and I eat only kosher meat. Lots of people are starting to lean towards eating kosher meats and poultry due to its cleanliness and quality. Kosher food is definitely considered to be the cleanest type of eating if you aren't trying to cut out your proteins, which, in my family, is literally impossible.
Now, you hear kosher and you're thinking to yourself, oh boy I'm going to be paying a hefty price for it, right? I thought so too, and I did the comparison to other meal plans, and I was pleasantly surprised at the price. I spend more money on one diner than i did in three jchef meals. And lets not even talk about the disaster I cause in my kitchen! Maybe it is too good to be true, i thought to myself....
Jchef shipped my meals in an insulated styrofoam cooler bag, along with ice packs to keep food refrigerated (but not frozen). Meat and fish are packaged in vacuum-sealed bags with all the certified kosher labels. Produce and pantry ingredients are sorted by meal, then grouped and packaged in easy to read labels and stored in plastic bags. I found the packaging to be very clean and organized, and the quality looked excellent and more importantly, FRESH!
Each meal came with all the necessary ingredients (minus salt, pepper, and cooking oil), as well as a detailed recipe book that included photos and easy-to-follow step-by-step cooking instructions. For anyone who is like me who loves to visually have the instructions in front of you, I found this extremely helpful!
Last but not least, the actual meal! So, this post features one of the three meals i received, which is the ginger beef stir fry. Mind you, this is the first time I ever made stir fry, and I gave myself a pat on the back when i was finished. I must say, I was expecting to get some small little piece of steak and I was shocked to see a large portion of steak when i received my package. It was able to feed my husband and I, as well as my nanny. If you are familiar with the way my husband and I eat... well lets just say it was a great portion for a serving of four! LOL. You wouldn't even get that big of a portion of meat in a kosher restaurant you would pay triple for.
It took me about 20 minutes from start to finish, and the work was minimal. All that was left to do was chop everything up and throw it in the pan! What I did love was that if it was up to me, I would have chosen something so much more simple to prepare for dinner. Instead, we had something I would have never made, and we both enjoyed it so much! It was healthy, filling & satisfying. If a meal could satisfy a 9 month pregnant lady, you know you're doing something right.
I am looking forward to whipping up another dish tonight and sharing it with you all. From what I see already, Jchef has definitely earned a new customer when i need a helping hand, especially in the busy months to come when Ill be chasing after two babies! If you are interested in trying out a meal plan kit, whether you are kosher or not, i HIGHLY suggest you try Jchef before anything else. The price, the quality, and the taste will surpass every other meal kit! Stay tuned for my next two meals from Jchef. As for now, down below you can take a peek at how my first meal went down! XO
