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Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015

Lindsey Morse
ByLindsey MorseJul 25, 2016 | 15 comments

Plated-April29-2015-Box

Plated delivers a weekly box of pre-portioned fresh and seasonal ingredients, everything you need to cook their chef-designed recipes at home in your own kitchen. Each week, they offer a different menu, and you can select which dishes you’d like to make, how many plates of each dish you’d like to serve, and when you’d like to receive your delivery.

Three of the dishes offered on every menu are vegetarian. Plated also regularly rotates in vegan and dairy-free options. They’re committed to using sustainably sourced seafood, seasonally fresh produce, and meat raised without antibiotics or added hormones. 

Plated also makes it easy to pick recipes that best suit your culinary skill level and lifestyle. Each recipe is tagged with a difficulty level and clearly lists calorie content and prep time.

Check out all of our reviews of Meal Delivery Services to see every meal kit subscription box option!

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Contents

The Subscription Box: Plated

The Cost: Recipes begin at $12 per plate. 2 recipes (4 plates)= $48 per week (+ $6 shipping). 3 recipes (6 plates)= $72 per week (with free shipping). 4 recipes (8 total plates)= $96 per week (with free shipping).

The Products: All of the pre-portioned fresh and seasonal ingredients you need to make chef-designed recipes at home in your own kitchen.

Ships to: 95% of the US. (Currently, Plated does not ship to Hawaii and Alaska, and there are also a few cities in Texas, including San Antonio, Corpus Christi, Laredo, and Midland, where they don’t yet ship.)

Check out all of our Plated Reviews!

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Menu

Each week, Plated offers a different menu with 7 dishes to choose from. I opted for a Wednesday delivery (04/29) and selected Fettuccine with Ricotta, Fava Beans, and Mint, Spring Veggie Burgers, and Caper-Crusted Redfish. When my box shipped, I received an email letting me know that I would need to have the following “pantry items” on hand: black pepper, kosher salt, olive oil, water, and an egg. The email also clearly listed the difficulty level, cooking time, and calorie information of my selected dishes. 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Packed 1

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Packed 2

As always, the box was packed with extreme care. Ingredients were bundled by recipe, and each individual item was in its own container.

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Sealed Meat 1

The fish was vacuum-sealed and packed at the bottom of the box, safely away from the produce and surrounded by cool packs.

Recipe #1- Spring Veggie Burgers with Carrot Chips and Lemon Aioli

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Burger Card

 

This box from Plated arrived on a beautifully sunny afternoon, so my husband and I decided to make veggie burgers to eat outside on our balcony. I’d never made veggie burgers from scratch before, and I was excited to give these a shot!

Each meal from Plated comes with its own recipe card. I’ve found the recipes to be well written, and I like that they provide pictures for each step.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Burger Recipe

 

I began by separating, cleaning, and chopping my ingredients.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Burger Ingredients

 

I cooked the quinoa in salted water until it was soft and the water evaporated- about 10 minutes. When it was ready, I transferred it to a bowl and allowed it to chill in the fridge. I then tossed the carrots with olive oil, salt, and pepper and arranged them on a baking tray.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Carrots

 

They baked at 425. Plated recommended a cooking time of 12-13 minutes, but I baked them for about 20 to ensure they had time to crisp around the edges.

 

While the carrots baked, I sautéed the asparagus and snap peas in olive oil. When they softened, I transferred them to the bowl of quinoa and mixed in breadcrumbs, lemon zest, dill, pecorino cheese, seasoning, and an egg.

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Patty Mix

I then formed two patties and let them chill in the freezer for about 10 minutes.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Patties

 

While I waited for them to chill, I toasted the brioche buns and made the aioli. The aioli was a simple mix of mayonnaise, lemon juice, paprika, salt, and pepper. Here it is, right before I mixed the ingredients together:

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Aioli

 

Lastly, I cooked the burgers in a pan with a little olive oil. My patties were pretty delicate, but I managed to keep them intact by cooking (and flipping) them with care. When the burgers were golden brown on both sides, I placed them on the buns, topped them with aioli, and served them alongside the carrots.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Plated Burgers

 

Overall, I was very impressed with this meal! I thought the mix of fresh veggies and quinoa made a tasty patty, and I loved the inclusion of lemon zest. The brioche bun was great too- buttery and rich. The burgers were a perfect meal for a warm spring evening. I was a little disappointed with the carrot “chips,” though. They weren’t crispy and crunchy as I’d hoped when I picked out the dish. Despite the name, they were really just roasted carrots.

 

Meal #2- Caper-Crusted Redfish over Spring Vegetables in Butter Fondue

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Redfish Card

 

The following day, I made the Redfish. I began by prepping my ingredients.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Redfish Ingredients

 

I made the butter fondue by emulsifying a small amount of water with melted butter and then added the leek and asparagus. They cooked, covered, for 15 minutes.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Asparagus

 

While the veggies cooked, I prepared the redfish. I placed the fillets skin side down on a baking tray, brushed each one with Dijon mustard, and topped them with a mix of capers, parsley, and lemon zest.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Crusted Redfish

 

They baked at 425 for 10 minutes. When both the fish and vegetables were done cooking, I plated everything and topped the veggies with chopped chives.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Plated Redfish

 

The vegetables were soft and buttery, and I loved the mix of flavors in the caper crust. This was a pretty light meal, which I can certainly appreciate at this time of year. I ended up making this dish for lunch, but I think if I try making it again for dinner I might pair it with cornbread or some rice.

 

Meal #3- Fettuccine with Ricotta, Fava Beans, and Mint

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Fettuccine Card

 

My last dish from this box was fettuccine. The prep was very simple. I cleaned the vegetables, diced the onion, minced the garlic, and roughly chopped the escarole.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Fettuccine Ingredients

 

I boiled the fettuccine in salted water and, in a separate pan, cooked the onion and garlic. When they softened, I stirred through the fava beans and then set the pan to the side while the fettuccine finished cooking.

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Fava Mix

I drained the pasta when it was ready (al dente, of course) and made sure to retain a cupful of the pasta water. I stirred the fettuccine into the veggies along with the mint and escarole and then added small amounts of the pasta cooking liquid until a sauce began to form. I finished the pasta by stirring through some ricotta and transferred the pasta to a serving bowl. To garnish, I topped it with a little grated pecorino.

 

Plated Subscription Review + Free Box Coupon – April 29, 2015 - Plated Fettuccine

 

This wasn’t the most photogenic dish, but I was happy with the way it turned out. I ended up making this after a very long day at work, and I really appreciated how simple it was to prepare. It was a very comforting meal (for me, nothing beats cheesy pasta in the comfort department), but the combination of mint and fava beans elevated the dish and kept it from feeling too heavy. The portions were generous, too.

 

Verdict: I really enjoyed all of the meals I selected from Plated this week. After feeling a little “meh” about the dishes in my last box, it’s nice that this entire box was a hit. Due to a shipping hiccup, I didn’t end up receiving this box until a day after it was initially scheduled to arrive. Luckily, all of my ingredients were still in great condition. I think Plated does an excellent job packing their boxes, and, so far, I’ve never had an issue with freshness. I really enjoy receiving meals from Plated, and I would definitely recommend it for anyone who enjoys cooking at home. If you haven’t tried Plated before, you can use this link to receive 4 meals free (when you buy 2).

 

Have you tried Plated yet?

Lindsey Morse
Lindsey Morse

Lindsey is a professional baker, cold brew coffee addict, and rosé aficionado who loves writing about food and wine. When she’s not sharing her love of subscription boxes with the world, you’ll find her in the podcasting studio, perfecting her cake decorating techniques, or cursing her way through the New York Times daily crossword puzzle. 


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15 comments

Michelle

Going to go ahead and try Plated thanks to your reviews! Everything always looks so tasty and fresh, I opted for these recipes for this coming week: Cornish Hen w/ Creamy Morel Sauce, Chicken Ropa Vieja, and the Tilapia ( my hubby is a huge fish guy ). I would love to see you do a review of the desserts and see if they are worth a try!

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Lindsey

I’ll be reviewing their desserts next time. I’m excited to see what they’re like, too! 🙂

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Michelle

Hi there!
The link isn’t working for me, or is 2 Meals really $72.00?

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Lindsey

Okay, it looks like our initial link wasn’t currently working with their new site design; however, the review is updated with a new working link for 2 free plates and free shipping when you purchase 2 plates. So sorry for the inconvenience!

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Stephanie

I just tried this link last night and it wouldn’t work. I spoke with customer service, and they said they did not currently have any online deals going on, indicating that the above discount, that I see all over the internet, is invalid.

Lindsey

Hi, Michelle. Apologies that I’m just seeing your comment now- let me look into this. Plated just re-vamped their website and it looks like the link isn’t working properly. $72 is the full cost of 6 plates. I’ll follow up.

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EC

I think I’m switching to Plated from Hello Fresh. We’ve been subbed to HF since Nov and have had many shipping problems as well as being sent the wrong ingredients a few times now. Twice we’ve lost entire boxes due to significantly delayed shipping (nothing like the smell of rancid meat and fish when opening a box). One box was en route for almost 6 days before being delivered and we had to argue with CS about whether the food was still safe to eat (they insisted despite the box having fallen apart due to being completely wet from melted ice packs, not to mention we know what rotten food smells like). We eventually received a refund that time but only after multiple emails. They also often forget to include the recipe cards. While I can download them I don’t care to cook using my iPad. When we’ve mentioned this in feedback we are always told we must be overlooking the cards. It’s rather insulting when we specifically mentioned that we break down the boxes for recycling so we’re certain the cards were missing. Last week our box was delivered 2 days late and the sausage had spoiled (again, a no brainer smell test). The week before the box was delivered upside down and completely open (meat on top), fully exposed. We live in Vegas and it’s already close to triple digit temps so not good. While we don’t blame HF for shipping issues attributable to UPS, how the shipping issues were handled wasn’t great. I just don’t care to argue about whether food is safe when it’s clearly not. As a lawyer I can’t help but think they’re setting themselves up for a lawsuit when someone gets food poisoning after being urged to eat food deemed safe based on a generic assessment that if there is any ice left in the box, no matter how warm the box is or how badly the food smells, everything inside is safe.

I just wanted to share in case others were debating among the various meal sub boxes. The food quality in general and recipes have been really good, albeit consistently onion and garlic heavy (which led to me getting a candle sub, lol). But the shipping and CS haven’t been the best.

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Re

Thank you SO MUCH for posting so in-depth about Hello Fresh…I was seriously considering giving them a try and now I will not. Gross.

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Robyn0904

I had trouble getting the burger to stick together as well. and prep took forever, I wish the prep times would be more realistic.

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Ragan

I’ve always had trouble getting homemade veggie burgers to stick together. It doesn’t matter what the ingredients are — I’ve tried half a dozen over the years, if not more.

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Jen

I really liked my box, though we went with the fish, the steak, and the chicken meatballs. The fish was light, as you stated, but it was also a little salty. I think the next time I might cut back a bit on the capers and leave out any additional salt to balance it out. And you’re absolutely spot on with adding a starch. I absolutely ADORED the veggies.

The steak bowls were a huge hit, but the steak was cut a little thin and therefore a little difficult to overcook. I think I’d prefer to make it on my own next time with a thicker cut of steak.

The chicken meatballs were perfect all around. I accidentally added the whole egg instead of half of the egg and had to add some of my own bread crumbs to compensate. It still turned out perfect. In the end, I’d make all three dishes again, and I’m definitely keeping my Plated sub.

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Jen

Sorry. That should read that the cut of steak was EASY to accidentally overcook.

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heat7918

I always enjoy reading all of your cooking / food reviews. I’m learning how to cook, finally… I’m 38!

One of these days Plated and / or Hello Fresh – at least for the great deal they offer on your first order!

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heat7918

Supposed to say “one of these cats I’m going to try Plated or Hello Fresh”

Technical issues on my iPad…

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heat7918

Omg “days” not cats! Stupid auto correct!!