NYTimes Articles on Food, Drink, Culinary Culture 2013–

[rotuts]

Breakfast, a la NYTimes

 

http://www.nytimes.com/pages/dining/index.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&region=TopBar&module=HPMiniNav&contentCollection=Food&WT.nav=page

 

they seem to have Poached the egg section from eG'

 

the coffee section is decent, yet they missed @weinoo interest in The Water

 

any way, much better than the Wednesday average.

[weinoo]

And now, before I even have my 1st cuppa coffee, I drink 2 large glasses of water.

 

It gets things, ummmmmmm, flowing.

[kayb]

1 hour ago, weinoo said:

And now, before I even have my 1st cuppa coffee, I drink 2 large glasses of water.

 

It gets things, ummmmmmm, flowing.

 

The slings and arrows of advancing age. I find that eating early in the morning tends to bring on nausea. Unless I drink a couple of glasses of water first. Likewise, I go to bed with a glass of water; will generally empty it through the night. When I don't, I invariably awaken with a headache, which I have learned can be due to dehydration. I've progressed to drinking water all day like a thirsty camel.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Saw it this afternoon.  Read it.  Had a long discussion with a coworker.  I am not convinced.

 

On a non-work day I often do not partake until the peanut course with my mai tai around 8:00 pm or later.  If I am hungry I will eat.  However I am not usually hungry for many hours after I get up.

 

Eating a meal when you are not hungry is stupid.

 

On work days I sometimes have a light breakfast before I leave the house.  I can't say I've noticed much advantage or felt that much better for doing so.

[BeeZee]

I can't stomach breakfast when I first wake up (pun intended). No appetite and no desire. The first thing consumed is a B-12 tablet (dissolved on the tongue) followed by one cup of black coffee (french roast). Then 1/2 banana (split with DH). I usually eat a small breakfast at the office (yogurt, oatmeal cup, or similar), which is about 3 hours after I've woken up. Drink 2 cups herbal tea during the morning. Haven't noticed much difference if I don't eat except for getting hungrier at lunch time.

[rotuts]

recently, the Tovala oven was discussed here. bar-coded meals at home.

 

Boxed ingredient meals has been looked at in today's NYTimes :

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/06/dining/meal-delivery-service-subscription-boxes.html?ref=dining&_r=0

 

interesting I though

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, rotuts said:

recently, the Tovala oven was discussed here. bar-coded meals at home.

 

Boxed ingredient meals has been looked at in today's NYTimes :

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/06/dining/meal-delivery-service-subscription-boxes.html?ref=dining&_r=0

 

interesting I though

  Thank you for sharing this. I would give one of these a try if I could but I haven't seen anything too intriguing in this area. The most fascinating thing about the article to me however,  is the idea that meal kits teach people to cook! That I would not have guessed.  

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I saw the NY Times article (plus the follow up article of mostly negative comments) and was thinking about the idea all day.  Though the pictures of ingredients from Blue Apron sort of turned me off, having slept on it I am considering signing up with Purple Carrot.  What's holding me back is the price.

 

The attraction of meal kits for me is that I'm not getting any younger, and the only grocery store that I can get to is half an hour away in fair weather.  The store's selection of produce is good but not great, and all too often they are out of what I'm looking for.  Asian vegetables are represented by bok choy and daikon, on the best of days.

 

Any idea how long it takes me to eat a daikon?

[Anna N]

Yeah.   Price would put them right out of my life except for as I mentioned above a "one of" trial!  

[Smithy]

I'm plenty able to get around at present, but can see the value for people who can't.  What's bothered me most has been the waste inherent in the packaging.  I'm glad to read that some of the companies are working on that aspect.

[rotuts]

thank you for your comments

 

Id like to read the follow up article

 

can you give me a ref ?

 

none of these programs can be less than expensive  

 

and they appeal to those with considerable disposable income.

 

as is a bar-coded steam oven where you get meals  that you hope to afford based on your imagination on Those Potions you hope for.

 

they do get you in the kitchen,  which is neither there nor here.

 

You like the Kitchen ?  fine   You don't like the kitchen?  fine agqaoin fr y

 

that being said, how do

 

 the completed dishes  taste ?

 

there is a lot of mumbo-jumbo about  " is this cooking ?"

 

OK  [ed,:  not really ]

 

but if you can afford this  , 

 

maybe an exotic item  ( Curry Leaves nice at the 7 - 11 your area ? )

 

some sort of Thai, etc item might add to your dinner with your family in some sort of way ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[blue_dolphin]

11 minutes ago, rotuts said:

Id like to read the follow up article

 

can you give me a ref ?

 

Pandora's Box: Readers respond...

Edited April 7, 2016 by blue_dolphin (log)

[rotuts]

lots of interesting stuff there :

 

""   We subscribed to Blue Apron primarily as a way to help our 8- and 10-year-old children learn to cook ""

 

""   Nowhere in my education was I ever shown how to prepare meals for myself on a budget  ""

 

"""   I’m so glad I taught my children to cook ""

 

""   Meal kits are to cooking what books on tape are to reading ""

 

ed: I have no idea that the last above means

 

"""   You can speculate all you want, but I’m cooking dinner. Seriously, I’ll be a Blue Apron customer until they move me into assisted living. At 62, and still working almost 60 hours a week as a physician, I don’t have the time or energy to plan, shop, prep and cook seven meals a week. Bonus: We usually get three meals instead of two from each kit, so there’s lunch for the next day.''

 

etc

 

it has to have helped those with a ratio of  Money / time   >>>>>  greater than 1 ? 2 ?  a bazillion ?

 

so why not ?

[Anna N]

Just imagine this. You walk into your local supermarket and in addition to their well stocked salad bar you find a well-stocked meal bar. Pick up a recipe card or three walk around the bar grabbing ready to be cooked portion-controlled protein, vegetables, spices, etc.   Perhaps even bring your own containers if that could be worked out   Damn I suspect there's an opportunity here somewhere!  

[rotuts]

I just don't see why not.

 

but that's a bit sophisticated for the the Chains.

 

some of them have quite decent full meals refrigerated that you micro.

 

Ive had the Full Turkey dinner a few times from one of the better local chains myself.  it was quite good.

 

the gravy was not :  no doubt jar'ed or canned and not enough.

 

 

[KennethT]

One of my friends has been using this service for a while now and loves it.  She is a single, NYC lawyer working ridiculous hours and is sick of eating restaurant delivery every day.  She doesn't really have time for grocery shopping, but this way, she gets delivery of just the right amount of ingredients so she can cook a couple times a week (healthier than restaurant delivery) wihtout that much added time or effort.  With regards to packaging, for her, it's not much different since she'd be getting all that packaging associated with delivery anyway.

[rotuts]

That's their demographic, and why not ?

 

Im sure your friend  appreciated the device and gets more out of it and a bar coded frozen meal.

[blue_dolphin]

Nice summary of the various points of view in that NYT response article.

 

I have a lot of friends who use these services and are delighted with them.  A few years ago, one friend sent me a freebie for 3 Blue Apron meals so I tried it.   

If you take a look at the recipe card from one of the meals I got,  Braised Pork Chops & Roasted Leeks with Cherry Gastrique over Kasha, you can see that the directions and photos are pretty clear and could be used to guide or teach a less experienced cook.  

My experience was favorable. I specifically chose meals that were different from what I would usually cook.  It was a treat to come home from work and have the chance to cook something new, knowing that everything was on hand.  I added more vegetables to each meal but many would be happy without that addition. I was pleased with the quality of the ingredients and the flavor of the finished dishes.

 

I found the amount of packaging distressing, though as @KennethT noted, that comes along with take-out, delivery and other packaged meals too.  In the original article, I was glad to see that the companies are working on that.

 

I may have said this on another thread, but I think it would be fun to pair this sort of service with a new cookbook that featured an unfamiliar cuisine so you'd get the ingredients and recipes for a number of meals from a specific cookbook.  Some of the celebrity chefs who have cookbooks out are already partnering with these services so it seems like a logical step.

Edited April 7, 2016 by blue_dolphin (log)

[rotuts]

nice idea

 

BD

[Anna N]

I like how a discussion such as this throws me back on myself wondering what steps I can take to get close. Prepping stuff on the weekend is one obvious answer. I guess it depends on one's motive. To avoid all the shopping and prep or to  avoid it only on busy weeknights. Seems to me personally that if I combine SV'd proteins with pre-cut vegetables and stuff from the salad bar I could easily pull together a couple of "meal kits" for those nights when my aging self has nothing left to give but I'm still hungry!   I don't have to leave it till the weekend of course! Anyway it's food for thought -- no pun unintended. 

[Martin Fisher]

I follow a once a month or once a week cooking routine for many of my meals.

Sous vide has made it easier and more convenient in many ways.

Edited April 7, 2016 by DiggingDogFarm (log)

[rotuts]

lots of imagination here on eG.

 

Lots.

 

[ElainaA]

5 hours ago, Anna N said:

Just imagine this. You walk into your local supermarket and in addition to their well stocked salad bar you find a well-stocked meal bar. Pick up a recipe card or three walk around the bar grabbing ready to be cooked portion-controlled protein, vegetables, spices, etc.   Perhaps even bring your own containers if that could be worked out   Damn I suspect there's an opportunity here somewhere!  

The fish section of our local PriceChopper has just that. A section with fish, chopped vegetables and a recipe card. I've never been tempted.  I'm not sure our town (very working/lower class) is the best place for this. I also wonder why they started with fish rather than meat - which I think would be more popular here. 

Also - they offer basic meals - fish or shell fish, and, usually fried potatoes, that they will cook for you after you choose your fish. 

Edited April 8, 2016 by ElainaA (log)

[FauxPas]

I ordered a few meal kits from a local AZ vegan farm called Sunizona. They were really good! Packaging wasn't too bad as they use cardboard boxes and paper bags for the most part, though there was some plastic for small add-ons for the meals. 

 

I did post some pics on the dinner thread or somewhere but can't find anything via the search function. 

 

What I really liked was that the produce was local farm to my table within a day or so. The recipes were good and maybe new to someone who doesn't cook much, but I certainly found stuff I wanted to make. I'm not vegan but I enjoyed the choices and the meals I made. Though they certainly don't have anything like the selection that Blue Apron does, but then they aren't trying to serve the same demographic. Still, they would have a half dozen or so that varied. 

 

They don't deliver to the home, but they do deliver to larger employer locations as well as to a variety of regional spots. The location I used had a walk-in cooler where the boxes were stored. Unfortunately they didn't really have a location that was regularly convenient for me, but they certainly can serve a large number of people in the Tucson area and I think Phoenix also. 

 

I would definitely use them again - partly because their produce is good and partly because the meals are very convenient and some are creative. If the pick-up location had been better for me, I would have used them more often. As for price, the meals were generous and we could usually have some leftovers. And sometimes they had promo prices. 

 

Most of their meals do involve some time, because there is quite a bit of produce involved and chopping etc but if you don't have to spend the time shopping, you might have more time for prep? 

 

I am participating in a new CSA this summer in Canada and will suggest trying a meal kit here and there during the season. 

[Anna N]

Well, well, well.  Look what I found

 

Link

 

I checked and they do deliver to my postal code.  I have a small stash of cash that I could draw on just to give this a try.   I need to spend a little more time researching what they are offering but if I decide to pull the trigger I will be sure to post about the results.