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Blue Apron, Day 5: Disaster

The first week of Blue Apron went so well. Everything stayed fresh, even towards the tail end of the week. I enjoyed all of the meals. If there were hiccups, they were small.

I think for week two, I let my guard down. I'm actually a bit frightened by the prospect of week three at this point. The first meal was a bit sketchy but what did turn out OK tasted pretty good. And then there was the second meal.

I'm not sure why I decided to cook the chicken before the catfish, but I should not have done that. The week before they had sent me instructions to cook fish first because it might not hold up, but the salmon was fine, so I thought the catfish would be. And it was, but the bread for the sandwiches was completely moldy. I just turned it into catfish fillets with a salad, but it left quite a bit to be desired. I contacted Blue Apron, and they told me I was supposed to refrigerate the bread. Thanks for the heads up before it was covered in purple polka dots.

So, after tossing the moldy bread I tried to cook up the catfish according to the directions. This meal had the least amount of prep time of any Blue Apron meal so far, but it was also a disaster. First, the bread was moldy. Then the catfish breading stuck to the pan so it was just a greasy, barely-breaded fillet. The salad didn't taste horrible, but it was just lettuce and radishes. I liked the dressing I made (mayo, spice blend and lime juice) but I had to put a little of my own mayo in there. The packet that came with it didn't look anything like three tablespoons.

I am sure if the bread had not been moldy that it would've turned out much better. And I've learned my lesson. Next week's delivery comes tomorrow, and I'm going to do the entree with bread -- Korean Bao Sliders -- the first night, and the one with fish -- Seared Salmon and Green Potato Salad -- the second night. This was the week I meant to skip because I'm planning to be out of town for a few days, so I will have to be creative on when I get things cooked. But I'll definitely have to eat the meals for lunch and dinner, so that will help. The chicken with couscous will last for a minute. I'll stick the chicken in the freezer to be on the safe side.

I'm not planning to review all of those meals, but I'll give an update of the whole week once I complete it or if something so spectacular happens that I have to share it just then. After that week, which I had meant to postpone, then I will be taking a break for a while. I just can't justify the expense when I'm jobless. After all, I am about to eat pork chops and mashed potatoes because I need to cook it before it goes bad. That's kind of random lunch food, although not as random as the egg-salad sandwich I had for breakfast to off-set it.

No photos tonight. No one wants to see that.

Labels: Blue apron, cooking, food, foodie, kitchen therapy

posted by Laura at 11:43 AM