Green Chef Meal Kit Review (2026): Great Ingredients, Layered Flavor

This yr, gluten-free dishes included a lemon-oregano shrimp with schug and feta—a lemony-herbal romp served over rice livened up with dried apricots. (Including dried fruit to enliven rice is a well-liked trick by Inexperienced Chef, one I’d plan so as to add to my regular cooking routines.) The American-fished shrimp have been plump and hearty, with no briny fishiness.

Yemeni schug stays considered one of my favourite condiments in existence, although this model may have been spicier. And the rice may have been extra plentiful, maybe. However these are small quibbles on a lightweight, brilliant meal with beautiful layers of taste from natural schug to toasted cauliflower and kale and the evenly tart chunk of apricot.

I might virtually by no means carry collectively this many components on a weekday evening, have been they not helpfully bagged up in single parts. Certainly, if I attempted, I most likely would find yourself spending extra on the grocery retailer than on the meal package, as I found after an experiment final yr.

However particularly, I’ve been impressed with protein sourcing. A well-trimmed bavette steak final yr got here from a fourth-generation meat purveyor in Texas. So did my rooster breast this yr, on a harissa rooster dish. Shrimp are Atlantic coast, not Southeast Asian coast. My salmon was wild-caught. My steelhead got here from a fishery in Norway. Every is clearly and transparently marked—a rarity amongst proteins from meal supply companies.

That steelhead particularly was amongst my favourite dwelling meals of the summer time. The dish’s secret, once more, was layering: earthy spice on the fish, citric accents and crispness on the gremolata. The pleasing chew of dates countered the mushy give of ginger-spiced couscous.

Whereas consuming it, I truly felt happy with myself—although it solely took a scant 40 minutes to make. If something, this summer time’s meals have been extra subtle, however decrease effort, than the Inexperienced Chef meals I attempted final yr.

Quibbles

Inexperienced Chef’s recipe playing cards are thoughtfully designed, with useful photos guiding the best way. However their format tends to separate out every prep step in full, carrying all the step by way of to completion, whether or not veggie chopping or couscous cooking.

This is smart, after all. However this does result in a easy warning: Inexperienced Chef doesn’t maintain your hand in addition to some meal kits as regards the very best order of operations. Learn by way of every recipe in its entirety earlier than cooking, and resolve your recreation plan.