Lo-Mein & the Low-down on Meal Kits

Have you seen all the advertisements for meal kits? These subscription services provide recipes along with a box of the ingredients it takes to make them and deliver them to your doorstep.

In 2018, Forbes reported, "The majority of meal kit companies will experience little to no growth, resulting in serving a small number of customers."

Enter COVID-19.

Smart Brief stated in July of this year, "Since the start of the pandemic, meal kit companies have surged in popularity with HelloFresh, Freshly and Sun Basket reporting high demand for their subscription services. Active U.S. customers of HelloFresh grew 90% in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the same period last year, according to a company spokesperson. Freshly delivered 4.2 million meals in March, up from 3.5 million in February, said Michael Wystrach, founder and CEO of Freshly. Sun Basket Senior Vice President of Growth Vanessa Meyers noted the company has experienced twice the demand it had before the pandemic from both existing and new subscribers."

The growth of meal-kit services makes sense as people tried to reduce their visits to restaurants and trips to the store but perhaps grew tired of their regular repertoire of homemade dinners. The New York Times suggested several reasons to invest in a meal-kit plan: if you want to learn to cook, if you are too busy to plan dinner and shop for it, if you want help breaking out of a cooking rut and if you want help changing your eating habits.

For our family, the decision to try out some meal kit options was based on a combination of these factors. Our oldest daughter, Avery, was getting ready to head to college and, despite spending a lot of time with me in the kitchen, I wasn't sure she had really learned the basics of preparing dinner from a recipe. I was often creating weeknight favorites from memory or busy directing kids to do homework or clean up when following a new recipe instead of discussing the step-by-step process with her. I wanted her to have the chance to choose some recipes to try but without the added burden of getting the ingredients list from her or having to make a special Instacart order just for her items. Finally, it would be fun to try some new things. There is a lot of competition between the many meal kit companies, so we were able to get some discounts and free meals to start off.

We tried meal kits from HelloFresh and Dinnerly. Avery and I enjoyed picking out what she would prepare on "her night" and the anticipation of the delivery of the large box. (Meal kit companies are trying to have less waste, but it was still sort of a bummer not all of the packing materials were recyclable.) The step-by-step directions helped her refine her cooking skills and learn the time management it takes to prepare a whole meal rather than just one dish. She learned the difference spices can make. She prepared a variety of meats we don't usually have (I pretty much stick to ground turkey, chicken breast and pot roast), tried out lots of different ways to make potatoes and experienced the disappointment of having half the table turn up their noses at a vegetable side she worked hard on, as well as the joy of people asking for seconds because "this is really good!" Even though we think we will discontinue the service soon because it is a little pricey for us now that the discounts and coupons have run out, she has gained some skills, and we have acquired some new recipes we can continue to use.

This chicken lo-mein recipe I am sharing was a hit. While our meal kit came with the chicken, soy sauce, cabbage and spaghetti pre-measured, I have estimated the amounts here for you.

Dinnerly's "Better Than Take-Out Chicken Lo-Mein"

Ingredients:

1 16-ounce box spaghetti

1 bunch scallions

2 to 4 cloves garlic

1 pound chicken, sliced into strips

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/3 cup teriyaki sauce

1/2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

4 cups cabbage blend (coleslaw mix)

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

Cook noodles: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add â..." of the noodles (save the rest for your own use later) to boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking water, then drain pasta, rinse under cold water, and drain well again.

Prep ingredients: Trim scallions, then thinly slice on an angle, keeping dark greens separate. Finely chop 1 teaspoon garlic. Pat chicken dry and season with a pinch each of salt and pepper.

Sautée chicken: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium skillet over medium-high until very hot and shimmering. Add chicken and cook, undisturbed, until chicken is browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Stir and continue cooking until chicken is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a bowl. Wipe out skillet.

Sautée cabbage: In a liquid measuring cup, whisk teriyaki sauce, reserved cooking water, and 1/2 teaspoon vinegar. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in same skillet. Add 4 cups cabbage blend, scallion whites, light greens and chopped garlic; season with a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until wilted and slightly softened, about 1 minute. Transfer to bowl with chicken.

Finish and serve: Reduce heat to medium and add noodles and sauce mixture to skillet, tossing to coat; season to taste with pepper. Cook until noodles are warmed through, about 2 minutes. Add chicken and cabbage to skillet, tossing to combine. Serve chicken lo-mein topped with remaining scallion dark greens. Enjoy!

~Brooke Clubbs is a Jackson mom of three, a freelance writer and a communications instructor.