Martha Stewart's Marley Spoon Is the Meal Kit That Best Approximates Real Home Cooking
This creamy mushroom chicken breast did not taste like I cooked it, even though I definitely did. It tasted like my mom cooked it. But the only mom actually involved was the mother of all Yankees, Martha Stewart. I had simmered up my chicken with the help of a Marley Spoon meal kit.
Marley Spoon isn't quite Martha Stewart's meal kit: It was founded in Germany. But it isn't not Martha Stewart's meal kit, either. Stewart endorses the brand heartily on the Marley Spoon website, many of the early recipes and techniques for the United States rollout came from her larder, and the creamy mushroom chicken in particular was tagged as one of 'Martha's Best.' (The recipe was devised, in fact, by a food author and prolific recipe developer named Anna Painter.)
Photograph: Matthew Korfhage
The mushroom chicken was the sort of recipe I'd usually never think to make: vaguely but not at all Hungarian, with crispity chicken bits deglazed into a Dijon-paprika chicken broth and fattened up with cream cheese. As the final step, I mashed up the plate's bed of potatoes with a wealth of spinach. It was delicious in a way that reminded me of the generation of foods I'd grown up with: gentle, rich, tangy, earthy, yet no spicier than ripe garlic. It felt a little like home.
I worked as a food critic on two coasts for more than a decade, and I can be a harsh judge and skeptic of meal kit cuisine. But after days of cooking nothing but Marley Spoon dinners, I've come away feeling that Marley Spoon is the closest I've found to what a meal kit is supposed to offer—at least, if you truly enjoy preparing a meal.
Most of my meals from Marley Spoon have been fully realized, homestyle plates that take me just a little outside my usual repertoire. Meals that maybe teach me a little something, but still don't take more than an hour to make.
The price is toward the top end of the meal kit world, about $9 to $13 a regular serving (with both premium and 'saver' meals available), and $11 in shipping. In my experience, it bears out the price, but Marley Spoon also has a budget option called Dinnerly with simpler plates, at around two-thirds the price. Hello, Fresh
When I placed my initial order on Marley Spoon's website, I did what I always do when I test meal kits. I allowed the website to choose my plates for me, throwing myself on the mercy of the brand's algorithm. The path of least resistance is perhaps also the path to honesty.
The result turned out to be a hearty and familiar assortment: the aforementioned creamy chicken, but also cashew chicken over rice, a hearty lentil-sausage-kale soup, carnitas tostadas, eggplant parm, and Cajun tilapia with broccoli. (Though the picture on this last recipe card showed broccolini instead, which kinda made me want the broccolini I didn't have in my box.)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
17 hours ago
- Business Insider
Chefs share the best and worst meals to make with ground beef
We asked chefs for some of the best and worst ways to use ground beef in meals. Tacos, soups, and meat-based sauces can be filling and easy to prepare. They said you should avoid using prepackaged ground beef to make burgers or beef stroganoff. Ground beef is a popular base for many meals, but they aren't all created equally. So, we asked chefs for some of their favorite things to cook with ground beef and a few recipes they'd probably skip. Bolognese sauce with pasta is simple and delicious. Palak Patel, a chef with the Institute of Culinary Education, told Business Insider that one of her favorite easy weeknight dinners is a hearty Bolognese or Italian meat sauce served over pasta. "It's very easy to make a small or large batch to freeze for later," Patel said, "because all you have to do is combine ground beef with herbs and tomato. You can cook it slowly on the stovetop, slow cooker, or even an Instant Pot." For a lighter version of this dish that's perfect for warmer months, use fresh tomatoes instead of canned for the sauce. Ground-beef tacos are easily customizable. Jessica Randhawa, a chef with The Forked Spoon, told BI that ground beef can be a scrumptious taco filling. "Ground-beef tacos are easy to make at home and can be full of flavor," she said. "Plus, you can control the fat content based on your personal needs by choosing leaner or fattier ground beef." You can make an easy taco filling by simmering ground beef with tomato sauce and spices like paprika, garlic powder, and cumin. Add chopped vegetables or shredded cheese for extra flavor. Cajun rice is a cheap and filling way to enjoy ground beef. Cajun rice, also known as dirty rice for its color, is a traditional Louisiana Creole dish made with seasoned rice, chopped peppers, and spiced meat such as ground beef. "Cajun rice is a great way to use ground beef," Randhawa said. "Though it's usually known as a spicy dish, you can omit spicy ingredients like jalapeño if you're sensitive to heat." In addition to being a versatile meal that can easily be scaled up or down to feed groups of different sizes, Cajun rice is an ideal way to use up different cuts of meat — toss in leftover steak, sausage, or even chicken gizzards. Meatballs are a classic way to showcase quality ground beef. Mila Furman, a private chef and recipe developer with Girl and the Kitchen, told BI that meatballs are an ideal way to use high-quality ground beef. "Meatballs are one of the most versatile meals to have in your [arsenal] as a chef," Furman said. "They're super simple to put together and will always be a hit for the whole table." Whether you're making classic meatballs with tomato sauce or whipping up a batch of creamy Swedish meatballs, using ground beef with a slightly higher fat percentage will keep them juicy and tender. Add ground beef to soup for extra protein. If you're struggling to think of ways to use up a small portion of leftover ground beef, putting it in a soup may just be the answer. "Using ground beef in soups isn't just for chili," Furman said. "Add ground beef — especially in the form of leftover meatballs — into soup with plenty of hearty vegetables for a complete meal." Lasagna can keep ground beef from tasting dry or overcooked. A great way to infuse prepackaged ground beef with tons of moisture and flavor is to bake it into a lasagna. "Lasagna is a versatile ground-beef meal because it's very hearty and works well with all kinds of veggies, like mushrooms, squash, or corn," Patel said. "Plus, you can add a fried egg on top to turn leftovers into a weekend brunch." On the other hand, you shouldn't use a typical package of ground beef to make burgers. Patel said that using an average grocery-store package of ground beef to make burgers is a mistake. "It is important to know the type of beef that you're buying," Patel said. "Prepackaged grocery-store ground beef is not processed daily or in-house, so the resulting burgers tend to be dry and chewy." Instead of grabbing a package of ground beef, ask the deli or butcher to grind a portion of quality beef for you. Cuts such as chuck steak usually have a better ratio of fat to lean meat, which makes for a juicier burger. It can be difficult to make good beef stroganoff with ground beef. Beef stroganoff is traditionally made with sautéed pieces of whole beef, but some recipes call for ground beef instead. Unfortunately, this variation is hard to get right. "This is a very classic recipe for ground beef, but often the beef is left bland and dry while the delicate egg noodles are overcooked," Patel said. Patel added that if the ratio of cream to beef is not balanced, this dish can become overly creamy and even soggy. Steak tartare is tricky to prepare at home, and it isn't always safe to eat. Steak tartare is made with lightly seared or raw ground beef, usually served as a patty topped with a raw egg yolk. Randhawa said home chefs — and restaurant diners — should generally avoid steak tartare for safety reasons. "Unlike other raw-meat recipes from around the world, steak tartare does not include an acidic citrus juice," Randhawa said. Acidic citrus juice can cause meat to seem somewhat cooked, but it doesn't actually make it entirely safe to eat. "Uncooked meat can have both dangerous parasites and potentially life-threatening bacteria," Randhawa added. You may want to avoid adding warm ground beef to chilled salads. Some salad recipes call for ground beef as a topping. But the temperature difference between warm ground beef and a cold salad can cause the melted fats in the meat to solidify. "Do not put ground beef in your salads if you can help it," Furman said. "You often end up with a situation where beef fat leaks down through the greens and congeals." You could avoid this stomach-turning scenario by chilling the cooked ground beef beforehand.
CNN
19 hours ago
- CNN
The Hungarian stew that stirred a nation
From cattle herders to revolutionaries, a humble stew has earned its place as a symbol of Hungarian freedom, survival, and national pride. Across Hungary, a familiar ritual unfolds. On stove tops in high rise flats, in open fields at countryside fairs, and inside the kitchens of some of Europe's most acclaimed restaurants, cast-iron bogrács (cooking pots) bubble gently. The smell of nostalgia fills the air. This is gulyás (goulash). A dish that has sustained generations, and, in a country characterized by reinvention, preserved and evolved Hungary's national identity. But before gulyás became a culinary icon, it was a solution. In the 9th and 10th centuries, Hungary's gulyások, the cattle herders of the Alföld, needed meals as mobile as they were. Over open fires, they slow-cooked beef, onions, water, and wild herbs in heavy cast-iron pots. The result was a nourishing stew that could be reduced, dried, and rehydrated on the move. 'The gulyások lifestyle meant that it was a necessity to cook their food outdoors over an open fire,' says Carolyn Bánfalvi, food historian. 'Hungarians have always been partial to stewing meats, so it made sense for them to chop the meat into small pieces and stew it over the open fire.' But it wasn't until the 18th century that paprika entered the picture, brought via trade routes that stretched from the Ottoman Empire into Central Europe. On the plains of Hungary, farmers began cultivating it in abundance. Paprika became the most Hungarian of ingredients and that's when the dish started to take the shape we now associate with gulyás. Carolyn Bánfalvi, food historian That single, aromatic flourish transformed the dish. With a new depth of flavor and signature red hue, gulyás emerged a cornerstone of a culinary identity Hungary was beginning to forge of its own. By the 18th century, gulyás had made its way from the plains into towns, taverns, and middle-class homes. But in the politically charged decades that followed, it began to take on a new role—as a marker of national unity. 'In the 1790s, gulyás was first recorded in writing as being a national dish,' Bánfalvi explains. 'The image of herdsmen cooking over a fire seemed to strike a chord, and the dish soon became synonymous with Hungarian cuisine.' As Hungarians sought greater autonomy within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, preparing gulyás in the home became more than simply cooking food. While the Viennese elite leaned towards creamy, French-inspired fare, everyday Hungarians doubled down on their own culinary tastes. In this context, serving gulyás was a way of preserving national identity. 'In the early 1960s it became law for public kitchens—like school and workplace canteens—to cook using recipes from a state-published cookbook,' explains Bánfalvi. 'Gulyás was included, of course, because it was an easy dish to industrialize.' DID YOU KNOW? Gulyás has been a recorded national dish of Hungary for over 230 years. Today in Hungary, the gulyás tradition continues to live on. It's a fixture at food festivals and the centerpiece of family cookouts. Every family has their own take. In some parts of the country, pork replaces beef. In others, it's all about the potatoes or the csipetke noodles. But the heart of the dish remains in slow cooking, shared eating, and the comfort of something that connects generations. That connection isn't static. In Budapest, Tamás Széll and Szabina Szulló (Michelin-starred chefs) have played a key role in reimagining traditional gulyás. These fine dining interpretations elevate the iconic dish with refined techniques and presentation, while staying true to its historic roots. Wherever it's enjoyed—over a rural campfire in the Alföld or at a white-tableclothed restaurant—gulyás tells the story of Hungary. It has fed people through hardship and celebration, through revolution and renewal. The method may change, but the rhythm stays the same. 'It's a dish for any occasion,' Bánfalvi concludes. 'We even served a giant pot the night before my wedding. We didn't have enough bowls or spoons, but it was the perfect Hungarian meal to say welcome.' Find out more about Hungary's culinary heritage here.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
104-year-old Ohio World War II veteran remembers the beaches of Normandy
The Enquirer revisited Army veteran Richard Stewart as we mark the 81st anniversary of D-Day. We spoke with Stewart in 2023, as he revisited the beaches of Normandy and remembered the battle against the German army that was a turning point in World War II, the Battle of Normandy. This year, photographer Liz Dufour checked in with Stewart ahead of the D-Day anniversary. He returned to Normandy in 2024 to accept the French Legion of Honour from France's President Emmanuel Macron during the U.S. ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the World War II "D-Day" in Normandy. Stewart, a Lincoln Heights resident, is now 104. He remembers working in the field, inspecting a line when a bomb hit. 'The earth shook, as if an earthquake had hit us,' he told Dufour. During the war, the U.S. military segregated African Americans from their White counterparts, and they were assigned noncombat roles. 'They underestimated us,' he said. Stewart's unit served in France, Belgium and Germany until he was discharged Nov. 13, 1945. As he reflects on his wartime experience, he said, 'I'm so thankful. The Lord took us over and the Lord brought us back. "And I'm still here.' Read more about Stewart here. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Lincoln Heights veteran remembers D-Day battle on 81st anniversary
