Overall rating: 8.5/10

Deliciousness

Rating: 7/10

The last time I made a salmon dish from Blue Apron, I said I’d never order salmon again, but I forgot to cancel my order this week and ended up with salmon anyway. I knew we didn’t have time to make this recipe immediately, so I threw the salmon straight into the freezer (per the package instructions). The night before I knew I wanted to cook this, I took the salmon out and let it thaw overnight in the fridge. The previously frozen salmon tasted like previously frozen salmon, so I let the hubs eat most of mine. However, the bed of barley infused with lemon, spinach and zucchini was ultra-delicious, which made up for the sub-par protein. If we were to make this again (which is a highly likely) I’d substitute the salmon for a chicken breast.

Nutrition

Rating: 9/10

Almost everything in this recipe was really healthy, with the exception of sour cream and butter. The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of butter, but we used less than half the amount and were still satisfied by the outcome.

• Salmon: Even though I didn’t care for this salmon, it is extremely healthy. For more info on it’s nutritional value, check out the nutrition section of BBQ Spiced Salmon recipe page.
• Pearled Barley: At first I was excited to see that this recipe used barley, since barley is a whole grain with some amazing health benefits. Then I noticed the recipe specified “pearled” barley. Pearled barley is barley that has had its hull removed, along with many of its nutrients; the stripping of bran and other nutrients from the barley demotes its status as a whole grain. Regardless, pearled barley still has its health benefits. With higher fiber levels than amaranth, quinoa, and brown long-grain rice, pearled barley will help keep your system regular. When regularly incorporated into your diet, barley can also reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes and keep the old ticker beating strong.
• Zucchini: Zucchini was one of the veggies of the week, which is great news since it has loads of vitamin C and vitamin B-6, as well as some potassium.
• Spinach: I always assumed that cooking veggies and greens zapped some of their nutritional value. Turns out this is not the case with spinach. When you eat cooked spinach, your body can actually absorb more of its nutrients, including vitamins A and E, zinc, calcium and more. So eat up Popeye.

Ingredients

Rating: 8/10

I give it an 8 because everything remained remarkably fresh despite not having time to cook this week until an entire week after our box arrived. I’m docking 2 points for the salmon…

Ease of Prep

Rating: 10/10

This recipe only took us a total of 34 minutes to prep, which was less time than we expected, and clean up was easy too!

To get more information on the meal delivery service, read our comprehensive Blue Apron reviews.