The Best Meal Delivery Services for Every Kind of Home Chef

Sunbasket’s meals are pricier than average, but that cost is covering all the high-quality ingredients, ethical sourcing, and thoughtful extras: This isn’t a regular meal kit, it’s a fancy pants, healthy meal kit. You may not necessarily be saving that much money compared to your local takeout options or your nearby grocery store, but if you live in a place where your Grubhub options are limited to Taco Bell and the fried chicken place down the street, it’s worth it to shell out a little more for quality, organic ingredients that can be shaped into a variety of meal options.

Sunbasket’s list of plans is vast and makes picking recipes much easier for those who stick to a specific diet. There’s a plan for paleo, those who are “carb-conscious,” vegan, gluten-free, pescatarian, vegetarian, you name it. Other categories can be filtered by your level of expertise: “Quick & Easy” makes sense for beginners or the convenience-driven, whereas “Chef’s Choice” features premium meals that are perfectly suited for people who are ready to graduate to more advanced meals that feel a little more sophisticated than chicken and pasta. Some past Chef’s Choice offerings: Moroccan lamb tagine, seared tuna with kiwi-avocado salad, and a chickpea paella.

The service has also expanded its offerings with a “market” section that covers premium grocery and pantry items (so not your average milk and eggs) which we’d categorize as the Whole Foods of meal kit add-ons. For the holidays, that meant smoked turkey drumsticks, Black Forest ham, peppermint alfajores, and salted caramel truffles. And for every other time of the year, you can also peruse things like sliced prosciutto, empanadas, crab cakes, and organic juices with your order. Deluxe!

For people who are hand-wringing about the environmental impact of having boxes of food shipped to your doorstep every week, take comfort in Sunbasket’s packaging, which uses exclusively recyclable, compostable, and reusable containers. It also works with local farmers, ranchers, and fishermen to source the tastiest ethically-sourced meat, and only uses organic produce in its meals.

Overall, Sunbasket is great for anyone who wants a five-star meal kit experience, not the basic TV dinner experience. More seasonal recipes, more high-quality meat, better-for-the-environment packaging, high-end grocery staples, and plenty of house-made sauces that are tasty and require absolutely zero effort from you to make.