Butcher Box is a monthly (or bi-monthly) subscription consisting of 8-11 lbs. of grass-fed beef, heritage pork, and free-range organic chicken.
Butcher Box sent us this box for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
This review is for the $129 a month, mixed (grass fed beef, heritage pork, and free range organic chicken) box.
The Subscription Box: Butcher Box
The Cost: $129 a month + free shipping. You can also save $20 by doubling any order.
LIMITED TIME DEAL: Now through 7/19, link here to get $10 off and 2 free 10 oz. ribeye steaks!
The Products: 8-11 pounds of grass-fed beef, heritage pork, and free-range organic chicken. There are five different boxes available: beef & pork, chicken & pork, beef & chicken, all beef, or a mixed box of all three meats.
Ships to: Continental US
Check out all of our Butcher Box reviews and the Food Subscription Box Directory!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
Since the last time we reviewed Butcher Box over a year ago, they have upped their packaging game BIG TIME. They now use eco-friendly packaging to keep your meat cold and safe.
Once I opened the box, there was a bed of recycled materials in plastic that I swung open to reveal a cooler bag, surrounded by dry ice.
It's hard to believe all of that meat fits in this green zippered cooler bag, but it does.
Everything stayed nice n' frozen.
With so much meat to keep track of, I like that they included a packing list with everything I should have, including recipe and info cards.
Then there is a welcome letter from the founder, Mike Salguero explaining why he started Butcher Box and their principles.
The next card thanks you, encourages you to share photos on social media, and tells you what you should do with your meat now, and before you cook.
They also sent three recipe cards for ideas on how I can make a great meal out of my Beef Top Sirloin..
My boneless skinless chicken breasts....
And my pork chops! (We'll get to this recipe later)
The final card talks about their partnership with Dry Farm Wines, and how to get your first bottle for one penny. Wine goes perfectly with this box!
I was very excited to review this box, as the man who delivered it will tell you. I came running to the door, clapping, and chanting "MEAT DAY! MEAT DAY!". I love good meat: especially a big juicy burger, or some succulent chicken.
To help me get the most of this 11 pounds of provisions, I enlisted my dear friend, Chef Justin Crimone, along with a couple of other flesh-hungry pals to sample the goods. Justin has been cooking exquisite dinners, and a yearly out-of-this-world New Year's Day Brunch for my friends and I for over 1o years, and none of us know anyone who could better spotlight these choice cuts.
Now let's get to the food!
Grass Fed Boneless Ribeye, 2 x 10 oz. steaks (link here to receive these for FREE!)
The only thing Justin did with these ribeyes was season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and cook on a grill pan on the stove. Simple is best with good cuts of meat!
I had bought some green beans from my local Co-Op, and Justin had some gorgonzola we put on top after steaming. We paired it with beer from White Horse Brewing, near Justin's hometown.
He cooked the ribeye medium, and it was juicy and perfectly seasoned.
Free Range Organic Chicken Tenders, 3 x 1lb. packages
Justin immediately knew he wanted to bread these babies. He coated them in seasoned flour, then put them in an egg wash, then back to the flour. After that, he fried them until brown, and finished them off in the oven.
He then paired them with a Sriracha-mayo dip to enjoy.
The chicken stayed really moist and had virtually no fat on it at all. My other friends and I tore into these tendos as if we had never eaten before.
Boneless Heritage Pork Chop, 4 x 8 oz.
For the heritage pork, Justin decided to use the included recipe for Maple Ginger Pork Chops. Instead of following the recipe to a T, he browned the chops first and wrapped them in foil to let sit, which made them stay nice and moist.
I had some red potatoes lying around, so we used them to make the colcannon from the recipe card, with kale I purchased from the co-op. We paired it with what ended up being a really delicious white blend from Winc.
We slathered the pork chops and colcannon with the maple ginger sauce, which brought a delightful sweetness to the dish.
Grass Fed New York Strip, 2 x 10 oz. steaks
This strip steak was simply grilled on the stove with salt and pepper. Again, with a good cut, I never need more than that. Leaving it be really lets the flavor of the meat come through.
I had a bag of bulk field greens, so Justin suggested we chop up the fingerlings we had into "fries" and make a fancy version of our beloved Pittsburgh Salad! Brilliant!!
This. Steak. Was. To. Die. For. For real, though. Justin cooked this one super rare, and it was like eating beefy butter.
Grass Fed Ground Beef, 6 burger patties
Justin decided to sous-vide the patties before cooking in a grill pan on the stove (or grill, if you're able). Obviously, the average person doesn't have the ability to do the same, but be careful when cooking grass-fed beef because Justin said it's easy to overcook it.
Pederson's Smoked Uncured Bacon, 10 oz. package
It went without saying that this bacon was going to get cooked up to put on the burgers.
We served the burger with some spring mix to get our greens, and some sweet potato chips on the side. I'm also obsessing over blue cheese at the moment, so I added crumbles on top as well.
The bacon on this burger was SO CRISP and smoky. I love thick cut bacon that holds its shape when cooking instead of turning into a pile of fatty mess, and this bacon delivered. The ground beef was juicy and tasted fresh.
Top Sirloin, 2 x 4-6 oz. pieces
This was another cut that Justin decided to sous-vide beforehand, which he did for four hours. After that, he did the usual salt and peppering, and put on the grill pan for just a couple of minutes on each side.
There's not much I love more than a "basic" meat and potatoes dinner. Here we baked fingerling potatoes at 375° for a 25 minutes after tossing with rosemary, salt, pepper, and olive oil.
Another perfectly cooked beef dish from Justin. I think a couple of us couldn't decide if we liked this or the NY strip steak better. So hard to choose! Luckily we didn't have to.
Verdict: Butcher Box delivered a heck of a lot of ethically-raised meat to my doorstep for $129. I did my best to try and compare prices using jet.com (who knew they sold ethical meat?) and came up with Butcher Box having a value of around $142, which is above the cost. They estimate their boxes to end up being $6 per meal, which also sounds like a pretty good deal. Sure, you have to buy veggies and potatoes, but those are pretty darn cheap. I think this box is a great idea for those who may not have access to local or reasonably priced ethically raised meat. I thought everything came packaged really well and tasted amazing, though I have to give a lot of credit to Justin, as well. 🙂
Have you tried Butcher Box? What do you think of the value?
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