Sun Basket Meal Kit Review + Coupon – February 2019

Sun Basket is a meal kit delivery subscription dedicated to good-tasting, clean foods. According to their site, Sun Basket is committed to sustainability, low-impact responsible farming and fishing methods, organically grown produce, and giving back to the community via food banks and other programs. Award-winning San Francisco chef Justine Kelly lends her culinary know-how to developing Sun Basket‘s simple, seasonal recipes, which feature pre-portioned ingredients and signature pre-made sauces and spice blends.

Check out all of our reviews of Meal Delivery Services to see every meal kit subscription box option!

Sun Basket offers two menu options: the Classic Plan (3 “inspired, farm-to-table recipes” for 2 or 4 people per week) for $11.99 per serving, and the Family Plan (2 or 4 “family friendly meals that kids will love” for 4 people per week) at $10.99 per serving. The Family Plan was co-created by Tyler Florence from Food Network!
Within each plan, there are options for vegetarians, paleo eaters, gluten-free diets, and even breakfast-lovers (Classic Plan only). According to the Sun Basket FAQs, these are the options for the Classic Plan, which I’ll be reviewing today:

Chef’s Choice: Healthy favorites from our chef. Fresh, seasonal recipes feature top-quality meats and seafood, organic and sustainable produce, and flavorful housemade sauces.

Paleo: More meat & veggies, less carbs. Paleo recipes feature plenty of lean meats and seafood, organic and sustainable produce, and housemade sauces. No gluten, grains, soy, corn, or dairy. (This is the one I subscribe to!)

Gluten-Free: No gluten, just delicious. Gluten-free recipes feature top-quality meats and seafood, organic and sustainable produce, gluten-free grains and pasta, and housemade sauces.
Please note, Sun Basket meals are prepared in a facility that handles wheat, and while the Gluten-Free meal plan follows a gluten-free diet, due to risk of cross-contamination, meals are not suitable for people with severe gluten intolerance.

Lean & Clean: Around 550 calories per serving, loads of flavor. Manage your weight and feel great with delicious meals high in protein and fiber, with no gluten, dairy or added sugars.

Vegan: Organic produce & plant-based protein. Creative meatless recipes with seasonal organic produce, plant-based proteins, and our house-made signature sauces.

Vegetarian: Balanced dinners full of organic veggies. Vibrant, creative recipes starring fresh, organic producer, responsibly sourced dairy, and organic pasture-raised eggs.

Pescatarian: Plant-forward with a healthy dose of seafood. Combine the benefits of a vegetarian diet, rich in seasonal organic produce, with an added dose of wild-caught, sustainably sourced seafood.

Mediterranean: Seasonal produce, lean meats, & healthy grains. Enjoy seasonal produce, lean meat & wild-caught seafood paired alongside whole grains, healthy fats, and fresh herbs.

Regardless of the plan you choose, you can always log into your Sun Basket account and hand-pick what meals you’d like to receive. If you don’t go in and curate things for yourself, Sun Basket will just choose meals for you based on your plan/preferences. Keep in mind that folks with special diets will always have a bit more limited options.

This review is of Sun Basket’s recipe offerings that I customized for two people, from the February 4th menu.

My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).

About Sun Basket

The Subscription Box: Sun Basket Classic Plan

The Cost: $11.99 per meal = $71.94/week for 2 people, or $143.88 for 4 people, plus a $6.99 delivery fee

ACTIVE DEAL: Get $90 off and 4 free gifts on first-time order of $65 or more. No coupon needed - just use this link.

The Products: High quality, non-GMO, organic ingredients for delicious meals!

Ships to: All states except Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and parts of New Mexico.

Sun Basket Meal Kit February 2019 Review

Sun Basket encourages recycling, so all of its contents (food packaging, shipping materials, insulation and freezer packs, etc.) are recyclable. Love that!

The info packet included a friendly welcome, some quick advice for unpacking the box and how to prioritize dishes, account management info, and a handy guide for recycling the packaging materials.

As for the menu booklet, it contained all of the recipe info for every dish offered during this particular week, which I found handy. I also like that it includes a guide to the internal temperatures that meat should be cooked to. As for the meals, I have been focusing on eating smaller portions and lower calorie meals, staying away from most carbs that aren’t vegetables, beans or fruit. I customized my menu this week to fit with my nutritional guidelines, and I was happy that a full nutrition panel was included so I could look at the calories, carbs, and protein in each serving.

Meal #1: Cauliflower “risotto” with shrimp, butternut squash, and fried sage.

Listed Cooking Time: 40-55 minutes

Actual Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Calories Per Serving: 510

Carbs: 35 grams

Fiber: 9 grams

Protein: 27 grams

I am not a big believer in vegetables substituting for carbs- I love roasted zucchini, but I don’t want to cover it with sauce and meatballs and call it spaghetti. I was hoping this cauliflower risotto would prove that vegetables can be adequate substitutions for carbs, but I was skeptical.

My first step was to make sure the butternut squash was in ¼ inch chunks and then throwing it on a sheet pan with oil, salt, and pepper before putting it in the oven to roast.

I also diced half of the red onion and mixed the pumpkin puree with water. The recipe called for 1 cup of diced red onion, which I thought was a lot- I didn’t measure my half of the red onion, but I thought it was more than enough for the recipe.

I patted the shrimp dry and sprinkled the seasoning mix on top.

Before starting the cauliflower “risotto” I needed to fry the sage, which I had de-stemmed in my prep earlier. I have never had fried sage, so I was excited about this.

Next, I sautéed the cauliflower and onion before adding the liquids to make it risotto-like. The recipe suggested adding wine if you had some handy, but I didn't. I typically cook my risotto with white wine for added flavor, so I wish a small amount had been included.

Here is the butternut squash when it was done roasting. Look at those delicious crispy bits!

To finish I mixed the squash and shrimp into the risotto along with some diced sage, and the dish was topped with walnuts and the fried sage. Overall, I thought this was a pretty good meal. The onion wasn’t overpowering like I thought it would be, and while the cauliflower didn’t remind me of risotto it didn’t taste bad. I do think some parmesan could have been included to sprinkle on top, and I did love the added texture from the walnuts.

Meal #2: Orange chipotle-glazed pork with coleslaw and roasted sweet potato

Listed Cooking Time: 30-45 minutes.

Actual Cooking Time: 35 minutes

Calories Per Serving: 610

Carbs: 49 grams

Fiber: 7 grams

Protein: 36 grams

This meal had a little more carbs and sugar than I try to eat, but I was really intrigued by the orange-chipotle glaze and the apple coleslaw!

To start I sliced my sweet potato in half and then into half-moons before throwing it on a sheet pan with oil, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. I made sure they were in an even layer and put them in my preheated oven.

Next, I sliced my granny smith apple, and I took several snack breaks to enjoy the delicious crisp tartness of it. This meal reminded me I need to eat more apples! Once I finished I tossed the apple with the bagged cabbage, carrots, sliced scallions, oil, salt, pepper, and the slaw dressing. I threw this in the fridge to chill while I finished cooking.

I patted the pork chops dry and seasoned them with salt and pepper before throwing them in a hot pan with oil. When I cook meat I really want a good crust, so I made sure to not touch the pork for several minutes until I knew the side touching the pan would have some brown on it.

After both sides were browned I started brushing the pork with the glaze and flipping every minute or so.

Once my meat thermometer registered at 145 I set it to rest. Always rest your meat before you cut into it! Always!

Right when I pulled the pork off the stove the sweet potatoes were done. I probably could have broiled them for a minute or so to get more browned bits if I really wanted to.

This was definitely my favorite meal of the box! The glaze on that pork was incredible- I didn’t really taste any of the chipotle, and it tasted more like a ginger orange glaze that was SO good. The sweet potatoes were tasty, and I ended up picking out all of the apple slices on that coleslaw because they were so good with the apple cider vinegar dressing. Since this meal had more carbs and sugar than I try to eat in a meal, I had a smaller portion of the sweet potato and coleslaw- and it still filled me up!

Meal #3: Baja sole in parchment with avocado-citrus salsa.

Listed Cooking Time: 25-40 minutes

Actual Cooking Time: 23 minutes

Calories per Serving: 420

Carbs: 37 grams

Fiber: 14 grams

Protein 22 grams

I picked this meal because the salsa looked incredible and I wanted to try out cooking in papillote (in parchment).

This head of lettuce wasn’t labeled, and I honestly thought it was mistakenly thrown in until I made this recipe.

I also got a note that my organic avocado had to have a regular avocado stand in for it.

The prep on this was really simple- I sliced the lettuce and half of the red onion, put the included seasoning on the fish, and layered it on the parchment.

I then tried to roll it like the photos. I did alright, but I think providing a link with a video tutorial on how to properly roll and get a good seal would have been helpful.

While the fish was cooking in the oven, I diced the other half of my red onion and the orange along with the cucumber, cilantro, and avocado. I had a bit of an issue with my avocado- when this was delivered it was rock hard, and I had to wait longer than I would have liked for a seafood dish for it to ripen up before I could make this meal. All of this was thrown into a bowl and tossed with fresh lime juice, salt, and pepper.

Here is my fish once it came out of the oven. Cooking in papillote means you’re steaming what is inside, so make sure to open it carefully.

Here is the finished dish. To be frank, I wasn’t a big fan of this. Steamed lettuce doesn’t exactly have an appealing texture, and the fish seasoning was bland. The salsa was absolutely delicious though- the pairing of fresh, ripe orange with avocado and cucumber is a winner, and I will be making that again. 

Verdict: Even though this box had a few snags, overall I was happy with it. For a long time, Sun Basket didn't deliver to Louisiana, so I had to wait in the wings. For someone who is really counting calories, I think this is one of the best options in terms of finding low-calorie meals while still being able to customize your meals to your taste. While the sole wasn't my favorite, I loved the pork dish, liked the cauliflower risotto, and ate entirely too much of that avocado-citrus salsa. As a college student, I couldn't afford to subscribe to this every week, but I liked that it broke up my slump of cooking the same things over and over again and getting bored (I am really, really tired of eating shredded chicken).

To Wrap Up:

Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Since Sun Basket menus change weekly and you must choose them ahead of time, you won’t be able to order these dishes unless they are offered again in the future.

Coupon – Get $60 off ($40 off your first order and $20 off your second order) with this link!

Value Breakdown: At $71.94 for this box, you’re paying $11.99 per meal.

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Which has been your favorite Sun Basket recipe so far?