Right alongside fashion, cooking is a long time passion of mine. Even after a busy day running around with the kids, I like to have a fresh, home cooked meal on the table. Of course, the quality time spent re-centering after everyone’s busy day at the dinner table is always appreciated.
Something about cooking relaxes me after a long day, but when you have three schedules to manage, not including my personal and work schedule, time just always seems to escape me. There are of course other options for those extra busy nights, but there has to be a better option rather than ordering a pizza or picking up sushi, which can add up. Well, I recently found a team that not only meal preps for you, but also does the grocery shopping!
Let me introduce you to The Culinistas! They are private in-home chefs that can either cater to your private party or prepare your family’s meals for the week! The scheduling is super simple and the meal plans are flexible. Not only do you get to select from their rotating menu of options, but they also cater to special dietary restrictions, including dairy free, vegetarian, and vegan, to kid-friendly options!
The Service
Basically, you book a time and day that works for you, along with the menu you would like prepared for the week. The Culinistas then head out to do the grocery shopping for you, come to your home during the scheduled time, and prepare your meals for you! They clean up everything they used to prepare your meals and head out all within 2-3 hours! Pricing includes one flat rate plus the groceries to prepare the food.
Last week, I used the service for the first time, and was completely blown away. For new clients, The Culinista’s will send you glass air tight containers, along with an assortment of spices for your chef to use and store your food. You keep containers and spices. If you run out of any spice, you can let them know and they will replace the item. It’s such an amazing concept. I think I may be hooked!
Our chef Clare came last week, after running to Whole Foods for all of the ingredients. She stayed about three hours and cooked the six dishes I chose from the menu, stored them all in my refrigerator, and cleaned up.
My family and I had meals for four nights! Jason has been traveling for two weeks now, so I thought for this week to have Clare come back and cook again for our family. This time a completely different menu, yet the same reaction from the kids just how much they loved everything!
Sample Menu
Here’s an example of their menu from which you choose six things from:
Starters, Salads & Light Veg
Romesco Dip (with carrot, red pepper, hazelnut, sherry vin, cumin, cayenne, onion powder, sourdough bread) V, DF
Green Vegetable Soup (with kale, sugar snap pea, white bean, parsley, basil, onion, allspice, cayenne, cumin, onion powder) V, GF, DF
Power Green Salad (with collard green, pepita, kohlrabi, basil, scallion, champagne vinegar, sumac, onion powder) V, GF, DF
Red Snapper Ceviche (with red snapper, avocado, cilantro, grapefruit, red onion, lime) GF, DF
Carrot Roasted Brussels (with brussels sprout, carrot, golden raisin, almond, cilantro, lemon, cumin) V, GF, DF
Yellow Squash with Herbs (with yellow squash, zucchini, basil, chive, mint, parsley, sumac, cumin, onion powder) V, GF, DF
Pastas, Grains & Hearty Veg
Smoked Trout Pasta Salad (smoked trout, pasta, variety of apple, tarragon, yogurt, lemon, cayenne, onion powder)
Cauliflower Mac & Cheddar (with elbow macaroni, cauliflower, cheddar, milk, panko, allspice, onion powder) Veg
Delicata & Farro Salad (with delicata squash, farro, swiss chard, dried cherry, hazelnut, onion, sumac, cumin, cayenne, onion powder) V, DF
King Quinoa (with red quinoa, carrot, pomegranate, sunflower seed, mint, lime, jalapeño, cayenne, onion powder) V, GF, DF
Coconut Rice (with jasmine rice, coconut milk, golden raisin, almond, scallion, spinach, cardamom, allspice, cumin) V, GF, DF
Potato Kale Salad (with potato, kale, walnut, onion, lime, garlic, sumac) V, GF, DF
Pure Protein
Mediterranean Squid Salad (with squid, orange, pickled pepper, olive, parsley, lemon, cayenne, allspice, onion powder) GF, DF
Mustard Chutney Salmon (with wild salmon, shallot, mustard, parsley, lemon) GF, DF
Seared Chicken with Basil Aioli (with chicken breast, basil, egg, mustard, lemon) GF, DF
Pork & Purple Cabbage (pork shoulder, red cabbage, beer, mustard, apple cider vinegar, allspice, cumin, onion powder, cayenne) GF, DF
Cumin Steak with Roasted Tomato Sauce (with hanger steak, tomato, black olive, oregano, cumin, cayenne, onion powder) GF, DF
Chicken & Apple Meatballs (with ground chicken, apple, basil, tomato, onion, garlic, onion powder) GF, DF
Family Classics
Classic Cutlets (with chicken breast, panko, egg, onion powder)
Rigatoni Bolognese (with rigatoni pasta, ground turkey, carrot, onion, tomato paste, milk, onion powder)
Meatballs Marinara (with ground beef, lentil, zucchini, onion, tomato, egg, onion powder) GF, DF
Salmon & Broccoli (with wild salmon, broccoli) GF, DF
Zucchini Nuggets (with zucchini, parmesan, yogurt, parsley, flour, egg) Veg
Roasted Veggies (with cauliflower, broccoli, carrot) V, GF, DF
Sweetness
Pineapple & Persimmons (with persimmon, pineapple, brazil nut, cardamom) V, GF, DF
Overnight Oats (with oat, pear, ginger, walnut, coconut milk, honey, allspice, cardamom) Veg, GF, DF
When times are in a crunch and I know I will not have time to grocery shop for the week, or cook for the family, The Culinistas seriously come in handy! While most people will use this service weekly, I can see myself using it about twice a month considering our travel schedules.
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12 thoughts on “Making In-Home Chef Services Easy & Accessible”
Now this is a service that I can totally get behind. Someone to grocery shop, cook and do the cleanup for me? The Culinistas sound heaven sent!
I don’t have friends who have tried this kind of service yet. But this looks like something you would want if special guests are coming to your place.
This sounds like something that would fit my life perfectly. I have to try it!
What an awesome concept! I would love to have a personal chef make healthy dishes for me and my family; you’ve inspired me to find a service like this where we live!
My wife and I would enjoy this convenient service. Having meals prepped for the week will ease the anxiety of day-to-day family life and its schedules.
This would be a lifesaver for busy families. I am going to look into this seriously. I want my family to still have healthy meals when I am not around to make it for them.
This service sound so helpful, especially for those wanting to eat a healthy diet, but who have little time to grocery shop and cook. I love all of those menu options too.
i love the labeling of the meals. Nice healthy options!!
This service is a whole lot better than ordering for pizza or Chinese take out. I will have to look into this. I could use a day or two away from the kitchen!
YUM! This sounds perfect for easy quick meals. I often need quick meal ideas!
i’ll take any service to make eating at home easier! sounds a lot better than your traditional takeout too. thanks for sharing!
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