all the recipes you can make with a box of meat (+ butcherbox review)
Disclaimer: I am a ButcherBox affiliate, which means that I get a small commission if you choose to order your first box through my link. Thank you for supporting this blog!
Did you know I stopped purchasing meat at grocery stores?
Sure, I’ll pick up some sausage from Whole Foods once in awhile, but it’s something that allowed me to save a ton of $$.
Cool, so are you vegan/vegetarian? you might be asking.
Here’s the thing: I still get high-quality meat (I eat meat probably 2-3x a week max) but for less $ and delivered right to my door.
Yup! If you’ve been a NBN follower for a while, you know that I’ve been working for (in marketing, formerly) and working with (currently, as an affiliate) ButcherBox for awhile — they deliver high-quality grass-fed beef, organic chicken, heritage-breed pork, and wild-caught seafood directly to your door.
I’ve been known to gift ButcherBoxes to my parents, sister, and friends because they are honestly an awesome gift to get.
But more than that, I truly believe in their mission to source meat and seafood from farmers and fishermen we know and trust and to bring quality food to food deserts in the USA (it’s sad, but I didn’t realize for the longest time that there were parts of the country where there aren’t Whole Foods within 15 miles).
Keep reading to find out more or click here to go directly to your exclusive deal and click here to go to the recipes.
What’s in a Box?
The good news is that you get to pick your box! So you can choose from:
Custom Box: Choose your own box. Select your own custom mix of different types of meats so you know exactly what is in your box.
Curated Box: Choose from all beef, beef + chicken, beef + pork, mixed and you’ll get a hand-selected mix of different cuts — a lot of which you can’t find in grocery stores.
You can also select “add ons” to add to each box: there’s bacon, breakfast sausage, salmon, and more (see below!). As a member, you also get access to member monthly deals, which are crazy good deals on awesome cuts of meat.
Why I Love ButcherBox
My parents taught me to be conscious of my money but still take care of my health, and so I’m on a mission to be budget-friendly and still eat high-quality, nourishing food.
Since I’m cooking for one, with my amount of meat consumption, it takes me a month or two (tbh sometimes even three) to go through a box, which is amazing if you divide it by the amount a box costs:
$149 for a custom box ($129 is for a curated box) ÷ 8 weeks = $18.63 per week
Since my goal is to be sub-$50 on my weekly groceries each week, this allows me more wiggle room to buy things that are kind of $… like avocados (lol).
what’s in my box:
It’s also convenient — the meat is frozen at peak freshness and then delivered to your door so you don’t have to worry about going to the grocery store, going through what’s on sale, trying to decide what you’re going to eat that week, etc.
Also, I may be slightly traumatized because one time my dad bought so much meat at a grocery store (we have a second freezer for meat…) that the salesperson asked him if we had a restaurant. He said, “Nope, just my family.”
(Also similar to the time we were at a farm and bought a 25lb bag of carrots and the cashier asked him if we had a horse. And he said, “No, just my daughter.”)
Want to find out more? Watch the unboxing video below (I got a beef + chicken curated box with the breakfast sausage add on to show you the awesome cuts that they hand pick for you!).
Prefer IG? I have a ButcherBox IG story highlight here.
Deal!
Part of my partnership with ButcherBox means that you, you awesome blog reader, get an amazing deal that changes monthly(ish). The deals range from free ground beef or bacon FOR LIFE (the lifetime of your membership), free Alaskan salmon, etc.
Click below to see this month’s deal:
Bacon
Tip: I cook my bacon on the stove, but it’s actually better (and also you won’t set off the smoke alarm like I do) if you cook it in the oven.
Ground Beef (you can use the breakfast sausage or pork for these recipes too!)
Tip: If you want to eat burgers without shaping them yourself, ButcherBox has amazing burgers too that you can add on. I usually do a burger salad.
Chicken
Instant Pot BBQ Pulled Chicken (from Paleo Running Momma)
Tip: These are chicken breast recipes, but I’ve been exclusively getting the ButcherBox chicken thighs and wings and oven-roasting the chicken thighs (so easy — just coat with avocado oil, turmeric, cayenne, black pepper, and salt and roast at 375F for ~30 minutes or until cooked through) and air-frying the chicken wings (learned this from my parents).
Steak (NY Strip, Flat Iron)
Tip: You can cook a steak from frozen if you didn’t defrost it first (me 99% of the time)! Just heat up a pan. Add avocado oil. Generously salt your steak on both sides. When it’s ready, place into the pan. Cook for ~3 minutes on each side, then finish in the oven for ~10 minutes (or cook for a little longer on each side).
You can also check out the ButcherBox recipe page for a huge catalog of recipes based around different cuts of meat. I’ve tasted many of these recipes myself and they are SO GOOD.