It's been almost a year since I ordered Angel Food because we were getting ready to move and I had a BIG food stockpile that needed to be eaten down.  I see a lot of changes on the AF site and I know they had a shake-up of sorts at their headquarters and other changes.   

I wondered if the quality of their meat has improved as well?  In the past the bags of chicken "nuggets" often held nuggets heavily breaded and mostly the size of the tip of my little finger, the rib eye steaks were preserved with ricin (sp?) and didn't chew like natural meat, and the pork chops were the trash "end cuts" you can get for 99 cents a pound in the grocery store.  Dh really likes his meat and got tired of the low quality meats.  The kids didn't care that the nuggets were almost all breading and so small, but I did. 

So . . . be honest.  How's the meat these days?  I'm really trying to decide if I want to get started with Angel Food again or not.

Mom and Dad of 10:

So . . . be honest.  How's the meat these days? 

In my opinion, it depends. Sometimes the boxes have great selections and the meat is of decent quality, especially when compared to the price I'd pay for the lowest cuts at my local grocery store. Other times, it's of the type you mentioned.

We tried Angel Food for the first time with the September box. I wasn't sure what to expect as I had read some mixed reviews on the meat quality as well. So far we have been pleasantly surprised. We made the pork chops right away. They were a bit thinner than the ones I usually buy so I was careful not to overcook them. I baked them covered in the oven with a little water and some spices, then when they were done I pan seared them to get them nice and brown. We liked them a lot.

We next made the rib eye steak for my husband and a turkey burger for me on the grill. I did rinse the chops and steak off as I had read reviews about preservatives. Even though I overcooked his steak my husband still thought it was good. Not the best steak ever but definately good for at home. My turkey burger was very good. I added some spices and a slice of cheese and it was a great quick dinner. It was good sized as well.

We also used the ground beef in a casserole. I browned it first and drained the grease well. It was a bit greasy for me bc I normally cook with turkey burger but had a good flavor. My husband also used the split chicken breasts in a stir fry. This is not the best cut of chicken but I have bought worse ones from the grocery store. It tasted fine, just a little more cutting work to get the meat than a regular boneless breast.

 I will probably use the chicken thighs in the next week. Just bake them with cream of chicken soup and rice. I prefer dark meat so I do often buy the thighs. They also turn out well on the grill. We are picking up the breaded chicken special box this weekend so I am hopeful that the quality if good on those items as well. Compared to the prices of breaded chicken at Costco it should be a pretty good deal for us to have quick dinners on busy nights.

Hope this helps.  

RBV:

We made the pork chops right away. They were a bit thinner than the ones I usually buy so I was careful not to overcook them

I find the chops a little thinner than what the local stores sell as well. Unlike the poster who asked about meat quality, I don't often find them on sale for .99 a pound. At the prices they are usually at, I'll deal with AF's thinner ones.

RBV:

Even though I overcooked his steak my husband still thought it was good

We don't care for the taste of the Ribeyes in the signature boxes cooked as regular steaks. We have enjoyed the steaks from the meat boxes but overall steaks from the store have a superior quality and taste.

The signature box Ribeyes do taste good as fajita meat, steaks and gravy and in other dishes that call for beef. I prefer using steak cuts for these dishes but it's too pricey at the store so this works out well for me.

RBV:

My turkey burger was very good

We aren't fond of ground turkey. I do make seasoned breakfast sausage patties with them though. I found the turkey burgers we got last month taste better than the tubes of ground turkey.

RBV:

 I will probably use the chicken thighs in the next week

The chicken thighs are much better than they were in the past. They used to be a bit oily and lacked a good flavor but these have a better taste to them.

I had not bought from AF for about 2 years because I was tired of the overbreaded chicken. I just got the October box and am pleased. The strip steaks look slightly thicker and better color than before but are still in a preservative "to tenderize". The chicken nuggets this month are long strips of chicken and do not look over breaded as in the past. Teenage DS and his friend said the fish sticks were good.

Now you can buy the produce package without having to buy the main package, so you may be interested in that if you want to avoid the meats but get fresh fruits and vegetables.

Treehugger:

still in a preservative "to tenderize".

I do wish they wouldn't do this.

Brandy:

Treehugger:

still in a preservative "to tenderize".

I do wish they wouldn't do this.

 

I do too -- many people can't eat the extra salt and preservatives. Not good for high blood pressure and other health problems.

Treehugger:

many people can't eat the extra salt

That would include me. I do rinse the meats off and don't have too much problem with the salt content but it would be so much healthier without it.

Thanks for the honest insight.  It sounds like there have been some slight improvements. 

The pork chops I was talking about are not neccessarily thin or thick, but instead of being cut from the whole muscle, they must be cut from the ends, so the pork chop isn't one smooth piece of meat, but you can see the "grain" of the meat going in different directions.  They come on sale here about once a quarter for 99 cents a pound.  They're called "variety pork chops" or something like that.

Mom and Dad of 10:

they must be cut from the ends, so the pork chop isn't one smooth piece of meat, but you can see the "grain" of the meat going in different directions.  They come on sale here about once a quarter for 99 cents a pound.  They're called "variety pork chops" or something like that.

That sounds similar to cuts I have bought before. The cheapest I can usually find chops of any kind is $1.39 a pound. Every so often, it will drop farther than that.