Monday, August 15, 2016

On My Radar: Salt + Pepper + Oil

Thanks to the Downtown Bellingham Partnership's Morning Jam, I was made aware of an exciting new service in town. The Morning Jam brings in people from Bellingham and the surrounding areas to talk about their passions and how they have lined them up with what they do and who they are. 

Oleg Vetkov
Oleg Vetkov is the man behind Salt + Pepper + Oil, a Fresh Ready-to-Cook Meal service. What he shared is that he has a passion for food, and a passion for a well balanced life. He is working to have that for himself and offer it to others in his business! He knows that we are all short on time, but have a love for meals that are nutritious, fresh, and made from ingredients that are sourced responsibly. And that if you aren't burdened with all the prep, there is room to have a little bit more fun in the kitchen!

Sam at the Salt+Pepper+Oil Storefront

Oleg was gracious enough to give my family a couple of meals to take home and try to see how they would go over for a typical family. We are a crew of three, a full time worker, part-time worker, and one 16 year old that is preparing to go back to school soon. The adults in the picture are fairly adventurous, while the 16 year old is working on it! 

Triple Zested Chicken Breast with Caprese Peach Salad (plus utensils)
The first of the two meals we tried was Triple Zested Chicken Breast with Caprese Peach Salad. The ingredients are all labeled to coordinate with instructions on the packaging and in a  really helpful manner, the list of needed utensils is also included. The crew all gathered around to get started! 

Samantha getting busy with the cherry tomatoes!

Though she says she doesn't love them, our daughter Sam was happy to cut the gorgeous cherry tomatoes! The colors were beautiful, and the taste even better! But this was just the beginning of the side salad. Once cut there were ready prepped peaches, fresh mozzarella,  some mint and basil to quickly dice up and a lovely basalmic glaze ready to drizzle over the whole works. Along with the chicken that was ready with an easy coating of the packet of zest and a quick cook we were ready to go. 

Happy Steve with the finished product!
That face you see above? That's a happy guy! This meal was perfect for a summer evening…and the salad was so beautiful. It was like having a restaurant meal…at home. And the cleanup was minimal. What a sweet deal! 

Capicola and Garlic Sauce Flatbreads

Meal two was much like the first! All the ingredients are packaged together and well marked. And this one had us all drooling before we even cut into it…Capicola and Garlic Sauce Flatbreads! We figured it was a great Friday evening meal, because well, pizza! But this…well this was elevated to another level! 

Flatbread ingredients

The flatbreads were incredibly easy to put together. Everything was ready to go and it was a matter of cutting open the packages, and putting everything on the flatbreads based on preferences. We all decided we were game for everything, and just went for it! 

Flatbread with side salad
And we were so glad we did! We made a side salad on our own to go with this meal, but all we could talk about was the flatbread. In our family lingo it tasted like "more" which meant we all wanted lots more of it! It was SO GOOD. The serving of sliced capicola that came with it was so generous that there was enough for Steve to make himself a small cheese plate the next day and include it. But all he could talk about was the flatbread. The heat, the cheese, it was a perfect combo. 

So, needless to say we are all converts to Salt+Pepper+Oil and have already put an order in for a couple of items on his next menu. The ordering is so flexible and having the option to either go by and say hi and pick it up, or have it delivered is really cool. We think being able to eat well, have it be easy, have your family help (bonus!), and feel like you are trying innovative, locally made items is worth our dollar. I hope you decide to give it a try! Let me know if you do and what you think! 



6 comments:

  1. Great review! We will have to try it!

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    1. Let me know if you do! I think it's up to your gourmet standards!

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  2. I so want to try this place out. I've been looking for something like this and local is even better!

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    1. Let me know if you do Alissa! We found it so convenient…esp. with just the three of us!

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  3. Not having to do all the prep work really made it fun to cook!

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    1. That is one of our favorite parts too! Makes for such a restful meal!

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