Hello fresh

[Wendy1985]

I keep hearing about it but want honest opinion not a YouTubeer who is promoting it

 

[PollyannaMom]

Between the expense, and what I figure would be a lot of extra packaging, I've never tried it.

 

[soccerdad72]

There have been a number of threads on this topic:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/h...vice-such-as-hello-fresh-experiences.3836704/
https://www.disboards.com/threads/meal-kits-best-bang-for-your-buck.3836990
https://www.disboards.com/threads/meal-delivery-services.3827388

 

[lovesmurfs]

DH and I experimented one summer -- each of the companies offer a "new customer" deal -- we went through about 15 companies. Hello Fresh didn't make our final list. We use SunBasket almost exclusively.

Kids are out of the house and we enjoy the variety.

 

[Wendy1985]

There have been a number of threads on this topic:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/h...vice-such-as-hello-fresh-experiences.3836704/
https://www.disboards.com/threads/meal-kits-best-bang-for-your-buck.3836990
https://www.disboards.com/threads/meal-delivery-services.3827388

thanks I apologize my brain never woke up this morning

 

[jaiminee krikit]

I like Hello Fresh, it's my favorite of the ones we've tried so far (Home Chef and Blue Apron). The convenience, especially during the past year, was great. I live in a small town and I would have to drive to several stores in neighboring towns to be able to find all of the ingredients that I get in just one box. The recipes also get me out of my comfort zone - both preparing and eating. But I am getting bored with the choices so I may need to try a new option.

 

[GoingSince1990]

We've been using them regularly for a few years. Certainly not the cheapest choice, but a great menu variety, and the food is always delicious. Mostly more so than eating in a restaurant, as most restaurants will not be preparing your meal freshly from scratch as you do with Hello Fresh. The produce and meat they send always seems to be top quality. I find that the preparation times given on the menu cards are a bit optimistic; when it says "Prep: 10 minutes", for me at least it tends to be more like 30 minutes, but I am not the most proficient of cooks.

I have four free boxes on my account to give away to anyone who would like to try a new subscription. If anyone wants one, send me a PM with your email address and I will send the first four people to reply a free box invite. To get the free box you will need to create an account with Hello Fresh and enter credit card info (which would be used for future boxes if you continue the subscription), but you can easily close the account after getting the free box if you decide not to continue.

 

[Wendy1985]

Thanks everyone I am trying to get away from processed foods and thought of them

 

[jliehr]

We tried them but their packaging in the summer was awful, meats would arrive at above 40 degrees which is a no go.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Thanks everyone I am trying to get away from processed foods and thought of them

In that case, I would look up some vegetarian and vegan recipe sites. They tend to be very inspiring for using fresh ingredients, and you can alter them to add meat/fish that you like...

 

[ronandannette]

I did a lot of research on the meal subscription services last winter at the height of Covid-isolation boredom. We ended up choosing a different service but the issue with all of them, for our family of 3 is that you can only order each recipe in either 2 or 4 serving size. As experiments go, it wasn’t a total success for a few reasons and we cancelled after our initial order.

I might recommend it to others though, if their circumstances were right. It’s not particularly inexpensive though after the incentives are used. It would only be an economical choice if a household was spending a large amount of money eating out. IMO, it’s also not for people who do not already have at least strong basic cooking skills and a decently equipped kitchen.

 

[mefordis]

I really like it. We use it a lot. I only order 2 meals for our family of 4 because my husband eats other things, so does my other daughter, so it's just me and my youngest eating it. We don't have it every day.

 

[tcufrog]

We started Hello Fresh during the start of the pandemic when I wanted to avoid grocery stores and I had trouble getting ahold of a reliable source of fresh vegetables. I ended up continuing because my family likes it so much. I was able to get DS10, who is picky, to try things he normally wouldn't eat. For example, last night I cooked a recipe that included carrots and he ate all of them willingly. That's something I haven't been able to do before. It's not as cheap as what I usually cook but it is cheaper than eating out, now that my kids have outgrown kids' meals.

 

[Wendy1985]

In that case, I would look up some vegetarian and vegan recipe sites. They tend to be very inspiring for using fresh ingredients, and you can alter them to add meat/fish that you like...

love the suggestion thank you

 

[Jennpickle]

Every Plate is a lot cheaper and I think the meals are just as good. I recommend!

 

[luv2cheer92]

I absolutely love it!!! I've been using it for about 3 months now. I live alone, so I love getting just enough ingredients that I need and I love not having to think about what I'm making/what I need to buy. I was wasting so much food because I had a hard time making smaller portions of things. The price is not bad at all, and I have found that I am actually saving money. I'm a pretty picky eater, so there have been only 2 weeks so far where I skipped it because there was only one meal that sounded appealing, but that's a me problem. The ingredients are always fresh and everything has been so delicious. It has gotten me to eat things I never thought I would. It has also taught me so many new ways to cook.

 

[Karin1984]

My biggest pro is to get fresh herbs in a small package.

 

[unrequited23]

We tend to order 3 boxes every year of so when I get in a meal planning rut and feel uninspired. Since I'm trying to pick out meals that my kids would like and also get a good value for my money (skipping vegetarian options), it seemed like I was always choosing a meal that was an oven-roasted vegetable, sauteed protein with a pan sauce and a carb cooked on the stovetop (pasta, rice, couscous). Our kids are 9 & 7 and I found 2 meals per recipe with 1 additional serving of protein from my own freezer to be the perfect amount of food for us.

You will need a handheld zester/grater.

 

[firefly_ris]

We liked it. I saved all the recipe cards and do them on my own.

We also did it for "free" using the $300 member benefits credit through our health insurance and canceled it after we used that up. Our health insurance renewed last month so I'll probably do it again. They also constantly send me promo emails for 16 free meals so I can stretch it combining those.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

I will start box two tonight. Box one was... a mess. I opted for 5 nights and 4 servings. Two of four of the chicken packs were leaking. Two of four of the pork packs were leaking. Their opinion of what is a good enough size of garlic and ginger is laughable to me. I contacted Hello Fresh about the proteins and they apologized profusely and gave me a credit - so I'm going to see how box two is tonight. If box two ends up being problematic as well I will try box three, but if box three has issues I am DONE.

As for ease - I find this concept really easy. I get home from work and cook these meals. Viola! And I like that it takes the guess work out of the age old question of "what's for dinner?". This is what we're having and if you don't like it, find something in the fridge. Also there's enough left over for my lunches as well - which is why I went for the box for four. Also, it keeps us from eating out.

I like what @unrequited23 said about above finding 1 additional serving of protein in their own freezer. I could probably go down to meals for two by finding proteins in my freezer.