Friends, I’m about to share what is probably one of my most enthusiastic blog product/service reviews ever. Meet HelloFresh.
HelloFresh is a gourmet food delivery service, and when I first got the email with the review request, I didn’t think much of it and almost said no just because it would be one more thing to add to my to-do list. But the more I read about it, the more it sounded cool. Unlike other food delivery services that just send frozen dinners or whatever, HelloFresh actually sends you a photo step-by-step recipe card along with exactly the fresh ingredients needed to create it.
And when I say exact, I mean exact. Recipe calls for 8 cherry tomatoes? You get 8 cherry tomatoes.
I checked out the recipes online before accepting and was pleased to find they were awesome — fresh, healthy, and inventive. Simple to prepare, too. And the recipe cards are pretty. 🙂
The way HelloFresh works is that you order 3 meals worth at a time, and they send you 3 recipe cards and 3 little bags of fresh ingredients all organized and separated by recipe, ready to be used. Their subscription options are currently to either receive a box of 3 meals once per week or once every other week, but you can pause your subscription anytime you want, as often you want, for as long as you want. So you don’t really have to commit to getting the boxes every week or every other week. You also have the option to choose a box with meals that serve 2 people, 4 people, or 6 people.
We’ve tried 5 recipes from HelloFresh so far and actually loved every single one of them. I feel like we’ve been in a total recipe rut lately because we usually end up just buying the same types of things at the grocery store, so then when we go to make dinner we end up only having so much to work with. I loved having some new recipes at my fingertips and it’s amazing that they send you exactly the ingredients needed for everything. So easy!
The first meal Matt and I tried from them was a Thai Red Curry with chicken, roasted cashews, and sweet potato. I loved the addition of the sweet potato — what a good idea.
Matt took the opportunity to get creative with the rice presentation. 😉
And here’s the final product! It was super easy to make and REALLY good. The only thing I wish was that it had come with brown rice instead of basmati, but it’s all good.
A couple days later we made the Chicken & Quinoa salad, which was also great:
And a Seared Salmon with Roasted New Potatoes, Olives, Tomatoes and Sautéed Spinach. Yum!
Last weekend, we made their Rosemary and Thyme Pork Chops with Roasted Fennel and Baby Carrots. We loved this part of the recipe card. 🙂
This recipe, like the others, was creative and easy to make. HelloFresh would be awesome for someone who wants to start cooking more but isn’t really sure where to start or what recipes to use. They really lay it all out for you and their step-by-step instructions are really easy to follow.
Delish! We spread the roasted garlic on the pork chops and it was amazing. They were really flavorful and juicy.
Wednesday night after Crossfit we made our final HelloFresh creation — a Chili Chicken with Herb Rice.
It was spicy but really yummy and flavorful! We added some sautéed spinach on the side for good measure (and because the spinach needed to be used up ASAP).
Each of the recipes say that they serve 2, but we ended up getting about 3 portions out of each of the recipes. Perfect because I love lunch leftovers!
So, the answers to some questions that I thought you all might have:
- They don’t have a vegetarian box yet (or an organic option) but are considering it for the future. However, the ingredients don’t touch each other so if you’re vegetarian and your significant other/roommate/family member isn’t, you could always just give the meat to them and make yourself another protein to go with the recipe.
- The recipes are a surprise to the customer each week, so you can’t really request something or request not to get something. That said, if you don’t like one of the ingredients, they are packed separately so you can just leave it out.
- They currently have 150 recipes and are creating more every day, so you won’t get the same meals over and over again.
Anyway — in case you couldn’t tell, Matt and I gave HelloFresh two BIG thumbs up. I said in my “How to Work with Brands as a Blogger” post that I’d share whether or not I’d spend my own money on a product I’m reviewing, and the answer to the question in this case is a big yes. Matt and I are already thinking about signing up — for a 2 person sized box, 3 meals worth costs $69 (including shipping). Since we got 3 servings out of each of the 3 meals, that’s 9 servings total, which means each serving only cost $7. Um, that’s way less than we spend at Whole Foods (or at a restaurant).
Thanks again to HelloFresh for feeding us in exchange for this review! Check out their website if you’re interested in learning more about it all — and if you decide to buy a box, enter the code “hello30” at checkout to get 30% off. 🙂
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In other news, after work today I’m leaving to drive down to Chapel Hill for the weekend! I’m heading down for fun to visit some of my grad school girlfriends. I can’t wait to see them and hit up some of my favorite foodie and running spots (and of course my beloved Franklin Street Yoga)! Catch you guys on Monday with our adventures. 🙂 Have a great weekend!
p.s. I used a random number generator to select the 4 winners for my Granola Basics giveaway — I sent their emails over to Nuts About Granola so if you’re one of the winners, you’ll hear from them soon! Thanks to all who entered!
