You would think with the last name “Cook”, I would enjoy cooking to some degree. But alas, the joy of cooking is not one of the gifts I was given. Yes, I know how to cook. In grade school, I earned a cooking and baking badge when I was in Girl Scouts. I have a few favorite recipes I like to make on occasion, but that’s where it ends. Thankfully, my husband enjoys cooking and either whips up whatever I fancy or helps me in the kitchen to make dishes. And even though I enjoy watching shows like Master Chef and Master Chef Junior, I am quite content to only watch those talented home cooks battle it out for the esteemed Master Chef apron.
Even though I don’t particularly like to cook, I like the idea of freshly prepared, home-cooked meals. The latest trend is preparing culinary delights in the comfort of your own home kitchen via a home-delivery meal-kit program. You may have also noticed that there are several companies out there who will (for a price) deliver meals in a box – complete with the basic ingredients and recipe cards – so you can try your hand at making chef-inspired cuisine.
The list of companies who provide home-delivery meals in a box is quite lengthy and growing. A few examples include Hello Fresh, Plated, Blue Apron, Home Chef, and Sun Basket. Some others include organic choices, like Green Chef, or vegan choices, like Purple Carrot. Amazon is entering the meal-kit delivery service space with Amazon Fresh (a partnership with Tyson) and Martha Stewart recently announced she is also entering the trend with Marley Spoon. You may have seen sponsored posts on your Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram feeds from these companies – who are hoping you will give them a chance. While the price-point for some of these meal subscription companies may be too high for many budget-conscious families, this could be a good alternative for some, including young professionals or busy families who would otherwise be getting take-out on a regular basis.
Like I said before, the concept of freshly prepared, home-cooked meals on a regular basis is intriguing. However, in my home there are just two of us, and my husband and I tend to have different tastes in food. Therefore, when I want to try a new recipe – usually something I found on Pinterest – I’m grappling with how to reduce the portion size so I don’t end up with leftovers for days.
Recently I received as a gift an introductory box of meals from HelloFresh, one of the many home-delivery meal-kit companies. First I visited the HelloFresh website and set up an account. Then I looked at the meal offerings and selected a week for delivery. Overall the website seemed user-friendly, although I wasn’t entirely sure which three recipes I would be receiving based on the preferences I set up in my profile. In your account, you can also select which day of the week you would like your box of meals delivered. HelloFresh works with Chef Jamie Oliver to develop some of its recipes and the recipe cards are available online for download.
As scheduled, the meal-kit of food arrived mid-morning in a box with ice packs to keep the perishable items fresh. That evening I prepared one of the recipes – Chicken & Spinach Salad. A couple nights later, I prepared the Smoky Beef Tacos and a few days after that the final recipe, Seared Pork Chops. Each of the meals included a full-color recipe card with pictures, an overview, and easy-to-follow instructions. The recipe cards also state which kitchen tools you’ll need and any additional ingredients not included, like olive oil. I attempted to make each of the recipes as close to the stated instructions as possible. Some of the recipes included options for using a grill or BBQ.
The first meal I prepared was Chicken & Spinach Salad with Cheesy Roasted Zucchini and Tomatoes. With the Chicken & Spinach Salad meal, I learned how to make a panko cheese topping for cooked vegetables. The recipe card said it would take about 5 minutes of prep and the meal would be ready in a total of 30 minutes, which turned out to be accurate.
Overall, the chicken and vegetables were delicious and I would probably make this recipe again. The bed of spinach was a nice idea for additional vegetables. However in the future, I would make the spinach on the side as a salad with a vinaigrette dressing and some additional diced tomatoes.
The second meal I prepared was Smoky Beef Tacos with Peppers, Guacamole, and Radish. The new technique I learned with this recipe was cooking the bell peppers and then adding the ground beef to the pan to blend the flavors together. The recipe card said it would take about 10 minutes of prep and the meal would be ready in a total of 25 minutes, which again was a mostly accurate estimate.
This recipe called for adding cumin to the ground beef as it was cooking. I opted to skip this step because I don’t care for cumin. I did follow the rest of the recipe exactly, including the radishes. The beef tacos had a good flavor and the portion size was generous. I was beginning to feel full after two tacos and the portion was three! On the second day I opted to skip the radishes when I took the taco ingredients with me to work for lunch. Instead I brought along some salsa I had in my refrigerator. I did prefer this flavor combination better than the initial version of this meal.
The third meal I prepared was the Seared Pork Chops with Oregano-Mint Pesto, Quinoa, and Roasted Veggie Skewers. With my schedule, this meal was prepared six days after the box of food was prepared. Since all of the ingredients had been stored in the refrigerator, they were still fresh when I was ready to begin cooking. The recipe card said it would take about 10 minutes of prep and the meal would be ready in a total of 30 minutes. This estimate, like the others in the box, was accurate.
For the seared pork chops meal, we opted to cook the vegetable skewers and pork chops on our grill. In general, I’ve prepared all of these meals myself, but my husband helped me with the grilling for this recipe. In addition, this was the first time I’ve prepared quinoa or oregano-mint pesto. This meal was tasty as prepared and was equally delicious the second day when I ate the leftovers for lunch.
So is a meal-kit delivery service worth it? One thing I did like about trying HelloFresh was the convenience of having all of the ingredients delivered to my doorstep. Also, since the necessary ingredients are all measured and portioned out, there are no excess amounts of herbs, spices, or other ingredients when only a small amount is needed. If you are interested in having the ability to try a variety of recipes without having to do your own meal planning or shopping, then a service like HelloFresh may be a good fit for you.
Will I be continuing with HelloFresh? Yes, the meals were delicious and easy to prepare. However, I decided that a service like HelloFresh is not a good fit for me. If I had paid for this box of food, the price per meal is more than I typically spend. I’m glad I was able to try out a meal-delivery kit service, but will most likely go back to the way I have been preparing my dinners.
Have you tried one of the meal-kit delivery services? What did you think? How does it work for you and your family?
Links to HelloFresh Recipe Cards prepared in this post:
chicken-spinach-salad-HelloFresh_June-2016
smoky-beef-tacos-HelloFresh_June-2016
seared-pork-chops-HelloFresh_June-2016
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