Food with flavour that comes from good quality ingredients, meals that are easily prepared, well balanced, well priced and minimal fuss, that's what I like for a mid-week dinner at home. And it has to be better than takeaway!
As a food writer and travel writer I eat out a lot, so when I'm home simplicity is the key unless I'm whipping up something special for dinner guests.
I've used many different types of home delivery services and they all have their strengths and weaknesses. The Hello Fresh concept ticks many of my boxes and doesn't make too much of a dent in the budget. I do appreciate not having to frequent the shops as much as well.
What do I like about Hello Fresh?
- I don't have to shop as much
- There's no thinking apart from which meal to cook
- The directions are clear and simple
- The meals work - the flavours are well defined and balanced with vegetables
- Produce was good quality
- Servings were generous
- It only took about 30 minutes to cook and there was not much cleaning up
- Meal cost was around $9.30 which is cheaper than any takeaway around and I didn't have to drive.
- The food is better quality than most takeaways and I know what seasonings were used.
- I like that Hello Fresh use local produce from Australian farmers rather than imported ingredients (where possible)
- Typical meals contain around 500 - 750 calories
What don't I like
- I don't get to choose the recipes (but I also kinda like that because I don't have to think about it)
- If my plans change and I don't need to cook at home, I'm left with a meal that can go out of date. (I solved this by freezing some of the meat and the vegetables just lasted)
- It was a bit of guesstimate adjusting the seasonings but I pretty well got it right.
This is what came in the box. It made five meals with generous servings. The lamb and the fish tagine were my favourites but I enjoyed all the dishes. I'd like to think I'll recreate some of these recipes but it's probably much easier just to buy the box.
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| Peachy pork tacos |
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| Dukkah and lemon crusted lamb |
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| Thor's thunder chicken (without the thunder - chilli in my house) |
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| Chermoula Fish Tagine with fluffy couscous |
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| Char Siu beef and broccoli |
Would I order it again? Yes - I'm already thinking about that and my order will be coming soon. You can choose a day or night delivery and I'd choose night during hot weather even though there's a cold pack to keep things cool.
The instructions are so clear budding chefs (your children) and reluctant cooks (your partner) could whip up a meal and share the load.
Hello Fresh delivers to
- NSW: Sydney, Central Coast, Newcastle, Southern Highlands, Wollongong
- QLD: Brisbane, Gold Coast
- VIC: Melbourne, Geelong
- ACT: Canberra
Best tip: Don't forget to adjust the seasonings (chilli, garlic, spice) to suit
Bottom line: 5 meals for 2 people costs $109 delivered to your door.
Kerry Heaney
Disclaimer: Ed+bK was gifted a Hello Fresh box.