Hello Fresh Review: Convenient and Healthy Family Cooking

I will begin by saying that this is NOT a sponsored post, I am just writing it because I want to give my busy friends an honest review of this program. I received a free, one week trial through a friend.  I was feeling that we needed to diversify our meals a little bit and so when the offer came along, I was happy to check it out.  So glad I did.

The three meals arrived on my doorstep on a Tuesday, you can select your drop-off day, and I kind of felt like it was Christmas and my present was waiting to be opened.  The packaging was sooooooo nice you guys.  The box is heavy duty and completely insulated so the cold outdoors can't damage  the food.  Each meal was packaged in a large brown bag, with all the ingredients individually packaged inside.  All the produce was in mint condition!  The meat for each meal was placed at the bottom of the box on top of cold packs.  The recipe cards are beautiful and so easy to follow, so whoever gets home first can start the cooking.

We tried a 3-day family plan that was $129. Since we've had another box and they were equally as good.  Here is a quick review of the meals in our first box. 

Pork Schnitzel Fingers with Lemony Coleslaw and Sugar Snap PeasKids loved it!  They were huge fans of roasting the snap peas in the oven.  This is a keeper for sure.

Pesto Chicken with Roasted Zucchini and Red Pepper Panzanella SaladThis was really good, especially loved by the adults.  I added our own rice to this meal to make it go a little further, which resulted in us having enough for next nights supper.

Teriyaki Beef with Bok Choy, Carrots and Black Sesame RiceHands down our favorite meal!  How come I've never cooked with bok choy?!?  This has been on repeat since getting this meal.  I will say one flaw that we have found in Hello Fresh is that their beef is so-so.  The beef is a bit chewy to be honest but the recipe was amazing so since we've made it with our own beef.   This recipe  really pushed our pallets with the bok choy, ginger root, oyster sauce, etc.

How It Works:1.  You sign up for one of their meal plans (Pronto, Family or Veggie).
2.  You choose how many people and how many meals.
3.  You only order for the weeks that you want to receive the meals for.
(Remember to skip weeks so you don't get charged.  I skip several weeks at once if I know I won't be needing the service and then reevaluate each month based on our family calendar)
4.  Arrives on your doorstep and you are ready to have a meal in less then 30 minutes on your table.

Pros:- Quick and healthy
- Puts fun back into cooking
- Love the diversity of meals and ingredients
- Leftovers: either for 2 lunches or for all of us to eat another dinner (2 adults and 2 girls)
- Fresh for a week, so I don't have to cook every day
- Use the recipe cards over and over
- Super easy, any adult or teen could follow it

Cons:- Price point (totally reasonable for the service and the quality of ingredients, but yes I can cook for cheaper); $129 for a family of 4, for three full meals; other meal options are less
- Beef is so-so but people say that the veggie option is always a great alternative
- I haven't seen a seafood dish yet

If you want to try it out please use Hello Fresh $40 OFF  and receive $40 off of your first box and I will get $25, win-win.  Thanks!