Last week we all enjoyed some lovely home cooked meals using only fresh ingredients. This was down to Hello Fresh who sent me a big box of ingredients and 3 recipe cards. You may have seen Hello Fresh advertised on television recently. I have used and reviewed them before but this was a long time ago and they do seem to have undergone a few changes.
If you have never heard of Hello Fresh then I would definitely recommend a browse of their website. It is a subscription service but you choose if you want weekly, fortnightly or monthly meals. You also choose how big a box you want, going off how many people it needs to feed. Then sit back and wait, and a large box will arrive packed full of fresh tasty ingredients.
I was happy to see that Hello Fresh now place the majority of ingredients in individual paper bags per recipe. The meats are in their own secured plastic wrappers and any multi use ingredients (like garlic) are also separate. The idea of the separate coloured bags makes things easier as it means I don’t need to try and sort them myself. Each recipe card also shows exactly what’s needed and exact amounts of water etc.
I did not pick my meals myself. You all know how much I love my surprises, so I left it to the lovely people at Hello Fresh. I have to say I was very happy with my selection. All meaty dishes and a family box for 4 people. When signing up to Hello Fresh; you do pick the recipes you want.
I have actually surprised myself by making the 3 lovely meals totally from scratch and all from the recipe cards, which by the way usually ends in a disaster. But not this time!
Meal #1 – Fruity Lebanese lamb
Who would of guessed that a bag of lamb mince, some veggies, spices & cranberries combined together could make something as lovely and as filling as this? I’m so used to Bolognese or Chilli with mince but this was just so different. A tiny bit of spice thrown in just for that extra kick.
Meal #2 – Sweet & Sour Pork
I love chinese and oriental foods with noodles but as we all know too well, take away food is no good for us and is usually full of grease. Well I’m pleased to say I can now make it myself. This was my favourite dish out of the 3. The flavour was amazing, the noodles just like I’d expect from a Chinese restaurant. The good thing about this dish, is that I don’t have to stick to just pork, I could use chicken or even prawns. I can throw in a few extra vegetables too. As this one is all about the sauce.
Meal #3 – Chicken Pilaf & herby chilli yoghurt. 
This one has a touch of India to it. It is very much like a mild biryani. It involves combining browned chicken with the vegetables and rice in the same pan and simmering until the rice is soft. The spices are very minimal meaning its a good choice for children too. To make it spicier simply add spice you already have.
Those are the 3 dishes I made by myself using only the ingredients from the Hello Fresh box. I had no help from anyone and cooking them involved chopping meat and vegetables. I do like to eat healthy and do try to make my kids healthier foods but coming up with new ideas can be hard and we all get bored of eating the same things. That’s what I love about Hello Fresh. The recipes seem very unique and give ideas for future meals. The products are always delivered fresh with ice packs and are always quality brands and not the usual supermarket rubbish.
We had the family box which gives 3 meals for 4 people. I used all the supplied ingredients each time but found that we still had lots of cooked food leftover once we all had enough. I ended up cooking tea for friends and neighbours too because of how much I was able to make and my kids having smaller appetites.
I will certainly be using Hello Fresh again in the future.
