After trying another meal delivery service and having some billing issues, I thought I would finally give HelloFresh a try. We just finished our first box and I have to say, it was a great experience! I’ll walk you through our first box and our thoughts on each dish.
My first impression of HelloFresh was that I love how they package their meals each week! We had used Blue Apron previously and they would just throw everything into one big box and you had to sort it yourself. For a busy mom of 2, having each meal separately packaged is a nice convenience! The little boxes fold down easily for recycling with your other paper products.
The meat for each dish was kept separate from the boxes and surrounded by ice packs at the bottom of the box. Although my box didn’t sit outside for too long, it was a really hot day here in San Diego but the ice packs were still rock solid in my HelloFresh cooler. The meat was all still very well chilled as I put it into my fridge. I also noticed right away that HelloFresh sends peeled garlic instead of a whole head! Another little convenience that makes meal prep just a tad quicker. The box below was for Bone-In Pork Chops with Shallot-Peppercorn Sauce, Butter-Braised Cabbage and Crispy Potatoes.
The first meal we decided to prepare this week was the Pan-Seared Salmon with Arugula-Mint Pesto, Quinoa Salad and Char-Broiled Sugar Snap Peas. According to the included HelloFresh recipe card, this would be a 40-minute level 2 meal and it was also gluten and dairy free. At only 621 calories per serving, I loved that we were getting a healthy start to our week!
The salmon turned out great! The cooking instructions were easy to follow and everything tasted fresh and flavorful. I actually got full part way through my meal but managed to finish the salmon and green beans. I had to donate a bit of my quinoa salad to my husband, I was stuffed! Although it was a rather basic meal, the pesto added some nice kick (thanks to a lot of garlic!). The quinoa filled us up nicely and there were a lot of greens in the meal which is great.
The next meal we prepared this week was the Smoky Sloppy Joes with Pickled Red Onion, Shredder Carrot Salad and Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette. I haven’t had sloppy joes since the school cafeteria days so I was a little nervous about this one, but I was pleasantly surprised! This was labeled as a 30 minute level 1 meal that was nut free.
I added the entire jalapeño to the sloppy joes as we love spice, and it definitely kicked things up a notch! Although a slightly messy meal, these were a major departure from the sloppy joes I remembered as a kid. The pickled onion was a nice accompaniment and the buns were great. The shredded carrot salad was nice and refreshing, though I wasn’t a huge fan of the honey in the cilantro-lime vinaigrette. It all came together well though and was another filling meal!
Our last meal of the week was the Bone-In Pork Chops with Shallot-Peppercorn Sauce, Butter-Braised Cabbage and Crispy Potatoes. This was labeled as a 45 minute level 3 meal that was gluten and nut free. At 882 calories, it wasn’t the healthiest, but it did taste the best! The Shallot-Peppercorn Sauce was my favorite part of this meal. I love shallots and this creamy sauce went so well with the pork and also with the potatoes. The braised cabbage was so simple and easy to make, but really tasted great! I’ve never made braised cabbage on my own, but I think I might be adding it to my repertoire!
Are you thinking about trying HelloFresh for yourself? If so, I have a $40 off coupon code for you! That means you will only spend $29 to get 3 meals for two like those pictured in this post, that’s less than $5 per meal! Just use code 2NMAZ4 at HelloFresh.com and you’ll be on your way to a week full of great meals! Once you sign up, you’ll get your own coupon code to share with friends and you’ll earn $20 in HelloFresh credit every time your code is used. Another huge plus over other meal delivery companies that don’t offer referral programs! What meal delivery services have you tried thus far and what did you think?
