Our experience with hellofresh.

A couple months ago, we decided to give HelloFresh a try, after my sister and brother-in-law raved about it and gave us a free (three-meal) trial. For the first time in almost six years, I started working full-time (for six weeks), so I needed to figure out a way to make our dinner-planning a little bit easier. Here are the pros and cons of our month-long experience of the HelloFresh meal-delivery service (and yes, we're still using it)...

Crushed Peppercorn Steak

PROS

Convenience: I downloaded the HelloFresh app to my phone, and I'm able to skip weeks, select my weekly meals, etc. It couldn't be easier. We selected the two-person (three meals per week) plan. Now that our almost six-year-old is becoming interested in the dinners we're eating, we might need to think about upgrading to the family meal-plan.

Ease: Our meals are delivered to our doorstep on the first day of the week, and I put the boxes right into our refrigerator. All of the ingredients for each meal come in a box that fits nicely in our refrigerator, and I put the protein (meat or fish) in our freezer or fridge. While I do need to chop all of the veggies, garlic, etc., all of the ingredients are fresh, and come portioned and packaged, which makes dinner-prep very easy. Plus, I do like prepping meals in the kitchen, but I don't like doing ALL the work.

New Go-To Recipes: I'm always looking for new, healthy, easy recipes for family dinners. So when I prep and cook a "winning" HelloFresh meal, I add it to my recipe book, and shop for the ingredients myself without having to use the HelloFresh service (which is more cost-effective). We've added so many new recipes to our meal rotation after starting HelloFresh.

Taste/Portion Size: While we've had one or two "eh" meals, a majority of the meals we've tried from HelloFresh have been really tasty. A couple of our favorites are the Speedy Springtime Pasta, Montery Jack Burger with Red Onion Marmalade and Crispy Zuccini Fries (this one is SO good), Crushed Peppercorn Steak (I loved this, but Papa Saigh wasn't a fan), and Crispy Chicken Milanese. When you look at the ingridents that come inside each box, you might think to yourself, "this isn't going to fill us up". However, Papa Saigh and I have been completely satisfied after finishing our HelloFresh meals (and we are big eaters), even after the almost six-year-old samples what we're eating for dinner.

CONS

Immediacy: Because of the freshness of the ingredients, you need to cook your meals sooner rather than later. We actually freeze the meat/fish that won't be cooked until day three, so it won't go bad. However, if you know you're going to be out of town, eating out, etc., you can always skip a week (or as many weeks as you'd like), so you don't waste food.

Cost: While I don't think the cost of each HelloFresh meal is extraordinary, it is less expensive to grocery shop and meal-plan on your own. However, I often find that when I try to save money by grocery shopping and meal-planning, I usually end up going the easy and unhealthy drive-through route, or order in pizza. This adds up, and often ends up costing more than the cost of our daily HelloFresh meal.

Dishes: HelloFresh needs to come up with a way to send a "dish fairy" along with each delivery. While prepping and cooking our HelloFresh meals is pretty easy-peasy, there are dishes to be done after the meal prep.

Overall, we are happy with our experience with HelloFresh. There's no commitment, so you can skip as many weeks as you'd like (at no cost), and cancel anytime. Here's the best part: You can save money on your HelloFresh weekly deliveries by using our code F476HG. This link/code will get you $40 off your first HelloFresh delivery. Give it a try, and let us know what you think!