Hello Fresh is a weekly meal delivery subscription that sends healthy recipes and the pre-measured ingredients you need to make them at home.
Hello Fresh lets you choose from a Classic Plan (choose from 8 weekly meat and fish recipes), a Veggie Plan (get 3 weekly vegetarian recipes), or a Family Plan (meat, fish, and veggie recipes perfect for two adults and two children). I like to eat a vegetarian diet, so I selected the Veggie Plan. Hello Fresh only offers 3 vegetarian dishes per week—where Classic Plan members can hop into their account and swap the recipes selected for them with other dishes on the menu, I've got to take what I get. I'm not a picky eater, so being subject to the luck of the draw has worked out okay for me so far. But I do wish there was just a little bit of wiggle room in the Veggie menu!
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This review is of the Hello Fresh Veggie Plan, $9.99 a meal, box.
The Subscription Box: Hello Fresh
The Cost: The Classic Food Box (for omnivores) starts at $9.99 per person per meal. The Veggie Box (for herbivores) starts at $9.99 per person per meal. The Family Box (for families) costs $8.74 per person per meal. Hello Fresh announced they will soon offer two plans: Unlimited Meal Choice ($11.50 a meal) or Basic Plan ($9.99 per meal). Learn more here!
ACTIVE DEAL: Limited Time Only! Free High Protein Item for Life + Up to 10 Free Meals One per box with active subscription. Free meals applied as discount on first box, new subscribers only, varies by plan. No coupon needed - just use this link.
The Products: Healthy recipes and pre-portioned fresh ingredients.
Ships to: The contiguous U.S.
Check out all our Hello Fresh reviews and the Food Subscription Box Directory for more meal boxes!
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I've been using meal kit delivery subscription boxes to help me feel more confident in the kitchen. I love food and trying new things, but I'm an amateur when it comes to making delicious foods for myself. I've been especially happy with Hello Fresh—their veggie recipes have been super easy to follow and most importantly, taste consistently awesome. They seem to do a good job of balancing their dishes, too, so that you're not overwhelmed by carbohydrates or left feeling hungry. Typical meals run between 500-800 calories per serving (the full nutrition facts are on a label on the outside of the box), and I like knowing that those calories are being spent on wholesome products like veggies and lean proteins.
This box is topped off with a little envelope of informational cards.
There are coupons to share...
This coupon, I will be keeping for myself, haha!
There's a little card about GreenBlender, a service that sends you fresh smoothie ingredients.
And there's information about a small change in the Hello Fresh box.
Until now, Hello Fresh has packaged the ingredients for each recipe in little boxes. Now, after lots of trial and error, they've shifted over to bags! That means less waste, a smaller overall box, and more convenience. Awesome!
Creamy Mushroom Ragu
Calories per Serving: 550
Total Time, According to Hello Fresh: 40 minutes
Actual Time It Took: 40 minutes
Last month, I got a mushroom-centric ravioli recipe that I loved to pieces, so I was really happy to get another similar recipe in this box, too! I would not call myself a mushroom person, but something about these recipes has really helped me see the light.
This dish centers around rounds of polenta, which is a carb that I absolutely adore but always forget about. Polenta is basically cornmeal mush gathered into a little easy-to-slice log. That wasn't the most appetizing description, but think of it this way—it's basically like light, slightly grainy pasta you can slice. The polenta is technically safe to eat right out of the package, but like pasta, you'll want to cook it up. Once the polenta is golden and warm, the recipe has you use the same pan you cooked them in to whip up your mushrooms, and then to create a delicious, thick, and creamy gravy. I love that everything (except for the salad, which comes together in a medium-sized bowl) takes place in one pan, so clean-up is a breeze.
I loved the savory, earthy flavors of this dish! And unlike the last mushroom recipe that didn't come with any green accompaniment, this dish came with a refreshing arugula salad dashed with tender pine nuts.
The next time I make this dish, I'll probably make a few more polenta rounds to serve with the gravy. The box comes with a whole log of polenta, but the recipe has you use just half of it. I'm eating this food myself (this dish, in particular, makes some really bang-up leftovers, by the way), but if I was splitting this with someone else, I'd say it'd be smart to have a little bit more food on the plate. The amount of ragu would definitely accommodate a couple more discs of tasty polenta! I really enjoyed how tender and rich this meal was, without feeling overly heavy (I find polenta to sit slightly lighter in my tummy than pasta). It totally satisfied my cravings for comfort foods while still feeling light, balanced, and perfect for summer!
Nectarine and Zucchini Panzanella
Calories per Serving: 530
Total Time, According to Hello Fresh: 40 minutes
Actual Time It Took: 40 minutes
I love a summer salad, and this one struck me as really unique. Rather than just lettuce and chopped up garden greens, this recipe is built around ribbons of zucchini, arugula, thin slices of nectarine, and chunks of lightly toasted multigrain bread.
I've been historically slow at the prep end of cooking (the peeling, chopping, and dicing), so I was a bit nervous that this salad would take longer than I expected. Not so! I don't know if that's a sign of me getting faster with my knife or the fact that the bulk of the prep is literally the bulk of the cooking, too. Everything is chopped, sliced, or peeled into ribbons, then tossed together with the easiest little vinaigrette.
Doesn't this salad look pretty? I love the golden color of the nectarine and the abundance of green colors. The salad has such a light, refreshing flavor—the zucchini is tender, yet fresh and lively, the nutty bread and chunks of mozzarella add satiating, rich moments between the bites of garden goodness, and the way the sweetness of the nectarine plays with the acidity of the shallot-infused white wine vinaigrette is just so delicious. I'm going to have to try this easy, impressive salad for a summer potluck!
Feisty Frijole Tostadas
Calories per Serving: 820
Total Time, According to Hello Fresh: 45 minutes
Actual Time It Took: 40 minutes
This recipe was the first that actually took me less time to prepare than the recipe card estimated. Not a lot less time, but still! It's a big accomplishment for a kitchen newbie like me.
I was excited to try cooking plantains for the first time in this recipe. Plantains look a lot like bananas, but the finished product tastes like a very mild yam. Here, they're quickly browned on the stove, then drizzled with honey for a touch of sweetness. The recipe also calls you to cook beans, onions, and cumin, then mash them together into a thick, dark, paste. Meanwhile, you lightly toast up your tortillas in the oven. (Careful not to leave them in too long, or they'll puff up like a balloon like my first one did, haha!) All of these processes happen kind of simultaneously, but my getting through them all so quickly, I think, is a sign that they're simple and manageable enough to do without feeling rushed around.
These tacos were SO tasty. I loved the textures here—the creamy black bean paste, the tender plantains and avocado, the milky soft cheese, and the crunch of the onions and radish. There's also a fantastic balance of salty, sweet, and tangy flavors. These guys are packed with onion at every turn, so have your mints (or maybe just a particularly minty mojito...) handy! Two tacos are the perfect serving size, too (there are enough supplies for at least four tacos, plus a few extra tortillas). I loved this summertime twist on taco night!
Verdict: I am so smitten with Hello Fresh. This meal subscription box always surprises me with recipes that are fun and unexpected, but not pushing the envelope so much that the flavors are unapproachable. They're the kind of meals I could cuddle up with in front of the TV one day, and then wow dinner party guests with the next. I'm especially happy with how healthful these recipes were—unlike other recipes I've seen, this box didn't rely on starchy pasta or loads of bread and cheese to create flavor. Instead, the majority of the dishes (and their calories) came from nutritious plant sources. So even though the tacos, for instance, were pretty high calorie, I knew most of that was coming from nutrient-dense black beans and plantains, rather than, say, a bed of seasoned rice.
Hello Fresh isn't perfect, of course. The company seems less concerned with things like sourcing (they don't message much about their vendors, neither in the box nor online) nor environmental impact (be that through responsible, local sourcing practices or providing information/services around recycling their packaging) than other boxes. Still, I'm really happy that they switched over from boxing their ingredients to bagging them! Here's to more eco-conscious updates in the future!
These veggie Hello Fresh meals only cost $9.99 per serving (an amount I could see myself paying at a restaurant for similar styles and servings of food). That pricing is on par with Blue Apron ($9.99 per serving) and Home Chef ($9.95 per serving) and less than Plated ($12 per serving). I not only loved eating these meals, but cooking them, too! I'm so grateful to this subscription for helping me along on my journey into the kitchen, and for giving me so many tasty recipes to keep up my sleeve!
Do you subscribe to Hello Fresh? What's been your favorite meal so far?
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