Weekly Meal Plan Boxes
- Hello Fresh
- Nov 7, 2017
- 3 min read
So we all see ads for meal prep boxes hitting us at every angle on tv, social media, and magazines. However, how good are they really? I've tried a few of these subscription boxes in the past before blogging and I loved many of the recipes I received and was pleasantly surprised with the freshness of the meat and produce with most of the boxes (Blue Apron has had the best quality and most creative dishes so far). So this week I decided to give Hello Fresh a try and see how the recipes and freshness were. The benefits I've seen so far with meal plan boxes are short cooking periods, little use of kitchen equipment, easy clean up, and most of all no grocery shopping.
For this weeks meal we received recipes and ingredients for "Quickest Crispy Chicken", "Teriyaki Salmon", and "Balsamic Fig Chicken."The first recipe I made was the Quickest Crispy Chicken and it sure was quick, probably the fastest chicken dinner I have ever made. This recipe took only 15 minutes to make from start to service. The recipe had great potential; however, I think the plate lacked a balance of nutrition. The plate seemed carbohydrate heavy so I made an additional side of vegetable to create better balance. This meal was simple and tasty and I will take some elements of the dish to incorporate in future cooking when I'm on a time strain.
The second recipe I made from the box was the Teriyaki Salmon. I was most looking forward to trying this recipes since I just absolutely love salmon and the recipe looked delicious too. This recipe was also quick to make, taking only about 30 minutes and very little prep work was needed. I will be keeping this recipe in my books for future meals as the meal had so much potential. Sadly, the salmon I received with the meal plan wasn't as fresh as I would have hoped for. The salmon wasn't bad, but when I normally make salmon at home I shop for the best and freshest salmon I can get my hands on (one of the few items I will always splurge on). So although the salmon wasn't the freshest (expected when being sent in the mail), I will be keeping the recipe and making it again sometime.
The final recipe I made from the Hello Fresh meal plan box was the Balsamic Fig Chicken. This dish took a little bit longer to make than the other recipes but it was the best meal from this weeks box. The instructions were super easy to follow but it sounds like a five star restaurant meal. However, something was still lacking. Maybe my expectations were too high since the recipe was in the Hello Fresh "Hall of Fame", oh well.
I honestly was looking forward to writing an excellent review for this meal plan since I have had great experiences with other meal subscription, but I was unfortunately disappointed with the outcome. For being called Hello Fresh, there seems to be a void when it comes to making fresh sides to the entree. Every side salad with the meal plan was lacking everything except the greens. You can always add more to the salad yourself, but I feel like that defeats the purpose of signing up for a meal plan subscription. At this point I am sad to say I will not be reordering from this subscription, but it is still a Fantastic option for individuals or families with little time to make dinner or go shopping but still enjoy the taste of a home cooked meal, or for individuals just starting to gain culinary skills and confidence.
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