Hello Fresh/Lions Prep

[CeeChynaa]

Posting for traffic!

I order takeaways WAY too often and as I’m on my fitness journey, I’d really like to eat better. I have binge eating disorder so won’t be counting calories as life gets difficult when I start to restrict foods. I would like to eat healthier meals on a day to day basis and I thought maybe starting with something like Hello Fresh may be a good idea.

I looked into Lions Prep and I think I’d like the meals they provide but I want to stop being lazy and actually start cooking. Anyone can chuck a meal in the microwave so maybe it’s better for me to start with Hello Fresh and follow the recipes. For those that use these sorts of services, how have you found it? Is it worth the money or do you think it’s a faff? Interested to hear views, thank you!

Never heard of lions prep but fairly regular user of Hello Fresh and Gousto.

I like trying new recipes, knowing you have all the bits and not having to weigh stuff.

I don't like the plastic waste, the recipes get a bit samey after a while and I get out of rhythm of getting food for other meals and household supplies when the evening meals are sorted.

So it's a mix. Def more expensive but not stupidly more. Might do it again soon actually. I usually cook from scratch anyway but the recipes are straight forward and have only had a couple out of 100s that haven't been tasty.

Id advise selecting your recipes rather than letting them choose for you.

Agree Hello Fresh is tasy and easy to follow, but does get a bit samey (especially the veggie meals) and the packaging waste is awful. We usually do a couple of weeks for a change/to get a few new recipe ideas and then cancel for 6 weeks etc. I'd definitely give it a go OP.

Bugger off and stop trolling every thread

I love HF! Takes all of the brain power out of meal planning. Not sure why people are complaining about the plastic waste? Most of the packaging can be recycled and I have way less food waste. Plus the variety is great.

I thought hello fresh was a waste of money and portions too small

Definitely a good idea. The only reason I stopped hello fresh is that I felt it was aimed at a market used to a ready meal palate i.e. too salty and sweet. It does however fit the bill for someone who is not used to cooking. Not a boast but I'm good at cooking and felt I was better without it.

I've used Hello Fresh/Gousto a fair bit and have made some really nice meals.

The problem is they are expensive. So, I only get them when they have a offer on.

I didn’t rate hello fresh. If you can cook, the recipes are often convoluted and needlessly complicated. Carb heavy and small protein sizes. I’d only recommend if you were a cooking novice.

green chef is a better meal box service for healthy eating imo, and you can filter by diet choices.

lions prep is just a microwave meal service isn’t it? Seems very expensive for 1 hour work on a Sunday, decanting seasoned mince and rice and veg into Tupperware.

I think its a good way to expand your recipes for easy to make dinners.

But the quality isn't great, they buy end of life stuff quite cheaply. And the recipes are samey so it's not something I'd recommend for more than a few weeks.

I bought a slow cooker recipe book (bored of lunch) in the end as I found I'd eat more varied food and it was much healthier.

Can i ask what overwhelms you about cooking simple meals that makes Hello Fresh seem easier?
I'd recommend veggie stews and soups as they are really easy and cheap and dont take long at all. Plus you can have seconds and they can be low calorie :)

Pop a podcast on or some music and you'll be done in no time :)

Hello Fresh is good for someone who wants to cook and the recipes have the calories information, which is really useful. I have never heard of Lions Prep. I really thought the packaging waste was a lot better than the usual shop we did to be honest. We stopped using them though because sometimes the ingredients were missing or wrong, and sometimes the veg and fruit just wasn't as fresh as we would get in a normal supermarket shop.

We tried both Hello Fresh and Gousto but it was when both DCs had a full school lunch and we could then have a spicy adult meal once or twice a week.

I found it was more varied than what I'd cook the rest of the time, no buying a pot of spices that isn't used for 2 years or needing 1/3 of a packet of tofu or a kind of sausage we can't get locally.

I'm not sure we'd do it again though as we are trying to expand DS food horizons but only slowly e.g. one extra ingredient at a time!

Thank you for the responses all, it’s great to hear of other peoples experiences. Last time I checked they currently had a deal on so maybe I’ll give it a try and see how I get on. I’ve also thought about getting a slow cooker as I think that’d make my life a lot easier! Which one do you have @StrictlyComeSnoozing

@ToadOnTheHill I have two disabled children and they both have to eat different meals due to various reasons. I work part time and I have binge eating disorder anyway so I rarely eat meals during the day. The eating disorder probably makes it feel more overwhelming than it would for anyone else. I also thought knowing I’d receive a delivery of fresh food would help reduce the amount of deliveries I’m ordering

I’m also not great at cooking so I’m hoping that having the ingredients in front of me with the recipes makes a difference

We use HF regularly, for two meals a week most weeks. There are a lot of meals to choose from each week but yes they can still get a bit samey. Also, some are really very basic and the ingredients are no way worth what they charge. I find the portions very generous and with meals for three people we (2 adults and a 9yo) have a decent evening meal and I have leftovers for next day’s pack up. You can choose low cal meals or very quick (15 mins) meals as well as all the usuals. I don’t find the plastic waste too bad so long as you have a way to recycle soft plastics.
Overall they are, for us, a great way to have an easy tasty meal a couple of times a week that still feels home made.
(I do think they have shares in sour cream and crème fraiche supplies!)

I used HF for about 18 months. It got me in to the habit of cooking and taught me a lot of cooking skills. Now I just find recipes online I fancy and get the ingredients from the shop and save a bomb!!

I've tried both HF and Gousto and love Gousto.

The app is pretty good and as PP mentioned I like the mental load been reduced with the plan and instructions

This is what I’m hoping for! I want to give it a go so that I can get into the habit of cooking and hopefully my cooking skills will get better. Did you enjoy the meals too?

I find HF really boring and basic now. Prefer Gousto or Mindful Chef. Not tried Lions Prep yet.

Take a look at Mindful Chef too.

I've used Hello Fresh, Gousto & Mindful Chef. Of the 3 MC is by FAR the most healthy & creative - as such my kids hated it. Better for ppl with allergies & intolerances.

HF is OK, the recipes are tasty, a bit samey & too many have extra charges (like £3 extra per person for a dish with halloumi in 🤔)

Gousto I preferred, the format of the recipes is better and the menu slightly more varied with fewer additional costs.

MC is more expensive but for good reason.

HF & gousto roughly the same.

All three are great for getting into a cooking habit, they really are worth it for that alone.

I did enjoy the meals and then I got bored! Before HF my diet was very beige so HF was revolutionary. Then I just got to the point of feeling like I was spending loads every week for the same old stuff which is what made me start cooking for myself. I now live off BBC Good Food recipes and click and collect because it’s convenient like HF was haha.

I just have a bog standard slow cooker, nothing fancy at all. Was about £20 from Aldi.

We've tried Hello Fresh and Gousto - we preferred Gousto, but both are so expensive for what you get, I can get a whole week of grocery shopping, including all the cleaning bits for the house etc, for the amount they charge for 3/4 dinners, so we don't get them regularly. See if one of your friends or family have a referral code for a discount!
The meals themselves were mostly great, the odd one was a bit bland for us. I think they're good for getting you into cooking and you can select quick recipes or healthy recipes. It's handy that they provide the exact amount you need of the more obscure ingredients that you might not have in if you're new to cooking from scratch.
I still make some of their recipes regularly, but they weren't the healthy ones 😂