To think meal prep box costs are hard to justify

[Dimsexy]

I finally decided to try one of those meal prep boxes. Always resisted due to cost but wanted to at least give them a try.

It was easy my to prepare, tasted nice etc but doing the sums just don't see how cost can be justified long term.

If I bought the ingredients in the supermarket individually it would be at least 50% less.

I know the whole point is paying for the convenience and not having to spend time shopping and meal prepping but the premium just seems sky high! We could afford it now if we wanted to but when I compare costs of 4-5 boxed meals for two vs what we'd get for same money in supermarket it seems insane!

I feel like I must be missing something as I know these boxes are really popular and I'm constantly bombarded by marketing messages for them - is it all just hype??

As a single person they are great, I don't have a freezer so can't batch cook and if I try shopping I end up with loads of waste or over eating because you can't buy many things in one person portions eg meat etc.

And in terms of cost I save a fortune by rarely going to the supermarket because I'm not buying things I don't need. I have a milkman who also delivers butter, cheese, bread, eggs etc. A bit more expensive but overall my food bill has dropped because of the not 'popping to the shops for one or two things'

Well now this is a great idea! Off to Center Parcs later in the year and will absolutely be doing this!!

I’ve used them a fair amount because I’m a rubbish cook and gets me out of a Spag Bol/fajita/curry rut. I don’t think they’re that overpriced for the convenience of it, especially if it means I don’t have to go to the shop where I’ll inevitably end up spending a small fortune on snacks etc, so ironically the weeks I use Gousto my overall shopping bill comes down.

I use them to reduce the mental load of planning and shopping, and in place of takeaways, which we were having too often for that reason.
I don’t think they are hugely expensive because you only buy what you need whereas a lot of the ingredients you might need to buy a big bottle of a certain type of seasoning and only use a teaspoon of it.

Never used them, everything is made from basic ingredients here. We rarely eat ultra processed food due to allergies. I do sometimes get to try out recipes my friends send me from box companies though which are nice. But for me it’s comparable to buying a new recipe book.

Basically if it stops you saying "oh sod it, we'll get a takeaway" once a week then it's worth it.

I've been using Hello Fresh for a few months because at 60 I am sick of meal planning and we can afford it. I am paying for the convenience.

Having said that, the mushroom and bacon pasta we had the other night definitely didn't justify the cost!

OP the target market will be comparing the cost to takeaways, not supermarket trips.
During certain busy periods at work I just don't have the energy to meal plan, and get bored of my staples!
SimplyCook however looks like a much better idea. As PP have pointed out the problem with trying new recipes is needing to buy a load of ingredients only to use a small amount... When I want new flavours this puts me off.

They are more costly but:
Always use a discount code or get a freebie
It gives us more variety of meals that we would never think of trying ourselves
It saves on wastage. The portions are exact.

@CharlotteStreetW1 oh no we are having this for dinner tonight 😂 me and DH were looking forward to it!

On the portion sizes - this is one of the things I like about it. I often look at it and think "is that really enough cheese?!" But actually it is. And it's re-educated me a bit on what a healthy portion size is.

I got a discount code for hello fresh.....it was okay but not big enough portions. My teenage son could have easily eaten the whole lot by himself. Bigger portions cost more so I didn't bother any more. I'll just keep the freezer stocked up instead lol

No. If I'm that busy and want to spend that kind of money on easy meals, I order from Cook, so I don't actually have to do anything except turn the oven on!

I have to post to recommend Sorted Sidekick. It's kind of like a meal prep box, but they give you an online shopping list to use instead of sending the ingredients. They focus on no food waste and the instructions are clear and foolproof. No, I don't work for them or get a cut (sadly!) but both my adult children use the app, and I'm really impressed.

www.sortedfood.com/sidekick

Regarding portion sizes, I think they’re adequate but they need more vegetables, usually says contains 1 of your 5 a day. I’d add more vegetables if I was buying ingredients and making myself. Eg yesterday we had chicken breasts, mashed potato and carrots, I may not have thought to have made the pepper sauce but I’d definitely have had 2 or 3 vegetables.

I guess it depends on what you choose.

The ones I pick usually say 3 of your 5 a day. But I would usually choose more complex recipes like curries or something - because the simpler stuff is easier to do myself

I don’t choose in general, it’s choosing what to make that drives me mad, I usually have what they choose.

We go through periods of using hellofresh. We've got three children and reasonably 'big' jobs and frankly, the idea of staring into the fridge every evening and trying to work out what to make which suits everyone makes me want to cry. So we don't, and we get something delivered instead.

Hello fresh looks expensive but it's a lot cheaper than takeaways three nights a week. It works for us, until it doesn't (all gets a bit samey after a while) and then we try to meal plan. Which will also work for a while and then it'll all fall apart and we switch back to it. It's a cycle.

I do Gusto one a month, mainly for inspiration and because the veggie meals are fab.

If anybody wants 60%off my code is

Here’s my link to try Gousto! Use it to get 65% off your first box, PLUS 20% off all other boxes in your first two months. https://gousto.co.uk/raf?promocode=JADE44261122&utmm_source=iosapp

If you start on some of the boxes could you eventually have enough new meals to them come off the boxes and buy the ingredients and make the meals yourself?

How do you work out you’ll be in when the box is delivered? I don’t work from home so not reliably home till about 7 most nights.

They just leave in the front garden or on the doorstep. I can see it would not work if you have a door that opens directly in to the street but we’ve never had an issue with theft and live in zone 3 London.

they also deliver at weekends and you get a 2 hour slot.

The boxes come with ice packs @JaneFinn so they can be left outside for a few hours.

I first got Gousto a few years ago as we had got into a complete food rut. I love cooking but work meant I rarely had the time or energy to meal plan. They reignited my love of cooking and food.

I don’t work now so don’t use them as often but still get them in the school holidays. I find that I struggle to manage food waste when we are not using them. Everything comes in such large quantities and I just can’t use it up in time.

I like this idea as a single person I don't want to buy a big bottle or herbs or paste that has to be used by x date and I won't because I'm unlikely to make the same meal that often. I will check this out as it sounds more like what I wsnt just send the spices etc and I'll buy the actual meat and veg

What I like about Simply Cook too is that it gives you a list of other things you can chuck in to bulk it up.

We make the vegetable makhani and we added more veg and it lasted for 8 portions. Bargain!!!

Interesting, thanks. Parcels would get stolen if left outside our house but a two hour weekend slot would work.

Thanks for the tip @Greendoorsaremyfavourite . We have had simply cook for a few months now we get it fortnightly so use 2 a week it takes alot of the headspace out of meal planning and they are so tasty! Thanks for the tip of trying to cancel I did that and I'm getting my next 4 boxes at 40% off so 👍👍👍