Hello fresh - why?

[Montymorency]

Just wanting to understand why people go to the expense of these food boxes when they could just choose a recipe and buy the ingredients themselves

Tbf it’s pretty easy to wing it when only cooking for 2, when you don’t have any significant time or cash pressures, you have a capacious freezer and you aren’t a teenager who by 7pm every evening has only had “nothin’” or “toast” and therefore needs 97.8% of their nutrition to come from this solitary meal, to be eaten 45 seconds before swimming practice. Dozens of people don’t live like that though.

Yes, the salt comes from adding the stock pots, the sauce sachets etc etc that come in the Hello Fresh box with the rest of the meal ingredients. Definitely doesn't need any extra added salt!!

We did choose the recipes. They really aren't that varied 😂 we did it for about 12 weeks and the same recipes repeat every 3 weeks.

We much preferred The Spicery for variety of dishes, but you still have to buy the main ingredients so it isn't as convenient. Hello Fresh is pricey for what it is, much better value to buy yourself.

The other thing with Hello Fresh I forgot to say is the packaging and the insulation in the box. There is just so much by the very nature of what it is. So it's not an eco choice either for anyone trying to cut down there.

@Blondiie I didn't cook any differently when my daughter was a young child or teenager and didn't crumple under the mental load of coping with her eating requirements as well as ours 😆. I was working full time, have never earnt Mumsnet type salaries and was always short of money and in debt, and I've never had a capacious freezer - it's probably smaller than average and it's almost always difficult to squeeze in extra food thst I can't use in time.

But as for me I love meal planning- I collect recipes to try, sitting at the kitchen table with a mug of tea making a plan of what I need on a Thursday evening - ready for my Friday shop were I go to the market and spend ages chatting with local farmers and producers. I love the look of a full fridge bursting with exciting ingredients 😀I probably need to get out more!

@Poppins21, I do too. I've been away for a few days, Ocado delivery early this morning, fridge nice and full, a few meals planned for the next few days, feeling very happy about having to do all this cooking! I've been staying with my Mum who won't let me cook much (in spite of being nearly 92 ) and hovers over me when I do cook, so it's good to be back in my own kitchen and regaining control.

I don’t see why it matters if people use them because they’re ‘lazy’. I use a washing machine instead of rocks because I’m too lazy to take my washing to the nearest river. Meh.

😂Shockingly lazy Bunny. Don't you know rivers are far better for your clothes and it's lovely to identify which are the best rocks to bang them against.

Yes and transport costs. Wasn't that long ago we were all running about refulling plastic containers instead of buying new.

😁