Hello Fresh

 OK so here's the deal. I hate cooking. Luckily my husband and kids don't expect much of me. For my entire marriage up until Hello Fresh came along, I was "cooking" a couple of times a year, and it was always either spaghetti, tacos, or chili. The rest of the time, we ate pizza, take out, cereal, sandwiches, tv dinners, or snack food. I was very skeptical about Hello Fresh, but a Facebook friend of mine tried it and was posting the photos of the meals and she was serving the food on paper plates, so I knew she was likeminded to me with respect to cooking and homemaking. My husband and I used some coupon codes and started trying it out and I honestly am not exaggerating when I say that I was impressed with the delicious meals I was able to make. It was still harder than I wanted it to be, but my hatred of cooking turned to a dislike. Something I *could* do and *would do* where before I didn't feel it was possible. My husband enjoyed cooking together, spending that time together. But sometimes I got started before he got home, and sometimes I even finished cooking before he got home. While I still don't "enjoy" it, the meals are GOOD. And they aren't skimpy-- we get 3 meals a week for 2 people, and they are filling. Cooking healthy meals 3 nights a week actually improved my cholesterol because I'm eating vegetables I never ate before. It's kind of expensive, but as a cheapskate, the convenience has led me to try and eat things I never would have splurged on myself. For example, some of the tasty pasta dishes have zucchini in them. If I was making food from a recipe, I'd totally be like, "meh, I'm not spending money on a zucchini." Since it comes with the meal, I use it, and I like it.

It's funny.... once, my in-laws wanted to come cook for us. I told them, "We do NOT cook. We literally don't have anything to cook with." They came over and started cooking, and they brought their own salt and pepper, their own wooden spoon... they brought EVERYTHING and it was perfect. With Hello Fresh you do have to have a couple of staples on hand, but they are simple: olive oil, salt, pepper, butter, sugar. I think they give you literally everything else. I have bought a couple little things like a cutting board, and a knife, and some silicone cooking utensils. But in terms of ingredients, they give you just what you need. Oftentimes it's already pre-measured. Need 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar? They give it to you. 3 carrots? You got it. IT'S SO EASY that even I can do it. I've gotta say: it's helped my confidence. And my kids see me AND their dad cooking. Great for gender role modeling (it's not just Mom in the kitchen), and sometimes the kids even help. Sometimes. 

The food... I give the food a 8/10. I have loved a lot of the meals, especially the pasta ones. If you forget to pick out your meals for the coming week, they choose some for you. Some have been awesome, but others are too 'fancy' for me.

The price... you pay a premium for the convenience. I would rather spend money going out to eat, because I love going out to eat. But my husband is clever and has said he'll pay for the Hello Fresh meals. Since we are weird about how we distribute finances, this works to my advantage. I'm much more willing to cook if it will save me $20. :) If I were single, I don't think I could afford to do it, so I will give the price a 5/10.

The experience... I definitely love that I have a little confidence now. I highly recommend TRYING this service if you're not really into cooking. Even if you just do it for a few weeks while the coupons are heavily discounting it. Although I still don't "like" cooking, I now know that I *can* cook. And knowing is half the battle. ;) I give the instructions and menu options a 10/10.

I'm curious what HF's competitors are like. I've heard of similar services like Blue Apron, I think? I wonder how they compare. If you've tried another service, I'd love to hear what you think of it.