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Dinner Archives - Smarter Home Cooking https://smarterhomecooking.com/attribute/meals-of-the-day/dinner/ Top Meal Kits, Recipes & Tech for a better life Tue, 25 Feb 2025 19:33:55 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.11 https://smarterhomecooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cropped-smarterhomecooking-simple-square-logo-32x32.png Dinner Archives - Smarter Home Cooking https://smarterhomecooking.com/attribute/meals-of-the-day/dinner/ 32 32 Home Bistro Review https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/home-bistro-review/ Thu, 14 May 2020 16:44:37 +0000 https://smarterhomecooking.com/?post_type=product&p=849 Homebistro® is the premier gourmet online meal delivery service that has been delivering meals since 2014. NO Shopping. NO Cooking. NO Cleanup!  (Prices vary. Our listed price is the cost of their most expensive single meal, although they offer many cheaper priced meals. Plus, you can buy meals in bulk, or in packages to reduce your "per meal" cost.)

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Home Bistro Delivers Delicious Restaurant-Quality Gourmet Meals You're Going To Love
  • Flash frozen, chef prepared meals!
  • Sealed in high grade plastic for optimal reheating in boiling water!
  • Delicious, fresh, prepared dinner in minutes!
  • No shopping, no chopping, no cooking, no cleaning!
  • The most convenient way for delicious healthy meals!

HomeBistro Review: Freshly Prepared Home Delivered!

Home Bistro is a unique Meal Kit Delivery Service:  No Subscription Required!

  • No Subscription Required.
  • Buy the dinners you want, when you want them.
  • Buy single dinners as you like, or buy meal combos for variety and savings.
  • Orders are typically shipped within 1 – 3 business days of your order

When you order Home Bistro, you'll be presented with delicious “individual meals” that are chef-prepared and flash frozen, ready for you to heat and enjoy.  These are some of the Home Bistro individual meals available for order.

Home Bistro's Currently Trending Single Meals

Home Bistro's All Time Best Sellers include their top “Combo Meals”.

You can also order their popular “combo meals” which provide you with several meals.  In face, here are some of their all-time favorite products, including their combo meals and a few individual meals:

Home Bistro Review: Best Selling Meals at Home Bistro

Home Bistro offers meals based on Diet Preferences, too.

You can review their menu of available meals, combos and more and simply choose what you like.  If you have any dietary concerns or preferences, then consider their delicious meals that will fit your nutritional needs!

Home Bistro Review – Dietary Restrictions Menus are Delicious!

Home Bistro Meals are Quick

The chefs at Home Bistro do all the work for you:  They shop, prepare the ingredients, cook the meals, flash freeze them and package them for you to receive!

They ensure you get a nutritious and delicious meal that all you need to do is heat the meal when you're ready to eat!

Home Bistro Review: How long does it take to heat and eat a Home Bistro meal?

Home Bistro Has Happy Customers!

Giving the Gift of Home Bistro!

Is there a better gift to give than delicious food that is convenient and simple to heat and enjoy?  I don't think so either!  Send your loved ones or corporate friends a gift that they'll remember!  Send them Home Bistro.  Click here to buy gift cards from Home Bistro.  You can email your gift recipient about their upcoming gift.

Home Bistro Review – Buy Gift Cards!

 

The summary of our review of Home Bistro

Home Bistro isn't going to be a meal kit provider or prepared meal provider you choose because it's the lowest price.  Rather, it's the one you choose because of the high quality and the fact that you can simply order on an ad-hoc basis, whenever you want to order meals or meal packages.  Highly recommended!

8.5Expert Score
One-Time Purchases, or Recurring
Buy the meals you want, when you want them -- no need to subscribe. Fresh, chef-prepared meals ready for you to enjoy. Great for all dietary specialities like Keto, Paleo, Vegan and more!
PROS
  • Great food
  • Super fresh
  • No cooking
CONS
  • Shipping is free for orders over $85, otherwise it's a reasonable rate.
  • No refund policy (since food is frozen and perishable)

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Freshly Review https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/freshly-review/ https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/freshly-review/#comments Tue, 05 May 2020 14:30:31 +0000 https://smarterhomecooking.com/?post_type=product&p=711 Eating healthy, delicious meals that are chef-prepared and ready to eat after a quick 3 minutes in the microwave starts at only $7.99 per meal with Freshly.  They focus on health and flavor, providing over 30 different meal choices and you can choose from 4 to 12 meals per weekly delivery.  Highly recommended!

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Chef Cooked, Healthy Meals - ready to Heat & Eat

Table of Contents

Chef cooked, healthy meals delivered to you — ready to heat and eat!

Freshly Review: Healthy, Chef-Prepared, Fully Cooked Meals Ready to Heat & Eat!

Freshly is a great way to eat healthy, delicious meals without the need to cook, clean or shop for the ingredients!  The Chef's at Freshly do all the work, crafting your meals to perfection and getting them to you fresh and ready to microwave in 3 minutes for a convenient and healthy meal that you'll find so delicious and satisfying that you'll be glad you chose Freshly to help you live your best healthy lifestyle — conveniently and deliciously!
  • No cooking required.  The chef's at Freshly do all the work.  Just pop your healthy & delicious meal into the microwave for 3 minutes!
  • No shopping for ingredients.  No chopping or mixing ingredients. It's all cooked and ready for your microwave!
  • No dirty dishes.  Eat right from the container, or optionally plate onto your own dish for eating!
  • Excellent healthy solution for busy professionals needing meals for one person.
  • Dinners and lunches available — so you can eat healthy at work and at home!
  • Meals as low as $7.99 each, but averaging $8.99 each.
  • Cancel anytime, skip weekly deliveries anytime!
  • Highly recommended!
  • Freshly is an excellent choice for the busy professional and anyone seeking a delicious way to be healthier.

Our Freshly Review

9Expert Score
Chef-Prepared, Healthy & Delicious Meals in 3 Minutes
For as low as $7.99 per meal, and in only 3 minutes, you can have chef-prepared, healthy and delicious dinners and lunches instead of carry out or expensive dining in.
PROS
  • Delicious, fully-cooked, chef-prepared meals ready in 3 minutes
  • Healthy options — most meals average 500 calories. (Excellent if you want to lose weight or eat healthier!)
  • Wide range of meal options (over 30 meals per week)
  • Excellent for a single person
  • Skip or cancel anytime
CONS
  • Small shipping fee per delivery
  • No breakfast or snacks
  • No Vegan or Vegetarian meals
  • No customization within meals (ex: if you order the chicken parmesan, you're getting the chicken parmesean as they make it, with no customizations)
  • Meals are not certified organic/non-GMO. However, they take care to create meals free of processed sugars and artificial ingredients

Freshly Coupons and current Freshly offers:

Occasionally, Freshly offers some good deals to entice new customers to give them a try.  These are the best, current discount deals that Freshly is offering for new customers.  (Be sure to use our affiliate links when making a purchase to support our site, and help us pay for more meal kits!)
Freshly Chef-Prepared Healthy Meal Deliveries – $60 OFF ($15 off for 4 deliveries)
Get $60 off your first 4 deliveries of Freshly! (Discount of $15 per delivery, for 4 deliveries is $60 off)
Get $15 off per delivery, up to 4 deliveries for $60 total discount! Get $60 off your first four orders ($15 per order) of Freshly with code LAUNCH15

Watch our video review of Freshly and unboxing:

Freshly Review: Delivering Chef-Prepared, Healthy and Delicious Meals!

Freshly is incredibly popular!

When it comes to prepared meals that are delivered to your home, that are consistently delicious, always nutritious and quick to heat and eat, you can't go wrong with Freshly.  Not only is the food quality superior, but their prices are exceptionally reasonable! They have an extensive weekly menu and you can either use your default meal selections or change your meal selections between 6 days to 3 weeks in advance. Skip the groceries, the cooking and the cleaning. 
  • No dishes
  • No spoiled leftovers
  • No grocery shopping
  • “This is so much better than meal prepping!”
  • Try carb conscious meals
  • Healthy meals for one

Freshly is a simple way to eat healthy, deliciously.

With Freshly, all you have to do is choose your favorite meals.  They cook 'em and deliver everything in recyclable packaging, ready for you to microwave in under 3 minutes and enjoy a delicious meal.

Freshly Review: How Ordering Freshly Works

Freshly focuses on quality!

Freshly Review: Their Food Philosophy

Choosing Freshly instead of cooking, or meal prep or takeout!

Freshly Review: Why Freshly is better than cooking

Choosing Freshly:  How much does it cost?

Freshly is exceptionally reasonably priced — and for the quality, it's a great bargain. Their pricing is very simple and straight forward.  The more you buy, the less the “per meal price” is.  So, if you want their lowest price of $7.99 per meal, then you'd choose their 12 meal plan.  However, if you only want 4 meals, then your “per meal price” is $11.50.  However, their most popular choices are their 6 or 9 meal plans for $8.99 per meal.

Freshly Review: Each Meal is one serving for one person at one sitting.

Freshly pricing tip:  If you are considering the 4 meal plan, I suggest you bump up to the 6 meal plan.  For only a few dollars more, you get 2 more meals.  

Freshly Review: Freshly Pricing Per Meal is Very Reasonable!

How much does shipping cost with Freshly?

First, I should point out that shipping costs with Freshly are very reasonable.  However, they're not standard for everyone, and whenever they can get reduced shipping rates, they pass along the savings to the customer.  For example, my shipping costs $3.99 for 4 meals, or $6.05 to deliver 6 meals, or $9.08 to deliver 9 meals, or $12.11 to deliver 12 meals..
Freshly Chef-Prepared Healthy Meal Deliveries – $60 OFF ($15 off for 4 deliveries)
Get $60 off your first 4 deliveries of Freshly! (Discount of $15 per delivery, for 4 deliveries is $60 off)
Get $15 off per delivery, up to 4 deliveries for $60 total discount! Get $60 off your first four orders ($15 per order) of Freshly with code LAUNCH15

Freshly Review: What's on the menu this week

How does Freshly accommodate specialty diets?

Although they don't have specific menus for “Paleo” or “Keto” or “Low Carb”, they do have plenty of meals that fall within those categories.  In fact, when asked about their menu options, and how they accommodate specific diets, they say, “We accommodate a variety of dietary preferences, and always offer an entirely gluten– and peanut–free menu. As a customer, you can set your own dietary preferences and easily find the meals that work for you. You can also check out individual ingredient lists for each dish if you have specific concerns, or contact us at support@freshly.com for help making selections. If you’re unable to place an order that fits your preferences now, be sure to check back frequently as we’re always adding new and exciting dishes. On average, our weekly rotation of 30+ dishes includes: • Under 500 calories: 20+ meals • Under 35 grams of carbs: 8–10 meals • Dairy–free: 8–10 meals”  

Quick Video About Freshly's Convenience vs Health:

 

Quick Video Intro to Freshly:

Freshly has very happy customers.

Freshly Review: What others are saying about Freshly

What are the common questions new customers have about Freshly?

Freshly Review: Common Questions asked by customers

Freshly:  Giving the gift of Freshly

Giving Freshly is quite easy.  Although you're basically requiring your gift recipient to join Freshly, with your deliver their first delivery, they'll need to cancel unless they want to keep receiving meals delivered, at their expense going forward.  It's a very convenient gift, but probably best to give to current Freshly customers, or to those who understand how the gift works.

Freshly Review: Giving the gift of Freshly

Freshly focuses on quality.  Ready in minutes, Delicious and Nutritious!

Freshly Review: The Freshly Food Philosophy

Freshly for your office!

What a great idea — have healthy, delicious meals available for your whole office!

Freshly Review: Ordering Freshly Meals for your office!

Freshly Chef-Prepared Healthy Meal Deliveries – $60 OFF ($15 off for 4 deliveries)
Get $60 off your first 4 deliveries of Freshly! (Discount of $15 per delivery, for 4 deliveries is $60 off)
Get $15 off per delivery, up to 4 deliveries for $60 total discount! Get $60 off your first four orders ($15 per order) of Freshly with code LAUNCH15
9Expert Score
Chef-Prepared, Healthy & Delicious Meals in 3 Minutes
For as low as $7.99 per meal, and in only 3 minutes, you can have chef-prepared, healthy and delicious dinners and lunches instead of carry out or expensive dining in.
PROS
  • Delicious, fully-cooked, chef-prepared meals ready in 3 minutes
  • Healthy options — most meals average 500 calories. (Excellent if you want to lose weight or eat healthier!)
  • Wide range of meal options (over 30 meals per week)
  • Excellent for a single person
  • Skip or cancel anytime
CONS
  • Small shipping fee per delivery
  • No breakfast or snacks
  • No Vegan or Vegetarian meals
  • No customization within meals (ex: if you order the chicken parmesan, you're getting the chicken parmesean as they make it, with no customizations)
  • Meals are not certified organic/non-GMO. However, they take care to create meals free of processed sugars and artificial ingredients

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Factor 75 Review https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/factor-75-review/ Mon, 13 Apr 2020 13:06:41 +0000 https://smarterhomecooking.com/?post_type=product&p=594 Factor 75 (now just "Factor_") is a meal prep service from Chicago that provides Keto, Paleo, Gluten Free and generally highly-nutritious prepared meals, delivered to your door fully prepared, chilled and ready to microwave for a simple way to stick to your healthy lifestyle. Price is our estimate for 2 people getting 3 meals in 1 week at $15 per meal.

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Factor 75 review: A simple solution for a nutritional, flavor-filled meal plan, fully cooked and ready to heat & eat!

This prepared meal kit provider from Chicago provides in highly nutritional chef-prepared meals that can simply be reheated in the microwave for a super-quick, ultra-efficient solution for those of us wanting to eat healthily, but without the time to prepare the meals ourselves.

Factor 75 specializes in Keto Diets, Paleo Diets and Gluten Free diets.  Of course you don't need to follow those specialty diets to get the benefits of the delicious, nutritious meals that the Factor 75 chefs cook, package and deliver to your door.  If you want to simply be healthier, while eating delicious food and saving time on carry out, then Factor 75 could be an option for you.

If their specialty menus wasn't enough to convince you of their focus on nutrition, they offer a unique Nutritionist Service, that can help you if you're really trying to improve your health through nutrition.

8Expert Score
Keto, Paleo and Gluten Free Specialists
Chef-prepared meals, fully cooked and ready to heat. These nutritious meals focus on quality, performance and flavor. They offer unique KETO SNACKS as well as other unique products like cold press juices and "wellness shots". A great option for the busy professional wanting a healthy, simple to execute nutrition plan.
PROS
  • Chef-prepared meals, ready to heat and eat!
  • Everything they offer is highly nutritious
  • Paleo Meals
  • Keto Meals
  • Gluten Free Meals
  • Huge Selection of meals each week.
CONS
  • Minimum order is 4 meals per week
  • Not a great option for small kids

 

How does Factor 75 work?

Factor 75 review – how fator 75 works in 3 steps

 

We ordered Factor 75:  See our video!

Yvonne, a founding editor here at SmarterHomeCooking was very excited to try the Factor 75 Keto meals.  She found them to be delicious and extremely convenient.  She could take them to work, where her office has a microwave (but no kitchen) and she was able to ensure a healthy lunch on those days when she's just too busy to leave the office for carry out, or when she just didn't have time to complete her meal prep cooking in advance for the week.

Check out our full video review of Factor 75 here:

Factor 75 Meal Kit Delivery Unboxing and Tasting

What kinds of meals does Factor 75 offer?

Their menu is extensive and they offer a ton of delicious, nutritious meals that cater to the busy professional desiring a healthy lifestyle.  They have a lot of tasty meals available every week for those who follow a Keto Diet, or a Paleo Diet or Gluten Free Diets.  Look at this example to get a sense of the great options they offer.

The Factor 75 Meal Selection is extensive and provides tons of healthy, nutritious meal options, regardless of your taste preferences.

 

Does Factor 75 offer healthy, nutritional meals?

Factor 75 Review – Everything they offer focuses on nutrition and flavor.

 

 

Does Factor 75 offer Keto Meals and Keto Meal Plans?

Yes!

Factor 75 Review: They specialize in keto diets.

Does Factor 75 offer Paleo Meals and Paleo Meal Plans?

Yes!

Factor 75 review: They specialize in Paleo Diets!

 

Does Factor 75 offer Gluten Free Meals and Gluten Free Meal Plans?

Yes!

Factor 75 Review: They offer Gluten Free Diet Meals!

A unique specialty of Facto 75:  Nutritionist Services

Factor 75 review: They offer a unique Nutritionist Service offering.

Is Factor 75 right for me?

If you're a big family with small kids, who aren't following a Gluten Free diet, or a Paleo or Keto diet — this could be good for you if (a) you have more money than time and (b) you want your family to follow a healthier lifestyle and (c) you don't want to cook.

However, if you're a busy professional or a busy couple where both of you follow the same Keto or Paleo diet, then this could be a great solution for you!

Check here for exclusive discounts that Factor 75 have provided to us, in order to persuade you to give them a shot!

8Expert Score
Keto, Paleo and Gluten Free Specialists
Chef-prepared meals, fully cooked and ready to heat. These nutritious meals focus on quality, performance and flavor. They offer unique KETO SNACKS as well as other unique products like cold press juices and "wellness shots". A great option for the busy professional wanting a healthy, simple to execute nutrition plan.
PROS
  • Chef-prepared meals, ready to heat and eat!
  • Everything they offer is highly nutritious
  • Paleo Meals
  • Keto Meals
  • Gluten Free Meals
  • Huge Selection of meals each week.
CONS
  • Minimum order is 4 meals per week
  • Not a great option for small kids

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Home Chef Review https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/home-chef-review/ https://smarterhomecooking.com/product/home-chef-review/#comments Tue, 24 Mar 2020 01:37:26 +0000 http://smarterhomecooking.com/?post_type=product&p=129 Dinner meals from Home Chef meal kits are generally priced at $9.95 per serving, while their lunch meal kits by Home Chef  cost $7.99 per serving. Free Shipping on $40+ orders but costs $10 for orders less than $40.  You can upgrade your orders with premium meals (when available) or make some substitutions.  (Tons of flexibility.)  And, you can add optional extras (smoothies are a favorite!) to any order for $4.95 per serving.

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Home Chef Review: Home Chef (now owned by Kroger)

Home Chef is a very popular meal kit provider, offering a wide variety of meal kits for home delivery and available at local Kroger-owned grocery stores around the country.  Home Chef has pretty-much everything, making their service very flexible and can accommodate the needs of a wide range of food preferences and dietary needs.  Although they offer “assembled ingredient kits” that you cook at home, they also offer pre-cooked meals to reheat in the microwave, or “ready to bake” dishes you put right into the oven.  Another really cool menu option they include are “slow cooker kits”, where you receive all the ingredients for a slow cooker meal that you simply “throw it all into the crock pot“, with the perfect amount of ingredients.

  • Very popular
  • Great recipe options from varied menus
  • Good prices
  • Eco-Friendly Packaging
  • Excellent Customer Service
  • No Commitment
7.5Expert Score
Wide variety, mass appeal, cooked and uncooked lunch and dinner options, and smoothies!
Home Chef offers something for everyone, and has excellent pricing. They offer "everything", including a wide variety of pre-cooked (ready to heat) meals, and ready-to-bake casseroles, plus their famous "Assembled Ingredient" meal kits for you to cook at home. Their pricing is excellent, and some of their meal kits are available at your local Kroger grocery store! Highly recommended
PROS
  • So many choices! Almost every food preference and basic dietary need are covered with delicious options.
  • Free shipping on orders over $40
  • Assembled ingredient meal kits allow you to cook at home with pre-measured ingredients. (Home fresh offers tons of assembled ingredient meal kits!)
  • Slow cooker meal kits are available too! Just throw all the pre-measured ingredients and spices into your crock pot for a delicious meal later in the day.
  • Partially-cooked "ready to bake" dishes and casseroles are available for those days when you don't have much time but want yummy food without a ton of effort.
  • Pre-cooked "ready to reheat" meals are also available for those super-hectic days or for those days you need to eat at work and only have access to a microwave.
  • Dinner meal kit prices are all excellent, and generally $9.95 (with upgrades occasionally available).
  • Lunch meal kits are only $7.95 and you can also add smoothies for only $4.95 to your order.
  • Can accommodate families of 2 - 8
CONS
  • Shipping is $10 on orders under $40, so if you can't justify ordering enough to breach that $40 threshold when shipping becomes free, then you'll be paying $10 for deliveries.
  • Not organic. Although they offer some organic ingredients when possible, they do not make any claims to be 100% organic and they don't have organic options.
  • Sodium levels seem, in general, to be rather high in their nutritional information. (Full nutritional contents are listed for every meal, and we've noticed the sodium levels seem high.)
  • Not perfect for athletes or "clean eating" preferences.
  • If you're super-frugal you may be able to source your own ingredients on similar recipes slightly cheaper than via meal kit service.
  • If you're an actual Chef, this may not be for you. :). (They let the rest of us "feel" like home chefs!)

Home Chef has been in the meal kit delivery service business since 2011 and is arguably one of the largest providers in this space. Their merger with Kroger in 2018 was a smart strategic decision to keep them well-positioned in this ever-growing industry.

Home Chef is a very flexible, reasonably priced meal kit provider.

The quick summary of what you get with Home Chef.

Every week, you can choose from a huge variety of meals for lunch and dinner, and optional smoothies.  (You can choose up to 5 weeks in advance, by the way.) Home Chef offers 16 dinners, 2 lunch salads, 2 ready-to-cook protein packs (for you low-carb meat eaters), and 1 smoothy add-on every week. You can order a set number of meals (2 – 6 meal kits / recipes) per week, for a set number of people (2 – 8). Your weekly deliveries include all the prepared meals or assembled meal kits you've chosen for the week.  You'll receive the recipes of your choice and the needed fresh, pre-measured ingredients.  If you ordered prepared foods as part of your weekly selections, then you'd receive the prepared meal frozen, with heating or final cooking instructions.

Home Chef is extremely flexible.  (they can probably accommodate you.)

Home Chef is super flexible, so their pricing isn't a “one size fits all” kind of thing.  Why?  Because unlike some other meal kit providers that keep things simple, Home Chef focuses on flexibility.  Although the price is very reasonable, you may not know your final price until you account for any options, add-ons, premium meals, additional meals, or substitutions you may select.

Just know, that in general, meals are $9.95 for dinner and $7.99 for lunch, both of which are very reasonable And, know that they have a huge selection of meals from which to select each week.  The number of options is just right:  not too many to overwhelm you, yet plenty of options for everyone in the family

And, since you can select some products like a “weekly protein pack” (nothing but fresh meats from the butcher), or salads or smoothies — and since you can select prepared meals for microwaving or to prepare in the oven, your final price will be unique to you, based upon your unique choices.

In short:  The food is good, the choices are good, and the options are good.  And everything is reasonably priced.


How does Home Chef work?

First, you can easily indicate the type of food you want, and the type of food you want to avoid (like if you refuse to eat fish, it will never be suggested to you).  From there, you choose any customizations you'd want (double the protein, swap chicken for steak on a certain meal, add a smoothie or lunch salad, etc.).  Then, await your freshly-assembled meal kit and recipe to be delivered on schedule so you can cook your delicious dinner!

HomeChef Review: How it works ordering homechef. Tons of options!

Home Chef offers pre-cooked meals too.

To cook, or not to cook?  That is the question.

This is a relatively new option.  HomeChef offers “pre-cooked” meals for you to simply pop in the oven and bake and other “pre-cooked” meals allowing you to reheat in the microwave.

If you want to cook, then you'll simply choose meal kits that are pre-assembled with perfectly portioned, fresh ingredients with easy-to-follow recipes, all within high quality, recyclable packaging.  However, if you want to throw in a couple meals that are pre-cooked, too?  They've got you covered.  They have delicious lunches and dinners that are pre-cooked, ready in minutes by reheating in the microwave.  It's the ultimate convenience; just pop your chef-prepared, flash-frozen, delicious meal in the microwave, and 3 minutes later, you're eating.  Or, if you want something to bake in the oven, they also offer “just bake it” dishes and in an hour or less in the oven, your family's dinner will be piping hot and making the whole family happy.  And now, they've added “slow cooker kits”, providing you with all the ingredients you need to cook with your crock pot.  They really have all the options!

So, as you can see, you can choose to cook 100% of the time (either with a slow cooker kit for your crock pot, or a traditionally-cooked meal kit).  Or, you don't cook at all, and select all of your meals to be “prepared meals”, where you'll receive frozen meals to reheat in the microwave, or you'll receive frozen casseroles, lasagnes and other dishes for the oven, that you'll cook in your oven as directed.

Or, you can mix and match, depending on your schedule.  For instance, during the school year, you may have more sports, clubs, tutors, and other scheduled activities for your kids, and you just won't have time to cook on certain nights of the week.  You can change your meal selections accordingly, so you can cook on the days you know everyone is home, and you can have ready-to-heat meals for those busy nights.

You can pick up Home Chef in your local Kroger.

Now this is pretty convenient.  If you aren't a regular customer of Hello Fresh, but want to try out a meal, or if you simply cannot establish a regular schedule where you will get a set number of meals for a set number of people (customizable each week if needed), and your hectic lifestyle prevents you from being able to predict your family's meals from week to week, then you can go to your local Kroger-owned grocery store and use their “grab and go” kiosk for Home Chef.

Home Chef Review – my local Kroger kiosk for Home Chef's “grab and go” meals.

What kind of meals does Home Chef offer?

Home Chef offers delicious meals that you cook at home, with pre-measured, pre-portioned ingredients (no wasted food) with easy to follow, flavorful recipes, that can accommodate most dietary needs and taste preferences.

Home Chef also offers pre-cooked meals that you can heat and serve, as part of your weekly delivery.  They offer “take and bake” type meals where you simply bake the pre-assembled, pre-partially cooked dish (like a lasagne or casserole) as instructed for a delicious, homemade dinner.

They also offer “microwave and serve” type meals, as well, for those busy nights or lunches.  Just pop your meal in the microwave, and. you're eating like a king in no time.

What kind of menus and recipes does Home Chef offer?

Their menu selections are extensive.  Each week, you'll have plenty of choices that you will enjoy.

What are the recipes like?

Every meal has all the perfectly portioned, fresh ingredients — all properly packaged and kept cold as needed.  For each of these meals, you'll receive a recipe card.  The recipe cards are full color, high production value and very well made.

They're very easy to follow, using tons of graphics and images for convenient step by step cooking success!  Each step will have a photo and easy to follow directions.  They also clearly show you what you'll need from your spice cupboard and the pans or mixing bowls you'll need for the recipe.

Also on the recipe card, you'll see a good photo of what the meal should look like and all the nutritional information about your meal, including macros (if you're tracking your macros).  They also layout your anticipated cooking time and how easy or difficult the dish will be to cook.  It's a very comprehensive recipe card.  (They expect you to keep it in the folder you'll receive in your first delivery to keep them all organized.)

What meals of the day does Home Chef offer?

Although Home Chef primarily focuses on dinner meals, they also have lunch meals available.  All the lunch meals are “prepared meals”, so you won't be ordering fresh ingredients to cook at lunch, unless of course, you cook a dinner meal at lunch time.

What kinds of add-ons can I choose with Home Chef meal kit deliveries?

This is where Home Chef really shines with its unique “add on” options.  Smoothies are extremely popular to add on to your deliveries, and only cost $4.95!  Yum.  Also, they offer weekly “protein packs” of straight up meat that you carnivorous low-carb, keto diet lovers will enjoy.  And, on occasion, upgraded “premium meals” are sometimes available for an additional cost.

What are the menu features that Home Chef offers?

Does Home Chef offer salads, too?

Yep.  Every week, they offer 2 different salad options that you can have included in your weekly delivery!

What if I don't like a particular recipe and want substitutions?

I like this part of Home Chef's weekly delivery options.  Before you select your meals, you'll see a button on the meal card that shows you alternatives you can select.  For instance, if you don't like fish, but there's a delicious salmon recipe, they may offer chicken as an alternative.

Does Home Chef cater to specialty diets like Vegetarian, Keto, Paleo and others?

Yep, kinda.  You'll have to do some substitutions, but yep — they can cater to most diets.

Where can I find Home Chef?

Online with our link, and at your local Kroger-owned super market.

How much does Home Chef cost?

In general, expect $9.95 per meal for dinner and $7.95 for lunch.  $4.95 is the cost for a smoothie and they offer additional upgrades and add-ons that you can optionally include in your deliveries.  (You can try some add ons one week, and not include them in other weeks.  It's very flexible.)

How much would I expect to spend with Home Chef each week?

Does Home Chef require a subscription or commitment?

Yes and no.  Yes, because that's what you sign up for.  They expect you to keep your weekly deliveries ongoing, but you can skip or cancel weekly deliveries at any time, or cancel at any time.  NOTE:  You must make any “skip a week” or “cancel my account” requests before Friday at noon the previous week.  If you meet that deadline, you'll be all set.  If not, you didn't cancel in time and you'll get the meals you ordered.

How do I cancel Home Chef?

Keep in mind that cancelling your subscription will not cancel an order that’s already been processed, including your first scheduled order. Be sure to log in and cancel your subscription before the Friday 12PM Central deadline if you do not want a delivery for the upcoming week.

When would I expect deliveries of Home Chef?

You can select your prefered day of the week to receive your weekly delivery of Home Chef.  If you're not home, the packaging is designed to keep your food cold, fresh, and safe from the elements for several hours.  (You'd already know when your delivery is coming, as it will be delivered the same day of the week, every week.)

How are deliveries of Home Chef packaged?

 

How to give the gift of Home Chef.

Home Chef offers simple gift denominations of $60, $120 and $240.  Essentially, each $60 gift card will feed 2 people for 1 week, with 3 Home Chef recipes.  If you choose the $120 option, that means two weeks.  If you choose the $240 option, that's 4 weeks.

Home Chef Review: If you want to give the gift of food, consider a convenient gift card from Home Chef!

Who Home Chef is best for.

It looks like Home Chef is one of those meal kit providers that can work for pretty-much everyone in the mainstream.  Families, couples, even singles could enjoy Home Chef.

Who is most likely not a good fit for Home Chef?

If you're on a very strict diet, then you may want to choose a more “specialty meal kit” provider.

7.5Expert Score
Wide variety, mass appeal, cooked and uncooked lunch and dinner options, and smoothies!
Home Chef offers something for everyone, and has excellent pricing. They offer "everything", including a wide variety of pre-cooked (ready to heat) meals, and ready-to-bake casseroles, plus their famous "Assembled Ingredient" meal kits for you to cook at home. Their pricing is excellent, and some of their meal kits are available at your local Kroger grocery store! Highly recommended
PROS
  • So many choices! Almost every food preference and basic dietary need are covered with delicious options.
  • Free shipping on orders over $40
  • Assembled ingredient meal kits allow you to cook at home with pre-measured ingredients. (Home fresh offers tons of assembled ingredient meal kits!)
  • Slow cooker meal kits are available too! Just throw all the pre-measured ingredients and spices into your crock pot for a delicious meal later in the day.
  • Partially-cooked "ready to bake" dishes and casseroles are available for those days when you don't have much time but want yummy food without a ton of effort.
  • Pre-cooked "ready to reheat" meals are also available for those super-hectic days or for those days you need to eat at work and only have access to a microwave.
  • Dinner meal kit prices are all excellent, and generally $9.95 (with upgrades occasionally available).
  • Lunch meal kits are only $7.95 and you can also add smoothies for only $4.95 to your order.
  • Can accommodate families of 2 - 8
CONS
  • Shipping is $10 on orders under $40, so if you can't justify ordering enough to breach that $40 threshold when shipping becomes free, then you'll be paying $10 for deliveries.
  • Not organic. Although they offer some organic ingredients when possible, they do not make any claims to be 100% organic and they don't have organic options.
  • Sodium levels seem, in general, to be rather high in their nutritional information. (Full nutritional contents are listed for every meal, and we've noticed the sodium levels seem high.)
  • Not perfect for athletes or "clean eating" preferences.
  • If you're super-frugal you may be able to source your own ingredients on similar recipes slightly cheaper than via meal kit service.
  • If you're an actual Chef, this may not be for you. :). (They let the rest of us "feel" like home chefs!)

 

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