The other night for dinner, I served burgers. And the night before that? Hot dogs. Oh, and to really change it up, we had brats one night. Do you see the pattern? Not much creativity or nutritional value.
I have been on the lookout for a meal/ingredient delivery service that could meet a few requirements for my family: it needs to be fresh upon arrival, it needs to be unique (seriously, I can make my own spaghetti and meatballs…), 30 minutes or less prep time, and it needs to have a low carb option. I have tried a few different services, and none really measured up to my standards until I tried Home Chef.
Home Chef met every single requirement above, even the low carb checkpoint (gluten-free options are available as well). Other meal delivery services always had pasta or potatoes in their kits, which always went to waste for my husband and I. Customization is key with Home Chef– since you are able to see what meals are included before they ship AND edit them by swapping out meals, changing the serving size or delivery date. They also have breakfast options, smoothies and fruit baskets available.
Home Chef is a Chicago-headquartered startup, with Midwest values present in their business model of simplicity and a high customer focus. Need to pause or cancel? You can do so with the click of a button, no need to call an 800 number and try to finagle your way out of a binding contract. I went up to Michigan over Memorial Day weekend and paused my delivery with the click of a button.
Here’s the thing. I stay at home with my kids as well as work part time from home. My kids want me to play with them ALL the time, so a lengthy dinner preparation won’t fly. The last time I tried to make a gourmet meal from scratch my kids found markers and decided to color themselves from head to toe because I was too busy cooking.
With Home Chef, I made the Jalapeño Popper-Stuffed Pork Tenderloin in about 35 minutes and it was insanely easy to just follow the directions with pre-portioned ingredients. I made the meal for my husband, my parents and I, and it honestly received RAVE reviews (which is not common with my minimal cooking skills).
It had a buttermilk ranch sauce for the pork, as well as an arugula salad with a simple yet flavorful dressing. The website gave play by play photos and tips on how to prepare the meal, including how to butterfly a pork tenderloin (I will use this for SURE in the future!) and how to control the temperature of the jalapeños.
Want to give it a try? You can click on this link for Home Chef and it will automatically apply $30 towards your first purchase, or use code DRESSEDUP.
Ditch the hot dogs and make a meal that you are proud of in less time than it takes to convince a preschooler that no, they can’t do everything by themselves.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Home Chef. All opinions are honest and my own as always.