I tried HelloFresh in the Netherlands, was it actually worth it? 

Life in the Netherlands is busy, and if you’re anything like me, ✨ girl dinner ✨ has become less of a trend and more of a lifestyle. So when the chance came to try HelloFresh for a week, I didn’t think twice.

Between the office job, the pilates classes, and the ever-present anxiety about the state of the world, cooking a proper meal every single night just isn’t always happening. 

I’ve become a true Nederlander who has to check their calendar before making any plans, which leaves precious little bandwidth for wondering what’s for dinner.

HelloFresh promised to take that question off my plate entirely. Here’s how it went.

Setting up was surprisingly painless

I hopped online, made an account, and within 15 minutes had chosen my package and picked my recipes. 

The interface lets you filter by dietary preference, cooking time, and even preferences such as whether you want recipes low in salt or calories. 

As a single person, I opted for three meals across the week, each with two servings. However, whether you’re cooking for one or for a household, the options scale accordingly.

Delivery that actually worked (in the Netherlands, no less)

Anyone who’s lived in the Netherlands for longer than five minutes knows the particular horror of Dutch staircases and missed deliveries. Even if you don’t have a treacherous flight of steps to clamber down, you can be sitting two metres from your front door and still miss the postman.

HelloFresh handled this well. I could choose to have my box left with a neighbour if I missed the 10-second window. 

And as it turned out, my driver simply called me when he arrived, rather than engaging in some Kafkaesque doorbell-ringing guessing game — which I very much appreciated.

The platform also sent regular tracking updates so I could follow my box in real time. That kind of communication soothes my anxious soul. However, if you’re less worried about these things, you might find it to be overkill.

What I actually cooked

The box arrived with ingredients for each recipe packed in separate, labelled paper bags, ready to go straight into the fridge. 

It also included a personalised recipe pamphlet with my actual name on it, which was a charming touch. As a recipe hoarder, my favourite feature was that I could tear out the recipe cards and reuse them later.

The one challenge I faced, however, was that a couple of recipes required ingredients you’re expected to already have at home, like white wine vinegar. Whether that says more about HelloFresh or my cupboard is unclear.

Here’s what I made:

• Speedy udon noodles with minced meat and teriyaki mascarpone sauce — the lekker snel (“nice and quick”) option, and my favourite. It took 15 minutes, perfect for a Sunday evening after a day spent drinking wine in Amsterdam. Would make again immediately.
  
• Creamy courgette lasagne — the vegetarian option. I was sceptical when I saw the ingredients, but HelloFresh’s use of herbs and spices won me over completely. I devoured the whole thing.
  
• Sticky salmon with noodles, peanuts, and lime — the fit & bewust (“fit and conscious”) meal. I went in braced for flavourless health food and came out pleasantly surprised. And while it was technically two portions, I ate it all in one sitting anyway.

So, was it actually worth it?

For me? Yes.

The appeal wasn’t just convenience. It was that after a full day at work, I didn’t have to swing by the supermarket, wander the aisles without a plan, and end up buying things I didn’t need. My fridge was stocked. Dinner was decided. I just had to cook it.

The lekker snel recipe took exactly the 15 minutes it promised. The vegetarian option was filling and delicious. And the healthy meal didn’t ask me to sacrifice flavour for the sake of wellness.

I think what often makes people take pause when considering something like HelloFresh is the price. At first glance, the weekly cost can feel steep. 

But here’s how I thought about it: I do my big shop at the Dirk, but I still find myself dashing to the Albert Heijn every other night for top-ups that somehow add up to €25. With a HelloFresh box in the fridge, those panic-buying runs didn’t happen. The maths is more favourable than it first appears.

Have you tried HelloFresh in the Netherlands? Did it change your dinner routine, or do you prefer doing your own thing in the kitchen? Let us know in the comments below!