Remember during lockdown when items such as meat, rice and pasta were in short supply? Our local Co-Op served us well but it got to the point where we couldn’t get the ingredients we needed to make a meal. Although we hadn’t considered the likes of Gousto before, the initial decision to give a meal delivery service a try was prompted by the desire for a proper dinner. You know the meat and two veg kind! Gousto wasn’t taking on new customers then but we were able to order a Chosen By Gousto box with the ingredients to make three meals.
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The recipes were a Roasted Squash and Sausage Salad, a 3 Cheese Veg Packed Pasta Bake and Thai Beef Rice with Mangetout. We were impressed with the quality of the ingredients, the simplicity of the recipe cards and the food we made was mouth-wateringly delicious. These were the best meals we’d eaten in a long time by some distance.
When the opportunity arose to try a Gousto subscription at a discounted rate, we were straight in there! It meant every week we knew we’d have enough food for the three of us for four days (we couldn’t get deliveries at the time). We thought after the promotional period we’d be back to supermarket deliveries but it turns out the cost per meal is relative and we didn’t have any wastage. We’ve been using Gousto for c.3 months now and we’ve got to know the service pretty well. Lots of you have been asking what they’re like so we’ve knocked up a quick post with some additional information.
Table of Contents
The range
We typically pick our recipes 1-2 weeks in advance and with 60 recipes every week, there’s a wealth of choice. We’re not particularly faddy eaters so we normally select meals Gousto has chosen for us, chicken and beef & pork. Ten-minute meals are excellent if you’re time-poor, everyday favourites never disappoint and the likes of Lean in 15 from Joe Wicks are good, healthy options. There are fish, vegetarian, plant-based, gluten-free and dairy-free recipes to choose from as well. We like to mix up the recipes we go for as it’s really nice to try a variety of recipes, master different cooking techniques and sample flavours from all over the world.
There are details about each recipe, including what you get in your box, nutritional information, what the ingredients contain and allergen information on the Gousto site so you can see that before you make your selection. We like to plan what we’re getting so we don’t miss out but if we did miss making a selection, Gousto will make it for us based on previous preferences.
The value
Gousto is surprisingly good value. The box we have provides us with dinner for 4 people for 4 days. It works out to be £2.98 per meal at full price which is less than we’d spend at the supermarket – where we also purchase things we don’t actually need! Gousto box prices vary depending on the number of people they’re for (2 or 4), how many meals are required (2, 3 or 4) and how regularly (weekly, fortnightly, monthly). You can select which day your box comes, change your subscription and skip or pause it depending on requirements. You can use my discount code if you’d like to try Gousto – this current offer gives you 50% off your first box and 30% off all boxes in your first month. On the days we don’t have Gousto, we usually opt for something simple. We do still do a supermarket shop but it’s less regularly, minimal and for essentials.
The quality ingredients
Our big red Gousto box, made from recycled cardboard, comes on the same day every week so it’s easy to plan meals. The box consists of a clever Eco Cool insulation box which contains the ingredients that need to be refrigerated. The rest of the box has the likes of potatoes, pasta, rice and vegetables. Smaller items (such as garlic, herbs and condiments) are packaged in “bits and bobs” paper bags with the corresponding recipe number on the outside. Occasionally you may need ingredients you have at home but all we’ve ever needed are milk, butter and flour – olive oil is, of course, an essential! We’ve been ordering from Gousto since May this year and not once have we had an ingredient missing.
We were impressed with the quality of Gousto’s ingredients from the off. They have long term relationships with their suppliers and have high standards. They only use 100% fresh meat in their recipes and buy British to support local farmers. Gousto also makes sure their fish and seafood is responsibly sourced. Vegetables, dairy and store cupboard goods are also super fresh.
The easy to follow recipes
The recipes we’ve selected come with our Gousto box each week, numbered to correspond with its “bits and bobs”. These show what the dish looks like, nutritional information, allergens and ingredients. Each recipe card provides step by step instructions on the reverse with photos so they’re easy to follow. Ingredients are measured out exactly for 2 people (double for four) so there’s no faffing along the way. I’ve really enjoyed about Gousto is learning about different flavours, how to cook a varied range of recipes and picking up genius short cuts along the way. What’s more, we’ve not had a meal we don’t like yet so hats off to the Gousto chefs! The only challenge we had was blending vegetables in a baby blender (as our blender died!) but it worked out alright!
The simplicity
Finally, the appeal with Gousto is that they make it so easy. I choose our recipes in advance, the Gousto box comes with all the produce I need and I create incredible meals by following instructions. Each dish looks and tastes SO good, I honestly feel like I’ve just competed in Masterchef! Feel free to use my discount code if you’re keen to give Gousto a try – this current offer gives you 50% off your first box and 30% off all boxes in your first month (and I get a little discount in return!). Let me know if you do it, I’d love to know how you got on.
Happy cooking!
