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Cooking for a family is stressful. Add in the rising cost of groceries due to inflation, the pressure to cook healthy meals, and a time-constrained schedule trying to squeeze dinner in between soccer practices, and you've got a recipe for total overwhelm. More often that not, you'll spend another night in the fast-food drive-thru.
Gitnux recently reported that in 2022, the average American household spent $3,008 eating out at restaurants. In fact, on average 20% of a family's food budget is spent on eating out each month. That's a lot of cash that could be going towards other expenses.
But don't get discouraged. There are many options to make family dinner fast, easy, and cost-effective.
With prepared meals, you've got options
There are a few different types of prepared meals that can help make dinnertime easier.
The cheapest but most time-consuming option is doing your own meal prepping at home. This is a great option for someone who has the time—since it will take anywhere from a couple hours to a half day. To do your own meal prepping, you plan your menu for the week, buy the ingredients, and cook everything ahead of time, portioning it into meals to eat throughout the week.
Semi-prepared meals are a good choice if you have a little bit of time to cook in the evenings. Grocery stores like Costco and Trader Joe's both have plentiful options of pre-cooked or frozen foods that you can put your own spin on by including fresh pasta, rice, or veggies with it. Think frozen wontons plus fresh rice and steamed veggies, or a bag of taco salad gussied up with cooked ground beef.
Meal delivery services are a newer option gaining popularity. From Home Chef to HelloFresh, Blue Apron to Hungryroot, there are dozens of services to fit your taste and dietary preferences. They'll send you fresh ingredients and instructions in refrigerated boxes—the catch is you still have to spend some time cooking.
If you want a no-cook option that saves you time, try Beehive Meals. The local Utah company offers ready-made frozen meals you simply pop in the crockpot in the morning and can eat later that day. No standing in front of the stove—which is both time consuming and hot. Instead, you can spend time with your familiy and still enjoy a healthy and hearty meal.
Beehive Meals wins in cost-effectiveness
There are scores of benefits from cooking at home, but most people need to look no further than price. One Forbes article found that the average price of one restaurant meal is $20.37, while a meal kit service costs $12.53 per person, and cooking at home costs $4.31 per person. That statistic alone will have you rethinking your next takeout dinner splurge.
With Beehive Meals, there is an up-front investment when you place your order. But for a delivery of 10 meals at the regular portion size, you'll get 60 servings of food for $209.00. That's only $3.48 per serving! You'll save even more if you sign up for a subscription, dropping the price to $3.13 per serving.
According to this article from U.S. News and World Report, the cheapest meal delivery service was still about $4.99 per serving—and don't forget, you'll still have to spend time and effort cooking the meal.
Other benefits of prepared meals
One of the main reasons people choose a meal delivery service is so they can have healthy options delivered to their doorstep. With many of these companies, you can choose dietary preferences like gluten free or lower calorie meals. Beehive Meals lets you choose from a family style, gluten-free, or macro balanced menu—an option for every type of eater.
Variety is also a huge plus of going the meal-delivery route. No more desperately scrolling Pinterest looking for a new recipe you can add to your family's rotation. On Beehive Meals' current menu you can find everything from balsamic chicken to green chile mac n' cheese to Philly cheesesteak.
If you often find yourself letting food go to waste, like that sad bag of wilted greens at the back of the refrigerator, then meal delivery service can help solve that problem. Each meal only gives you the exact amount of ingredients you need. You won't have extras going bad in your fridge, which is better for the planet and for your wallet.
Try Beehive Meals
End the constant dinner struggle and try Beehive Meals. Their delicious and nutritious meals are made with real, fresh ingredients and are sure to please even the pickiest taste buds. These freezer meals take minutes to prep, saving you time and money. To see the current menu and place an order, visit the Beehive Meals website.
