'My family tried dinner for a week on $2.20 a meal. Here's my honest verdict.'

Quick question – anyone else out there wondering where their money is actually... going? Like, the money still lands in your account on payday, but then this really odd thing happens where it all just... disappears. Fast. Much faster than it used to. And you’re not quite sure how. You’re not doing anything different. There’s no jetski in your garage or fancy pants meals out. 

Suddenly, living just costs so much more. ‘The pinch’ feels more like a ‘punch’. To the face. 

Something has to give. 

Which is exactly why I’ve made the decision to break up with the supermarket. All of them. It’s not me. It’s most (definitely) them. Them and their $7.50 punnet of below average strawberries and smug self-service checkouts that insist I get assistance because apparently, I haven’t "bagged" an item I just bloody "bagged". Rather forcefully. Several times. 

I know claiming you’re done with supermarkets is a big call. And it’ll never be a clean break, of course. I’m still going to see... well, all of them. Just, casually. But it won't be for dinner, that's for sure. Because I’ve found something else. Something that has, quite legitimately, been a game changer for our family.

I've been trying to lower our cost per meal when it comes to feeding the family dinner, and being a family of four, it's no easy game.

But this week we're trying something a little *daring*. 5 dinners over 5 nights for $2.20 a plate. 

Doubting if we can do it? We actually gave EveryPlate a red hot crack – a low-price meal kit service that delivered everything I needed for dinner to my doorstep. My family just finished our first week of dating EveryPlate, and we're definitely feeling *wooed*. 

...And we halved what we would usually spend on groceries. 

Firstly, let’s talk numbers. EveryPlate’s price per plate (with Mamamia's discount code) comes in at $2.19 per plate. Marginally more expensive than the tooth fairy. 

Also, knowing we had everything we needed for dinner cut down our frequent incidental shops. You know the ones where you pop in for some ingredient/s you need for dinner and end up with a trolley filled with $72 worth of “essentials” – most of which will end up going off in your fridge. 

We cooked with our kids too, and it wasn’t awful. 

Every parent who’s ever googled anything about kids and eating knows, if you want to get your kids to try a range of different foods, you must involve them *in* the process. Which sounds obvious and doable, in theory. In reality, it’s mostly a pain in the a**. Until now. Over the past week, we actually had some of those ‘family bonding through cooking’ moments I’ve only ever seen in movies and Instagram feeds. 

I mean, just LOOK at our insufferable wholesome photos below. 

Now I can’t tell you if it’s the fact that each recipe comes with a pretty, coloured, easy to follow A4 card; or that the amount of every ingredient you need (minus eggs and plain flour) is provided. Or was it because our kids chose the dinners from the app so they had some kind of ownership in the whole thing. I don’t know. 

But whatever it was, it worked. My beautiful 14-year-old niece made an entire meal on her own, my super fussy 6-year-old son now eats beans and my 8-year-old daughter is now a gun at the ‘flour, egg, coating’ thing you do to meat before you fry it. Which leads me to my final, and possibly most important ‘why’. 

We really liked the meals.

The 5 dinners we ordered with Mamamia discount code GREENFLAG all tasted genuinely great. Of course, each family member had their own personal preference, but each meal was yum. So, if you’re after reccos on where to start, here's exactly what we thought of our order.

Sesame katsu chicken, udon noodles & garlic greens

This was my hands-down favourite. The chicken was crispy, the sauce was flavoursome, and the greens were so crunchy and fresh it made me wonder why I don’t pan fry broccolini and beans every single day. 

I cooked this one alongside my niece and daughter. Daughter was skeptical about our ability to pull it off. Understandable, seeing as she only really sees me in the kitchen to make smoothies and air fry Dino nuggets.

To be totally honest, I find the first go at any recipe a wee bit overwhelming. And while this kind of food prep was completely new to me, us gals (*gestures to final product*) nailed it. 

 Son got first taste. He said he felt like he was at a restaurant. Chuffed. Image: Supplied.

Creamy bacon penne

Can’t comment on the making of this one because my husband whipped it up (no small feat for him, so proof it was an easy winner to make!). What I can comment on, however, is that there was no exhausting conversation about what we should have for dinner and what we’ve got and if the kilo of chicken smells funky. He just looked through the recipe cards, grabbed the ingredients and got it done. 

Creamy Bacon Penne’s number one fan. Image: Supplied.

My son is already asking when we can have it again. Everyone ate it and enjoyed it. Great go-to crowd pleaser. 

Image: Supplied.

Cheesy beef enchiladas 

EveryPlate have nailed the art of flavour with no spice – the sweet spot for kids. The Mexican seasoning in this beef pumped up the taste and the grated carrot made it fresh.

So prior to this, my niece hadn't ever cut an onion. Check her out now. As you can tell, kids are bit obsessed with her (and the food). Image: Supplied.

There were leftovers of this one, but they didn’t last long. 

Pretending she helped. Image: Supplied.

Asian pork schnitzel, garlic rice with veggies & sweet chilli mayo

When my girl had a read of this recipe card, she was stoked to find ‘the ol' messy hands technique again’, having already had a crack at it with the Katsu Chicken on night one. I sat back and watched my confident and competent 8-year-old grab 3 bowls for the egg, flour and crumbs and get to work. 

The pro at work. Image: Supplied.

Bit proud of his handy work. Image: Supplied.

Bacon & pesto baked risotto

Confession, we read the enchiladas recipe wrong and added the bacon to the mince, hence, bacon and pesto baked risotto became... vegetarian. Which was, indeed, a happy accident for our vegetarian niece. Turns out not having the bacon still gave the pesto, corn and beans their opportunity to shine. Still, the result: a fresh, light, flavour-filled dinner.

Image: Supplied.

Also – this recipe was surprisingly easy. I was under the impression risotto took actual cooking skills and patience. Hence why I’ve never given it a go. Turns out, with baked risotto at least, you just throw it all in a pan and then in a baking dish followed by the oven. I feel like this should be a community service announcement.  

Say goodbye to supermarket red flags and use Mamamia code GREENFLAG for $2.19 per plate with EveryPlate. 

Feature Image: Supplied.