Culinary Tales from the Head Chef of HelloFresh

Guest article by Lei Anne Rabeje

Balancing work, family, and healthy eating can be a tough challenge for many, but HelloFresh Head Chef Claudia Sidoti tackles these challenges head-on. As a head chef, restaurateur, and a mother of three, Claudia balances a lot of work on her plate, and she used her own experiences as inspiration for her six-step recipes.

HelloFresh is a meal-kit company that delivers fresh ingredients weekly, with a goal to improve their customers' lifestyle through healthy home cooked meals without hassle. Their subscription boxes are customizable, and offers vegetarian, family, or classic options, each complete with three or four recipes each week. As Head Chef, Sidoti focuses on creating new recipes, with the hopes of expanding to a more global palette. In the fast-paced world where food trends come and go, Sidoti looks to integrate recipes that will help people “feel more connected to restaurant trends.” For some, this may mean trying out new ethnic cuisines, but for others, it’s as simple as using new spices or new ingredients on some classic dishes.

There are three underlying questions that inspire her in developing recipes: “What am I going to make for dinner tonight?”, “How quickly can I do this?”, and “What will they all eat?”. Her easy-to-make 30 minute recipes are perfectly designed “for the easy in-and-out” during weeknights that adds a twist to classic, comfort foods.

In this week’s podcast, listen to Claudia tell her journey from being a restaurateur at 19 years old to becoming the Head Chef at HelloFresh, talk about the steps of making the "ideal recipe," and share advice on how to enter the culinary world.