To think my DH should have eaten the dinner I cooked

Not particularly Italian? 😂 But I agree that he reacted badly and set a bad example to your son

I used to have this from my husband, not as rude as yours, but I'd suggest stuff I might cook for tea and get a muted response.

This hacked me off big time.

We had a chat, and also there I just made myself unavailable to cook, had a gym class, late back from work etc. So he had to step up, do the thinking and cook.

I had many months of fish chips and peas till eventually even he got bored of that and started with fajitas, and stirfries etc.

We are about 60/40 cooking now, I do a bit more as I actually like it so will happily spend some time making soup or something a bit special. Whereas he is more of a cook to eat person.

How is an overreaction? This man sits at his desk at home whilst OP works full time, do the food shop and the school pick-up, take the kids to after-school clubs and then cooks dinner.

I'd put money on that "work" consisting of a hefty portion of messing around on social media and messaging his mates. If the criterion for doing the house chores is being at home rather than the office, fine. He's at home from 4-5 pm, plenty of time for him to cook, clean, and help with the children.

Another example of WFH meaning the husband gets a housewife who has responsibilities for all the house chores and another full time wage into the house. Yes he was rude. Yes he should have tried it (it sounds fairly innocuous). But no he didn't have to eat it if he didn't like it. Probably a bigger issue at play here about you feeling like everyone's servant. I know I do as dishing up food for the millionth time in a row. On a more practical level. Could you get meal prep boxes and get him to cook when he gets in before doing more work later after dinner.

Exactly. MN is fill of grovelling women serving up food to their ungrateful shit husbands. And they think it’s their job 🤯🤯🤯And advise each other on how to make better meals🤯🤯🤯

The. Actual. Meal. Doesn’t. Matter. Here.

It is about his petulant reaction at the table in front of the kids (there are other ways to decline a meal) . About how he sulked afterwards. About how they both work but they both accept that the OP does all the cooking.

It makes me depressed for the next generation when so many women accept and condone inequality. It actually turns my stomach.

yes, you do, so that’s different. He never does. He chooses not to do anything for parenting and cooking. He expects to sit down to a meal every night from his wife who is not a sahm. So he should suck it up no matter what level of utter bilge the op wants to serve up. She works and does everything for the dc and if he was my husband he would be gone. It’s not a relationship if you have to do everything and work.

Yes, this was what stood out to me too.

Sounds like you're running around doing everything.

Have you missed the bit where they both work full time, and she does all the cooking, child care and house stuff? I'm honestly shocked how regressive so many posts are here.

you both work. It blows my mind that women are still cooking for their husbands every day like this.

Just don't cook that meal for him again. Neither me nor my DH would be keen on anything with couscous. He eats really, really plain foods, like no gravy, no sauces, no veg except cucumber ad raw peppers. I'm very used to him not wanting my food as I can't always only cook the boring stuff he eats. But he would not be rude about it, saying "I'm not eating that'..etc. He would just decline it and have something himself later on. So it's the delivery, in front of the child that's the issue rather than that he didn't like your meal.

I'm not sure. I eat 3 meals a day & no snacking in between & I would be pretty peed off if DH (who cooks in the week) served up something I had said I didn't like.

YANBU. Certainly in my house, cooking for 4 including 2 fussy kids means that there are very few meals that won't get a complaint from someone. Even a meal that everyone loved will get "but we have this all the time" a fortnight later.

Sometimes it's DH that gets something he finds bland, to suit the kids. Sometimes the kids get things they don't love, and have to leave some. They just pile on the hot sauce (DH)/add toast(DC), and put up with it though.

I despise cooking. I'm certainly not cooking multiple different meals.

I can’t even imagine what a cook in the bag meal is but it sounds dreadful and he has already said he doesn’t like this style of food. I would like to think I could say I am not eating something that DH served up if I don’t like it and particularly if I have already said that I don’t like it. This would be like me saying I don’t like eating pot noodles so he buys me one a different flavour and insists I could just try it.

Obviously, if he leaves you to do all the cooking and housework then there is an issue here, a much bigger one, but I still think an adult can decline food they don’t wish to eat.

Bit of an overreaction to him not liking something which is pretty unpleasant. I DO cook for myself and my family and I wouldn't serve or eat it.

He works full time. You work full time. Yet because you don’t commute (and presumably don’t hide in an office pretending to work as soon as you get home), you do everything else while he gets to opt out?
Nah, I wouldn’t be having that.

Yes he is BU to complain about a meal he didn’t chose, plan or cook in front of the DC. Of course they would turn their noses up too.

This isn’t about cooking chicken in a bag!

He gets home around 4/5? Then he can take on half the dinners. Why wouldn’t you insist on this as a minimum? I bet he wouldn’t be so quick to complain then.

I always cook, and by default that means we always eat what I want 😀

OP said it was the serving suggestion. I guess it’s just Italian herb seasoning but really it’s just chicken & peppers

So chicken with oregano type herbs and cous cous? How can that be so awful you can't eat it?

I think he was rude. I’d be giving him responsibility for cooking 2-3 nights a week, including shopping for it.

Italian food with cous cous?

If you wanted to be fair, you could point out he has two hands and a brain and could cook for himself or even <horrified gasp> for his family.

Because I’m not a child

To be fair those Maggi bag things are notably unappetising. Tried one once...watery and flavourless, mushy wet chicken. No one here finished it.

I can imagine my stomach broiling at the thought of eating it so I reserve the right, along with that of anyone else in my family to go 'bleuch' at being presented with a plate and opting to have something else. A sandwich would be much preferable.

Sorry if that's being an apologist or whatever but no, it's not nice food.