To ban cooking for teenage boys

Nothing to do with martyrdom - simply putting my family first as many others do.

Slow cooker , air fryer and microwave are the way to go to keep the leccy down

Sounds like they have jumped onto the "Protein" bandwagon , but seem to think protein only comes from lean meats/fish and powders . They would be better off learning about nutrition properly and that a mixed and varied diet will be more filling , more protein rich then all the chicken breasts they can scoff

I have to watch the pennies, but I get plenty of protein, using tinned fish, cheaper cuts of meat, ( I eat a lot of turkey and pork compared to beef and chicken ) and I use pules and grains , cottage cheese etc . Premium cuts are usually used in stir fry/ asian dishes where the base is mostly mostly veg or pulses and the meat is a flavouring near enough

I invested in a 15 in 1 pot which is cheap to run. In it I make my own greek yoghurt, bread, cakes, stews, casseroles, ( slow cook or pressure cook ) , pasta is cooked in minutes, baked and fried good the same I can cook a roast chicken dinner. with all the veg in just over an hour

Hob cooking is a lot cheaper then oven cooking, microwave cheaper then the hob. I rarely use the oven or grill, but Im a confident cook and can cook over a candle if I need to :)

How are they going hungry? She has loads of options of different foods she doesn't want them cooking, she'd rather they make something that doesn't require cooking, she did explain that..!!

She didn't say that they couldn't eat. Just not energy needy, expensive protein based food. Perfectly reasonable when there are other foods.

'You shouldn't have had them'. Where is the father blame?

It is freezing though. Hot food is so much more satisfying in winter!

Missed the healty meals bit.
Where was that then?

A good £1 a day saving for me. I have a small single bucket one, used mainly for reheating batch cook meals, chips, chicken fillets etc. I paid about £30 for it three years ago.

when the family come and I use the oven instead of the air fryer my bill rises over £1 a day for electricity for cooking an evening meal.

I have silicone liners from a cheap store which go in the dishwasher and make it simple to use it for multiple uses during the day if needed.

You seem very controlling, neglectfully so. They need more food than you ate allowing them. They are growing with fast metabolism. You shouldn't have had so many kids if you can't afford to feed them.

My three teen boys also love cooking and I am thrilled about it! They batch cook on Sunday evening and make regular snacks and sometimes breakfasts. I didn't notice much extra cost and am so pleased they are growing up to be independent young men. At first I was a little miffed that I wasn't needed as much but now I'm delighted. Maybe you can decide a little extra electrical cost is worth them being good cooks?

Unless you are really, really struggling, as in, choosing between heating and eating, I absolutely cannot imagine why you would restrict the food intake of your children. The fact you are buying "nice organic" food for yourself and them big bags of cheap food...what are you thinking?

I would choose to eat beans on toast 7 nights a week (and I hate beans with a passion) if it meant I could carry on ensuring my daughter could eat as much high quality food as she wanted.

They’re growing lads. I’d be thankful they’re learning how to cook and Id be asking them to include a portion for me so I didn’t have to cook and just heat up.
Just think at normal meal times I’d be sitting waiting for my meal.
Soon they’ll be leaving home and you can rest assured they have a healthy interest in food and looking after themselves (and so will their girlfriends).

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I don’t think Op can afford the organic oats for 3 hollow legged young men.

Personally I don't mind if my daughters eat three hot meals a day. It's not something I monitor.

All those saying they want hot food in February…like how many times per day?

@ChattyCatty25

the bar is soooooo low for boys/men! I bet you wouldn’t say that if OP was posting about daughters

Cooking pasta doesn't take long and it's cheap. Plus they're cooking, fantastic!!! Personally I want hot food in the winter. Cooking on the hob isn't expensive anyway. I think you're being unreasonable.

@Grizelina

you do know there’s no medals being given out for being a martyr?! Why should you be the one to eat the cheap stuff given presumably it’s you who’s worked hard to get the money to buy it in the first place? No one in a family should go without and eat cheap stuff to facilitate the excesses of others in the family

Agreed.

Teenagers have voracious appetites, especially boys. Lots of good suggestions about bulk buying and batch cooking you could teach your children which will serve them well in the future. My mother was critical about the amount of food we ate as teenagers and we all had eating disorders at one time or another.

Yes, but they don’t need to be constantly cooking food

I’d give my family the luxury ones and eat the cheap ones myself.

You do know that you dont get medals for martyrdom right?

Its so easy to see who has/had a teenage boy and who hasnt!

I suspect a serious sit-down conversation might work, starting with “I have a problem and you are the only ones who can help”

I think it’s great they’re cooking. My 16 year old DD occasionally sticks something in the air fryer but otherwise would only live on anything she can grab and go with least effort!

Junk food ? Toast fruit cereal ? OP didn’t mention junk food

@Boysfood you've said that the meals you cook them are enough for them to eat, but clearly they’re not as despite all the extra food they’re consuming they’re not overweight. If you’re struggling with the cost of the electric, then sit down with them and show them the bills and come up with a plan between you rather than trying to dictate to them. Re your oats, I personally think it’s rather mean for you to have luxury oats and give your sons the cheap ones - if I was them I’d be very hurt. I’d give my family the luxury ones and eat the cheap ones myself.

OP sorry but I think you are being unfair here. They either honestly really love cooking, in which case it's a legal, safe hobby and should be encouraged, or they are actually always hungry in which case it is your role to give them appropriate access to food. It's you who's being disrespectful to them here. You are not feeding them enough and then moaning about them feeding themselves - that's disrespectful unless you are helping to control weight gain for a child or mentally impaired adult who is unable to understand that they are hurting themselves by eating, which isn't the case if none of them is overweight.