Do you ever just not bother with an evening meal?

[MrsJBaptiste]

DH works nights and sometimes I'll just have a bowl of cereal or a bagel instead of a proper meal. Some friends think this is awful and they would never last the night without a big dinner.

I always give the kids a nice meal but sometimes there might not be enough for me (e.g. tonight they had leftover chilli) so I just grab something later. However by the time I'm in from the gym, fed them and tidied up it might be 8.30pm and there's no way I can be bothered faffing on with something then!

Surely I can't be the only one...?

Lucky we have a dishwasher so it’s not too bad :p

Toast for me. I just can't be arsed by the time I get home.

If nobody's home or for whatever reason there isn't enough to stretch I happily will eat some toast or a bowl of cereal. There are only certain dishes I love and would make sure I had, otherwise like others have said, I eat because that's what we have to do.

People can be strange about dinners and act like you're neglecting you or DC if you dont eat a hot plate full of dinner every night, after having a big lunch for example.

Yes! I’ll usually have something in the evening (e.g. a boiled egg or a banana or a mug of chicken broth) but if I am on my own it’s unlikely to be more than that. A full-sized meal can make me feel really sick and not sleep well. And sleep is my priority!

I frequently go without a meal - dh will grab cheese and crackers on those night. Sunday’s very rarely do I have an evening meal as we’ve stuffed at lunch.

When I am hungry on those nights I tend to go for twiglets 😳

We have cheese and crackers or toast at least a couple of night midweek.

And when I'm out at a work event I have champagne and canapés for dinner.

I regularly join in the family’s meal with a bowl of miso soup (basically just dishwater) or a fruit tea.
I know all about nutrients etc. and one skipped meal is not going to kill anyone. On the contrary, I sleep better without a full stomach struggling to digest a meal (7:30 is our usual dinner time) and don’t feel ravenous next morning.
I am on a low carb diet, however, and haven’t had hunger pangs for 18+ months.

Me too. If I didn't care about nutrition I would just live off toast and biscuits. I always wonder how it evolved that we serve cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch and meat and two veg for dinner. As long as you're eating something why would it matter, all food is food, right?

Yes, me. I love being home alone and just having snacks like fruit, toast and crackers. It could easily be as many calories as a normal dinner though, as it may include chocolate and/or chips if they are in the house.

On the other hand my DH seems to think he will die without a proper cooked meal for dinner.

My MIL is single and she admits to having cheese and crackers almost every night for dinner. My DH was horrified, I thought it was brilliant. Like looking in to my own future

Most evenings I do especially if I've had a massive lunch or a huge breakfast. I'll snack after that just handfuls of crisps or angle slices lol. I lost alot of weight doing this. Refuse to eat after a certain hour anyway.

You are absolutely right, the evening meal should be very light and lunch should be more substantial and robust. Unfortunately the British do it the other way around then wonder why they can’t shed the pounds. I see them munching on a thin sorry sandwich and a banana at lunchtime, then they go home after work and start cooking industrial amounts like Gordon Ramsey for an army. Hilarious!

I think it is the other way around. Much better to have a proper evening meal. I think it encourages bad habits just snacking and skipping meals

Yes. I have anything I like. Last night I had a sandwich. Tonight I had toast and then a chicken wrap. Sometimes I have cake.

I'm glad to see 47 is not considered old here as I feel ancient at the moment (but that may be because it is January 396th)

That aside though I do find if I have lunch and dinner, unless they are toddler portions, I gain weight. Which is really what I meant by old: my daily calorie intake has definitely reduced.

I do this about 4 times a week! Nothing better in my opinion. I eat a lot throughout the day (I'm a grazer, and work from home, so frequent snacks are very important in sustaining me!) and then by the time DD's in bed at 8ish I honestly can't face the thought of ploughing through a plate of meat or fish and veg etc, or a pasta or something. It's not even that I cba to cook, because DH cooks (he loves to).

Bagel/cereal/fruit/yogurt in any combination is ideal! At most I might stretch to a bit of cold chicken or salmon leftover from DD's meal, turned into a bagel sandwich.

Best way to eat dinner, imvho! Each to their own.