What did your parents say when you asked what’s for dinner?

[SeraphinaRainbird]

Inspired by the thread about words used in different areas of the UK,
what was the stock answer to ‘What’s for dinner?’ in your house?
In our house it was “Ham, jam and baa lamb”. In my friend’s house it was “Shite with sugar on top”.

Shit with sugar on!

I’m of the generation where it would never have occurred to me to ask that question

Pigs head and cabbage is what my mam always said. Thanks op, I had forgotten that and it made me smile. (My mam passed away 2 years ago)

Wait and see

Air pie or bread and pullit (London 1960s).

Stewed balloons and rhubarb 🤣 so weird but I am carrying on the tradition with my dc.

Two jumps at the cupboard door.

😂 I don’t even have an answer for this! My parents pretty much never made me dinner as a child. They were not good with basic life skills and adulting. My grandparents fed me probably 5-6 nights a week. The other 1-2 nights we usually went out of got a takeaway. After about 12, I cooked for us.

I mean, truly. My mum is 76 and I’m pretty sure has never cooked a Christmas dinner in her life. I say my mum because they divorced and I only ever lived with her. We went to my grandparents and after they passed away, we got a Chinese for Christmas! Maybe it’s takeaway then. 🤣

‘Kippers and custard’ here too.

My dad's response was always 'a kick at the cat and a run round the table'.

I see from other posts this was a fairly common response!

Bread & jam then hop it!

In Farsi it was گشنه پلو با خورشت دلزعفه
Literally translating to hungry rice with starving stew

kick at the pantry door

Haha I have never heard of most of my phrases. If it was my Dad the answer was always a fry (that would take him ages to make). My mother is an excellent cook ans would give you a walkthrough of exactly what she was making and how. A bit like how the contestant on masterchef explain what they cooked to the judges. She experimented a lot. I admire kid me who wrote down the ingredients to some of my favorite experiments.

Cup of cold sick and a dogs eye!

Poo of some description, usually poo burger or poo pie.

Sawdust and hay

My mother would tell me.

I always tell my kids “snail cookies after your slugs on toast”
my mum would always say “you’ll know when it’s ready”

Wait and See

A doll, a drum, a kick up the bum and a chase around the table!

My Mother also said this, born in London 1920s. I never knew what it meant. Apparently:
AI Overview
"Bread and pullet" (often spoken as a play on words: "bread and pull it") is an old-fashioned British slang phrase used to describe a very poor or meager meal that consists of plain bread with no meat, butter, or toppings. 1, 2]
Meaning and Wordplay
The Joke: A "pullet" is a young hen or chicken. During times of hardship, children might ask what is for dinner and get the witty reply "bread and pull it"—meaning you get bread, and you just "pull" off a piece to eat because there is no chicken to go with it.
Frugal Living: It was a humorous way parents made light of having little to no food on the table. 1, 2]
History and Usage
Rationing Eras: The phrase became especially popular in the UK during and after World War II, as well as earlier Victorian times, when meat was an expensive luxury.

Whammel! Apparently it means nothing! We believed our mum ever time though like idiots 😂

Another one for air pie, but with ‘sprats eyebrows’ 😂

Bread and pull it.But I don’t think I had to ask often as we had the same menu week in week out!