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AIBU?

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Original poster

Do people really eat a cooked meal every single night?

611 replies

JonesyAndTheSalad · 05/04/2017 11:24

I just can't!

I have done this week as we've got guests so it seems the polite and right thing to do...to cook a meal each night.

But the endless stream of meat and potatoes is awful!

We've had pasta one night but that was also with meat...another night we had pizzas...home made...the other nights it has been curry with chicken and rice and a variety of red meat with various potatoes.

I always ask the guests "What do you fancy this evening?" and it's always meat and potatoes of some kind!

Is this usual? Tonight I just didn't fancy it so said I didn't fancy a full meal and I ate some yogurt...they were a bit Shock

Do you eat like this every night? Or do you sometimes think "Meh I'll have a sandwich" or "The kids will be happy with egg on toast and some fruit"

Or is it only me?

OP posts:
Jurassictit · 05/04/2017 16:49

Because for me putting a chicken kieve or a fish finger in the oven is not cooking !!

BoboChic · 05/04/2017 16:56

I have a hot meal at lunchtime too, but it's generally lighter than the evening meal and is often something super easy like ravioli from our fabulous Italian deli stand at the market. I want DD to have a hot lunch but I don't want to spend hours cooking midday.

MrsJayy · 05/04/2017 16:57

We have dinner every night yeah not always meat and not alwayxs cooked from scratc tonight it is kievs baked potato and coleslaw , but yoghurt isn't dinner i would be munching my arm if i had yoghurt for dinner.

Teutonic · 05/04/2017 16:58

Yes, almost always a meat or fish with 2 veg dish, except for Saturday's when we either eat out or get a take away.
I work night shift, DH works day shift so we eat when he arrives home from work in the early evening. Always at the table.

Persemillion · 05/04/2017 16:59

Yes, we cook every meal every single night, but weekends. Some weekends we are at my parents or in laws for lunch, some we have a BBQ at home along them and friends.

We love to cook and we also believe in clean eating, so we don't have a hard time with our choice.

Ohyesiam · 05/04/2017 17:03

Yes, i cook every night. Not do much of the meat and potatoes though. More stir fry, curry, one pot stuff, fish, Thai.
Maybe you are a grazer?

shaggedthruahedgebackwards · 05/04/2017 17:06

We have a home cooked meal most evenings but will serve up something easy like beans on toast or a freezer type meal (pizza or chicken nuggets & french fries) once or twice a week on average

If we've eaten out at lunch time on a weekend then we'll just having something light and easy on the evening (beans on toast, cereal)

A yoghurt wouldn't be sufficient instead of an evening meal for me

cheerylilthing · 05/04/2017 17:14

We try & do a meal every night (unless we're out) & meal plan accordingly. Sometimes it goes to pot if we're exhausted & we might have something on toast instead or a takeaway but generally we stick to it.

We've recently bought a couple of new cook books to make things a bit more interesting/give us more motivation so we're not making the same quick meals.

Chattymummyhere · 05/04/2017 17:18

Always a cooked meal here even if the only cooked part is pasta. Couldn't have a sandwich for dinner.

milkshake1973 · 05/04/2017 17:21

Yes, we cook every night although it's quite often veggie. My DH also 'has' to have pudding every night too - he's slim and never puts on weight for which I hate him. I have a pretty physical job currently so I don't think i'd be able to cope with something little!

My SIL does absolutely eat only a yoghurt for dinner all the time though.

BewtySkoolDropowt · 05/04/2017 17:24

LadyMonicaBaddingham Wed 05-Apr-17 15:40:17
Surely egg on toast is a cooked meal too..? Raw egg and bread sounds less appealing somehow.

I have been thinking the same thing. A bacon sandwich is also cooked (one would hope). I'm also a little confused by the notion that bacon, egg and sausage is a lighter option. Lighter than what? Steak and chips with no veg maybe, but it's certainly not lighter than the majority of main meals that we have in our house!

Eliza9917 · 05/04/2017 17:25

Proper cooked or prepared dinner every night here too. Hot food in the winter.

Even if we don't cook it we still eat a proper meal. An uncooked meal would be brie/chedder/ham, pickled onions, cherry tomatoes, lettuce, gherkins, olives, coleslaw, piccalilly, pickle etc.

I don't eat bread so sandwiches/toast & toppings/soup are out.

Itaintme · 05/04/2017 17:27

Sometimes if we both get home from work late and are knackered we just have a bowl of porridge or cereal for dinner.

Eliza9917 · 05/04/2017 17:32

We rarely get a takeaway now as trying to be healthier but we do eat out. Never eat veggie though, meals are always based around meat.

TwentyCups · 05/04/2017 17:44

I tend to have one hot meal one cold/lighter one.

So a typical day

B- banana
L-avocado salad with toast
T- roast vegetables with chickpeas and couscous.

I may then have the leftovers from that tea for lunch the next day, in which case the following days tea will be bruschetta or salad etc.

Works for me. As soon as I'm home from work I make my pack up for the next day and then cook dinner. I like cooking and it's my way of unwinding after work.

Cagliostro · 05/04/2017 17:46

We eat veggie a fair bit, not through planning really we just don't buy a lot of meat as it's expensive. If I do use say chicken in a pasta meal it will be a really small amount, cut small so it goes further!

AHedgehogCanNeverBeBuggered · 05/04/2017 17:52

Twenty what do you do for protein? I know chickpeas contain it, but not a lot, and certainly not enough for a day. Do you eat a lot of dairy or nuts?

NB I'm just being nosy, feel free to tell me MYOB!

HeffalumpsnWoozles · 05/04/2017 18:06

I do all the cooking and after a day at work it's the last thing I want to do, at least once a week I'll have scrambled egg on toast or similar as the idea of cooking yet again fills me with rage!

delilahbucket · 05/04/2017 18:09

Yes a cooked meal every single day unless we have been out for a big lunch. Our lunches are light. Couldn't possibly survive the evening on a yogurt when I've had some prawns, avocado and a couple of ryvita all day! We always eat together as a family. Sometimes it's the only time we get together during the week.

Trifleorbust · 05/04/2017 18:13

It's not weird to not eat a full meal every day, OP. It is a bit weird to impose that rule on guests, who are unlikely to just want to snack at dinner time.

Whatatododo · 05/04/2017 18:20

I think it depends on the size of your family and who is at home. When there were four of us I would cook every night. Now it's just me and one child I don't make as much effort. I tend to make what I know dc likes/will eat.

Sometimes I'm quite happy with a ham sandwich and a cup of tea.

Hotdrop1 · 05/04/2017 18:34

Yes I do a cook a meal every night - even though I'm a useless cook and hate cooking. I have a very short list of quick recipes that I rotate. I grew up having a hot meal every night so it feels right to me (even though it's a pain at times).

Hulababy · 05/04/2017 18:40

Most nights we have a cooked meal, well Monday to Friday anyway. We mainly have a sandwich or salad for lunch and by the time its dinner time around 7pm we are ready for something a bit more substantial.

It isn't all just meat and two veg though. And yes, sometimes it might be as simple as an omelette.

PeachyImpeachment · 05/04/2017 18:49

Yes, a cooked meal every night, even though I'm not a fan of cooking.

TwentyCups · 05/04/2017 19:00

Hedgehog - my salads always contain either nuts or a dollop of hummus to get the extra protein in :)

My meals always contain either nuts, chickpeas, beans, quinona or lentils in some way or another to cover protein. I don't eat eggs or dairy so always conscious to keep meals balanced. I don't mind questions at all Smile