AIBU- hot food v cold food..

[BertrandRussell]

I was reading a thread earlier where people seemed to be dismissing a very substantial picnic as a snack, and that people would need something hot later, which I thought was a bit odd. And then tonight, we weren’t having a sit down dinner because of the foot ball, so I made myself an amazing sandwich with good bread, lots of salad and some left over steak with left over roasted vegetables on the side. I offered to make the same for teenage ds, but he said he’d make himself a “proper meal” later. What he did was make some mashed potato, and heat up the steak and the vegetables and eat it with a side salad. He insists that his meal was much more substantial than mine, and mine was more of a snack. Despite the fact that the quantities and ingredients were the same, and the only difference was that his was hot, and he had mash instead of bread. I think he’s bonkers. You all agree with me, surely?

Cold food is a proper meal! I love a properly nice sandwich or salad for lunch or dinner. Nothing wrong with it!

I’ve never ever understood why people think cold food is somehow less nutritious than if it was hot.

You’re right.

I think it’s a common thing though. My kids love a picky tea - basically cold meats, veg sticks, dips, maybe garlic bread, cheese and tortilla or baguettes. If they ever mention it to my mum she asks when they’re getting their dinner?!

You're absolutely right, but psychologically I cannot accept a sandwich as a proper evening meal. I'm

How odd. I've been living for my salads in this heat.

I have a problem with cold savoury foods. I don't like sandwiches, and leftovers eaten cold I find repulsive. I'm a bit afraid of buffets, and nobody must ever describe food as 'picky' . Salad can be delicious, but I like something hot with it to counteract the coldness. It's a weird sensory thing I have I think.

Crackers and cheese is the only cold meal I truly enjoy, but it takes an unholy amount of cheese to satisfy my appetite.

I can happily eat cold puddings, including cold custard and rice pudding

It’s just a sort of rigidity.
I m partly Greek, where hot food is treated with suspicion.

I know it's irrational but I feel a bit like this - I always feel much fuller after something hot, even if it's a panini vs a sandwich, for instance. Obviously I do eat and enjoy cold meals, but it is somehow ingrained me in that a hot meal is a 'proper meal', especially at night.

HOWEVER, this all goes out the window on holiday or when it's very hot - so at the moment I'd definitely take a sandwich over mashed potato, and we've been having lots of 'salad and bits' dinners. But for about ten months of the year I do, unreasonable as it is, feel a bit cheated if my evening meal is cold.

I agree - somehow I never do a cold meal as our main meal - but that is probably partly to do with our grown up son, who still lives with us, despising salads!

I remember, years ago, colleagues who were dieting having salad for lunch which consisted of almost exactly the same food as we non-dieters were eating i.e. potatoes and meat but magically it was lower calorie than hot stuff!

Yanbu.
A friend of mine always insists her dc must have a proper hot meal every day. Even if her proper hot meal is nuggets, chips, and beans and my cold meal is mackerel, potatoes, and salad; hers is better because it's hot.

How do you have left over steak?

nobody must ever describe food as 'picky' .

^^
This! Horrible way of talking about food.

The answer to the OP's question I have no idea.

It's clearly madness. I could effervesce on why it's wrong. But it's too hot and I can't be arsed.

I know that there is not necessarily no significant difference between the nutrition or 'filling power' of hot food vs cold food, and that cold food can be more substantial or nutritious than hot food, or be very similar, like your example OP.

However, most of the time, I much prefer hot food and I find it more satisfying. I also know that this is just me and others think differently. I would always choose a slice of pizza or a cheese toastie over a cheese sandwich for example and I rarely eat salad as a meal, more of an accompanyiment to hot food like lasagne.

But I agree that there was nothing at all wrong with the picnic referred to in the OP and do disagree when people cite 'a few picky bits' as a light meal, because quite often, the calories in a sandwich or some cheese, meat, bread, crisps, tapasy or antipasti bits will exceed that of a hot meal of some lean meat, fish and vegetables or salad.

Some people are just like that. Its not even the nutrition. I think theyre very old fashioned.

You’re right for sure. I’m in Australia so for at least 6mths a year my meals are almost all cold and that doesn’t make them any less substantial than a hot meal. The concept in itself is really bizarre to me.

Maybe because hot food is eaten slower than cold food and so it fills you up as you take time to properly eat it so as not to burn yourself so you end up focusing on what youre puting in your mouth more and the smell wafting from the steam coming out of it stimulate your sense of smell too.

I wrote this very same thread a few months ago OP.

Hot food is completely overrated, I'd much prefer a cold buffet/picnic!

Probably the same people on here that think that soup with a toasty cheese sandwich can't possibly be a filling nutritious meal.

It is one thing to prefer one over the other, but to say that one has more value is stupid.

Mind you, I feel the same thing about the furore about wearing cotton trousers vs cotton pjs or a cotton sundress vs a cotton nightie.

We regularly have a steak sandwich as a meal. Just like you, with a nice salad....lovely oil and herbs etc. It's fine! This is why people are obese of course.

They eat that and don't think it's a meal. So have a meal later.

You’re right, OP. People are a bit funny about this.

Salad with mashed potato? That is just wrong.

I don't understand people that don't get hot and cold on the same plate either.

Scampi, chips, peas and salad anyone?

I'd happily eat a sandwich for every meal, so I'm fine with cold food. I've never heard of people thinking hot food is more filling, how very odd!

I'm not keen on salad (or rather, I'm not keen on leaves - I like the tasty bits), but put anything in bread and it tastes better.