To not have a takeaway, roast dinner or dry up every week?

[Peanutbutterismyjam]

I was talking to a good friend yesterday about Easter, especially with the current situation. She mentioned that she's gutted she can't have her usual lamb roast dinner this Easter. I said we had a dinner last weekend so doubt we'd have one for Easter. Conversation then extended into roast dinners every week come hell or high water, weekend takeaways and fry ups, etc.

She has a takeaway every Friday, cooked breakfast every Saturday and a roast dinner every single Sunday, even during a heatwave. Her family have been this way since she moved in with her partner. They now have two boys 9 and 7. Neither particularly enjoy a dinner but will eat meat and Yorkshires with gravy. They can afford a takeaway most weeks but aren't loaded. It works for them.

We, however, rarely eat these things. I don't enjoy greasy food first thing in the morning, it repeats on me. I will have eggs on toast occasionally. Takeaways are for days like Mother's/Father's Day, rare night off, celebrations. I like a dinner but not every week. I find it a huge faff, a good couple hours of cooking, lots of washing up, and all eaten in no time at all. I'd honestly rather have pasta for a quick/easy/lazy meal. To add, my children are still small. My 3 year old has a restricted diet (ASD) and doesn't touch meat or veg, the baby will. Neither like pancakes, despite a few attempts, I won't give them takeaways yet due to salt content. They will however, happily wolf down homemade pizzas, and peanut butter on toast instead of a fry up.

Light-hearted conversation but she was fascinated with the that we won't be having a roast dinner tomorrow. We are having roast chicken, homemade flatbreads, tzatziki, and, Greek salad with feta.

So, AIBU to not have takeaway, cooked breakfast or a roast dinner every week? Do any of you? Just curious.

WAKE UP AND STOP EATING ANIMALS!

You need to calm down, you’re being too loud.

And now I want a bacon sandwich.

You're both unreasonable! I had melon with Parma, full roast lamb dinner, homemade pavlova and cheese for lunch today and fed someone with ASD. We have frequent roasts, cooked breakfasts and takeaways. Less takeaway now due to lockdown but actually lockdown hasn't affected our meals that much. She's BU for whining about a non existent issue and you're BU by judging her for her diet.

@SoupDragon I’m genuinely amazed that people cannot accept the correlation between pandemics and animal agriculture - it’s fact, not fiction. It’s time to imagine a better way forward. I’m feeling particularly frustrated and upset as I have already lost a colleague and a dear friend to Covid-19. I hope your loved ones stay safe 💜

It’s time for people to stop eating meat like this. Animal agriculture in 2020 is a disaster. Coronavirus is a wake up call - it’s a zoonotic disease. Swine flu came from us eating pigs, bird flu was chicken etc. WAKE UP AND STOP EATING ANIMALS!
This doesn’t make anyone have a vegan revelation, it’s just irritating.

see how calm you feel when you’ve lost someone you love to Covid

You should be ashamed of that comment.

Hours of cooking and washing up?

It should only take as long as the chicken takes to cook to make a full roast.

And that's around 90 mins. Most of that is either watching it or playing with the baby

Dear god I swear this place has been invaded by shit stirring derailing vegans this weekend

I think vegans are one of the only groups of people in this world who actually make people want to do the exact opposite of what they try and persuade them to do. Making comments like that just makes me want to go and shove a beef joint in, just so I can say I’m nothing like you.

Don’t judge all vegans by comment like those. Most of us aren’t arseholes.

@Strugglingtodomybest

Why ??
That's just hilarious. I mean - you don't really, do you ? Surely nobody would get in and out of the bath to put different things in the oven

What's the actual point of this thread ? Its lighthearted you say ? It doesn't seem it to me - you maybe felt judged - and picked on perhaps ? I never eat fry ups, unless I'm at a pub or trying to do something easy for dinner...I do enjoy a bacon sandwich at the weekend but because a) I like it & b) you can cook bacon in a microwave!. We used to eat roast dinners a lot , but we gave up having them as they're so much work. Who wants the same thing for dinner every week (obviously your friend , does) ?! There's such a thing as too much of a good thing. Plus , fry ups are not so good for you especially if they are fried. It's just eating , at the end of the day. It's not your life, it's hers and vice versa . Don't sweat it. Live & live. Say "oh well that suits you & that's fine , but I find cooking it all a chore /faff and we do easier meals". And move on. Breezily and happily. It takes all sorts to make a world go round. Your way isn't necessarily 'right' and nor is hers , but you don't have to do her washing up or cook a full roast every week, so don't worry about it! I do agree with the takeaway , mainly cos it gives my partner a break and I don't want to cook on a fri .

YANBU, but don’t judge your friend.

We only have a takeaway as a treat in my house, I can’t remember the last time we had a fry up and we only have a Sunday roast, about once a month.
However, our schedules do not always match up, so traditional family meals are not the norm here.

Lots of my friends have a Sunday roast every week, no matter what, same with fry ups, takeaways, fish fridays and dining out. For some it’s traditional, some it’s habitual and for a few people I know, it’s down to needing to keep routine in their households.

As long as everyone eats and is happy and healthy, who cares!

I do have to add though, with everyone in my house either WFH or furloughed atm, I’m rather enjoying our family meals together.

I did find a pub that delivered roast dinners ...but alas they've folded...buggar it...

And re the comments re coronovirus coming from bats etc ...and eating them ...there have been many diseases caused by many things but we didn't have the knowledge of vaccines, antibiotics and medicines that we do now. The black death was caused by rats , the fleas on the rats bit the people (as far as I remember) and that was transmitted to people that way...so whatever way you want to argue or swing it...you'll get things passing from humans to people and vice versa... Germany's medicines are further on than anywhere else in the world and we know how that one turned out (6 million plus people, murdered and tortured, needlessly please look up the German dr who experimented on twins Mandolee I can't remember how to spell it). Coronovirus is serious. I don't doubt that. But will people stop eating animals just because a vegan said so ? Especially when they throw hate out like that ? No. It's TRUE we are far removed from the process of killing animals , but that had nothing to do with whether a roast dinner should or shouldn't be served did it ? We will always have viruses. They do kill people. It's not really the fault of the people, or the animals...and animals eat other animals ....so if the animal they eat has something wrong with it ...what happens then ?

I think people are too lazy nowadays

I think people are too sanctimonious nowadays.

^

Sums up MN really these days

Who gives a shit, really. Competitive healthy eating is sooooo boring. Her home sounds like my kinda place TBH!

@BackforGood

Why ??
That's just hilarious. I mean - you don't really, do you ? Surelynobodywould get in and out of the bath to put different things in the oven

I honestly do! I know it's a bit weird, but I spend so much time in the bath, I'm always in and out of it. It's where I go for peace and to read.

On another note, this thread inspired a fry up yesterday, so thank you OP.

Why is everyone bashing on about vegans, she was talking about not eating meat - that's a vegetarian.

Each to their own.

My eating habits are like yours to be honest but I don't give a monkeys what other people prefer to do. I had an ex who's family had a set menu for every day of the week, Tuesday spag bol night, Wednesday pork chop night... every week for over 20 years. He loved it and got really excited by his favourite days, I had nothing but dread - im a throw together what ive got person and only buy what looks good at the time ie if the fish is not great i'll buy chicken but they would buy the fish because it was fish day whatever it was like. It's what works for people. I don't like routine and get bored easily, other people thrive on routine and cant stand my relaxed ways.

we Had chicken enchiladas for our Sunday dinner yesterday 🇲🇽 , I think traditions are great though and lamb on Easter Day sounds great too, I say eat what you want and these times especially, food is a pleasure I think.
Just don’t drink wine before noon 😉😬

We often have a 'roast' midweek. Not sure where that leaves us

We have had this for years with both families, my DH and his job over the years was always takeaway lunches roast dinners on a Sunday, three usual meats shoulder of pork chicken, or a beef I can never remember which one I had to get! Yorkshire puddings with every bloody roast. DH went and got a shoulder of pork for Sunday and my 11 year old had a slice and my 7 year old will only eat vegetables and the Yorkshire a Pudding, I had Plaice and jacket potato and peas, I didn’t over indulge I didn’t put any weight on and just felt content.. That is your friend, I have had to live with one of the above scenarios for 14 years 😄😄 he ate the 1kg shoulder of pork over 48 hours 💙💙

I don't think I've ever cooked a fry up. We have takeaways about once a month (or if I'm too tired to cook), and I only cook a roast about 4 times a year maximum.

I think you’re massively overestimating how ‘fascinated’ your friend was by all this.