Husband saves food then throws away

[Easilyanxious]

If we have a dinner or take away and a little bit is left over when tidying away my husband will always insist I keep the little bit left as he will have it later
He never does and it really annoys me as he leaves it on side or if lucky puts it in the fridge for me to end up chucking later
It can be something like a couple spoonfuls not anything worth saving
Aibu to just insist we throw it straight away
If it was something worth saving then fine I would plate and put in fridge
Maybe it's just annoying me as it's lock down and I have nothing better to do than keep tidying up .

That is annoying.

Possibly a bit of a stretch but did he grow up without much food? I have a friend who grew up in quite a poor household and often went hungry, she always keeps a bit of food behind ‘just in case’ she needs it later. She’s pretty financially secure and can afford all the food she needs, but it’s like a habit she can’t break because she has the unconscious fear she’ll be hungry and not have anything.

I always plate any leftovers and put them in the fridge, in case anyone fancies them the next day.

If they don't then fair enough, I just throw it but I'd rather give it a chance to be eaten.

Could be worse - he could always eat the leftovers and be obese. Pretty minor as character flaws go. I'm with Sparkles, sounds like a food restriction as a child thing, I know a fair few from growing up poor myself. Most (including me... awareness ain't the same as fixing it) are now chubby or full-on lardy. Working on it though.

Yes food went quick in his house and I think it was a first come first served thing and nice things were restricted
I understand not wanting to waste and if it's a reasonable amount I will always save but sometimes it's like 2 spoonfuls of Chinese And he never eats it the next day and ends up me throwing it anyway I just think I could save the dirty plate

I'm the one with more of the weight issue hence why I probably want it thrown so I don't end up eating it ? I've never looked at it that way

Funnily enough I do this. It’s silly really, I just hate throwing out ‘good’ food, I’d rather wait until it’s bad and then I can justifiably throw it without feeling guilty for disposing of edible food when there are people starving in this city.

That said I did make a breakfast hash brown out of leftover potatoes the other day so they do sometimes get used!!

I do it because I have hungry teenagers who often get the munchies at odd times.

Throwing it away a day later really doesn't bother me.

However, it would bother me if my DH saved it and just left it on the side for me to deal with.

I agree with @Dollywilde I can't throw away good for as its a waste. And will try to eat it the next day - if I don't and it goes bad then I don't feel so bad. I grew up poor which may be why.

Maybe he’s not very imaginative what to do with it. We use small amounts of roasted veg or similar for omelettes/frittata/ pasta for lunch next day. Even tiny bits of leftovers make a tasty ingredient.

We store leftovers, the dogs appreciate them if no-one else does.

My husband does this too. I just chuck it as soon as I can

Tell him to pack it up and put it in the fridge then, if he won't then just chuck it. If he will then remind him to eat it

I'm a bit like this and can't bear food being chucked, especially if it's something homemade. I will always keep at least until the next day to give it a chance of being eaten. Actually, I really love leftovers...

What does he say when you ask him why he says that he will eat it but never does?

If he's always done that he probably won't change and if he's not involved in food planning, purchasing, management, waste disposal and associated cleaning and tidying he's probably blissfully unaware of how he is adding to your workload.

Just leave it on the side, in the microwave or in the fridge and then just hand it to him the next day and say 'can you deal with this please' so he can either eat it or chuck it and wash the unnecessary dirty plate or put it in the dishwasher if you have one. The food management fairies are streamlining their workload and this task didn’t make the list.

Yes, I'd serve it up as part of his next meal.

DH does this all the time. His mum is much older than mine and he was definitely raised in a home where nothing was wasted.
I usually let him put it in the fridge then throw it away when he's out at work the next day and pretend I've eaten it for my lunch

I had an ex that used to do the same. It also stemmed from not having enough food in childhood. I think he knew full well the food would end up in the bin, but couldn’t bring himself to be the one that was throwing it away.

What happens if you just say “no “ to saving it and throw it away straight away? If it’s getting binned eventually anyway, does it matter to him when it is binned?

Mine does this too. I put it down to his childhood when there wasn't much food to fill him up because his parents prioritised fags and booze.

Mine does this too!

I don't mind so much, as it means he cleans out the fridge and gets rid of all the minging horrors festering away in there, and cleaning out the fridge is one of my least favourite jobs.

I always save left overs and invariably they are eaten the following day. They often turn up in a slightly different form - DS1 refers to it as Frankenstein food.

I just don't agree with throwing away food.

My dh does this too.I humour him at the time then throw it when it inevitably doesn't get eaten.

My husband does this!!!! Drives me insane. Random potatoes and bits of salad left rotting for days until I inevitably throw it out.

I do this. I can't bear to throw good food away. Somehow I don't mind knowing it will probably get chucked out a couple of days later anyway! It doesn't seem like a massive deal to me OP?

I do this too. To be fair though I generally do end up eating it.

I can't believe so many people are throwing food away. Well, I can but I'm shocked, I tell you, shocked.

Left over food here gets boxed up and fridged. It always seems to get used up. Breakfasts and lunches are often built around leftovers. I even have to cook extra of some stuff, especially rice, to allow for this.