To ban cooking for teenage boys

[Boysfood]

I have 3 teen ds 15,17 and 19.

They cook all the time. Breakfast lunch , I make dinner they then cook in evenings and when getting home. My electric bill is too high.

I’ve asked them to have cereal or toast or instant porridge etc for breakfast. Sandwiches etc for lunch and snacks to be something that doesn’t need cooking. We always have these type of things available but they ignore me and start cooking. I can’t remove the oven etc and they often do this when I’m out or in bed. Only 19 year old works so I can charge him more rent to cover his share but others still in education and I don’t know what to do .

I think they’ve out numbered you and are just using their majority to have their own way roughshod over you. It’s your house and you are paying the bills. The oldest is contributing but that doesn’t give him the right to veto your feelings and encourage his younger brothers to do the same.
When I had teenagers they defo ate like horses but there wasn’t any cooking after dinner. They are treating you like a tiresome household appliance and are being very disrespectful.
There is absolutely no need for them to be cooking brownies at all hours. They can cook them during the day to consume later.
All this bullshit over your bag of organic oats, it’s your one thing, they should respect that. There are so many threads about greedy husbands eating their partners treats. These are not starving children. These are disrespectful young men probably following some twat on social
media telling them to eat pounds of oats and pasta and meat. I’m surprised the op hasn’t said they also insist on a dozen eggs each a day.
Sorry I’m not offering any solutions as I can’t think of any way of negotiating with three entitled arses and getting any where. I doubt there’s any leverage left. Where’s the father in all this?

This seems to be the root issue tbh. Time to get genuinely strict and issue real consequences before it’s too late. Kids drown out nagging especially if there’s no tangible follow up

Sorry, quoted the wrong person .

It really should not. Why would the replace them? They need their money to buy food you are not providing. They see replacing the oats as your job. Probably because it is.

How are they going to make trays of hash brownies in a small airfryer?

Ive made a walnut and coffee cake in mine, banana bread, cherry cake and pavlova. As well as scones

Not all air fryers are born equal. You buy one that suits the need of the family

Very easy, I have done it (minus the hash) and cup cakes too.

they Are also obviously entitled. The op can’t afford this and has offered lots of food options- unlike many children they do not have to go hungry for a moment.

You have 3 teen boys who like to cook healthy meals and you want to stop them first you say it's because it uses a little electric then you say it's because they ignore you. If they are not eating avocados and sandwiches use the money you save from that to pay for electric. I can't believe you cut a 15 and 17 year old pocket money to pay for electric for cooking a healthy meal. You could ask each DS to cook one day enough for his siblings too so only one lot of cooking going on. Also the air fryer uses less electricity but can't be used to cook pasta which only takes a few minutes so can't be using much electricity anyway.

Sounds stressful! i’m sure everyone will say wow how lucky your sons cook!! we can’t win can we!!
my son 17 eats pot noodles buys them himself!
good luck getting control of YOUR kitchen !!
it might not last long so other option is to grin and bear it!! and hope the phase passes over either way mumsnet is good for ranting x

Holy shit I missed the bit where OP is making her kids buy their own food out of pocket money.

I would think three teenagers there must be a lot of devices on standby using energy. Perhaps this is something to check.

it is a good thing they are able to cook healthy food at home. How much would they be spending on takeaways or eating out.

you are being very unreasonable. Lots of ideas on here to prepare batches of protein snacks.

i hear teenage boys do eat a lot!! This is very normal!

Absolutely, and I spend lots of time working out how to feed my active 10 year old enough. The prawns would have tipped me over the edge, and I’d tell them all I’m not their bank account cook and I’m not shopping or cooking for anyone next week, I can’t afford to use the gas for big meals as they’ve used up all my budget for it, and pointedly to the eldest ‘if you’re 19 and think you don’t have to listen to anyone who’s name is actually on the house perhaps you should he looking for somewhere to live and pay your own bills, you’re not 3 years old that I have to put up with the disrespect.’ I’d scramble myself some eggs on toast for dinner, put my organic oats in my bedroom somewhere, and think things through for at least a week.

I can't believe the roasting you're getting on here OP - in your position I'd be furious with the constant cooking, in terms of the cost, mess and general inconvenience. And I hate this stupid protein fad, especially when it's combined with body building which I think is hideous.

In your place OP I'd simply stop cooking for them completely and let them cook for themselves. Give them whatever amount of money you can sensibly afford and let them sort out their own meals. It will free you from the tedium of shopping and cooking and all you'd need to do is cook your own food. I certainly wouldn't be tolerating the current level of disrespect and neither would I be providing a maid service to three hulking great men who are doing their best to eat you out of house and home!

OP has stated that she cooks dinner but they are cooking again,often when she’s in bed.
They cook for breakfast and lunch when they could have cereal,fruit,sandwiches etc
I don’t have the answer as my daughters are sometimes the same..I’ll do dinner ie spaghetti bolognaise and they’ll say,” I don’t want any now I’ll have something later” and unless I actually have bare cupboards they’ll do something at 9-10pm 😡

Loading up on carbs is not a good habit to adopt, eating more protein will keep them full for longer.

If they are wanting to cook, could they not take it in turns with you to cook the family meals? You could plan things the whole family can eat and if one of them decides he wants to cook earlier than a set meal time, could he not make enough that it becomes dinner for the rest of you? If they are keen to cook don’t discourage it but try and push them towards cooking things you can all eat, or be batch cooked and frozen

No she isnt. She is saying that there is plenty of food on offer andd if they dont want that then they buy it themselves. What is wrong with that?!

She's only offering them cold food like sandwiches and fruit in February.

Why don’t you get them to batch cook and leave the rest in the fridge/freezer for when they are hungry. Air fryers are much cheaper than conventional ovens.

Teenage boys wanting to cook! You shouldn't stop that! As long as they wash up and tidy up after themselves then it can only be a good thing.

Be grateful you have three healthy boys who can cook for themselves

You didn’t say how much the chicken breast weighed, small ones can be 100 grams to larger ones 250+.
Being fully grown me, I only need 100 but a growing male at least 200. If you put enough on their plates in the first place it would stop them looking for food an hour later. Batch cook their oat-based cake for dessert.
Sandwiches are not good to satisfy them so why waste time and money offering them. If they like spaghetti with eggs on top why not?

Wont someone think of the children?!!!!

Cop on to yourself! There is plenty of food available and no one "offers" food to a teenager, they are not weaners! They know full well that there is food available including a hot meal once a day, these are not staved "children".

And unless they live in a cave, the temperature of the food is hardly going to do them any harm.

I think you need to make these boys a bigger meal - super quantity of protein, ladles of pasta, veg. If they’re cooking sarnies an hour after dinner they’re not satisfied. These lads are growing. They eat way more than us. I’d have eggs galore in the fridge, cheese, if you can stretch to it always keep some bags of frozen chicken and salmon in the freezer. Nuts as snacks. My grocery bill is probably a third of what it is when my sons are away at uni. These guys are horses.