Different Eating/Cooking Styles in Couple-dom

[Claire]

A couple of different threads have made me wonder: How many of you have had to make major adjustments in your cooking and eating styles once you married or moved in with a significant other? I joke that I married my husband because we were so in synch in what we liked, but it is true that eating and cooking is something you HAVE to do together for the rest of your lives, and heaven knows marriages have been made based on less. But there are always great stories out there about food when you're newly hitched up. 'Fess up.

 

[jkath]

I had to really change my cooking when I married. My h hates hates hates anything sweet for any meal (doesn't even care much for desserts, except ice cream). So, me, being raised on cranberry with my turkey, apples with my polish sausage and orange glaze on my ham, had to change. He also isn't a fan of casseroles or meat pies, which I also love. Fortunately, I've broadened my horizons, and have learned to really enjoy most of his likings. One day a week, he works late, so that's when the kids and I have a "mommy meal".

 

[pdswife]

lol... I just had to learn to cook when I got married to Paul. I thought
I already could but, it seems that I was wrong.

 

[texasgirl]

Didn't have to change. DH is pretty open to anything new. The only things he absolutely will not eat, green peas, cooked cabbage or kalamari.

 

[Andy M.]

S.O. isn't a foodie.

She'll eat and honestly evaluate anything I cook but asks me to avoid certain items. She's not a fan of beans so I can't make and serve a cassoulet or black bean soup.

She's very happy that she has no kitchen responsibilities as I'm a self-cleaning cook. I'm happy to "own" the kitchen as I was not allowed in the kitchen at all when I was married.

 

[Paint]

No changes....hubby is very happy to eat whatever I cook for him. He often leaves carrots on the side of his plate, and he doesn't like cabbage or brussel sprouts - but it's easy enough to just cook myself a portion and saute him some courgette instead.

Paint.

 

[kitchenelf]

When I met my husband, if he had been a picky eater, I don't know that we would have gotten married. I love to cook too much and I don't know if I could have made the sacrifice to cook "meat and potatoes" or NOT cook this long list of food. The first week we dated he was quite excited that I could cook and would jump up and down with joy when I made dinner - now THAT'S a happy foodie!

AndyM - Aren't you ever so thankful you are in the kitchen now!!!!!!!

 

[Andy M.]

...AndyM - Aren't you ever so thankful you are in the kitchen now!!!!!!!

I'm much happier now and that's just one of the reasons!

 

[Tutalady]

When we got married, I told my husband I would learn to cook the things he ate growing up but he was going to have to eat the things I ate growing up. He was from TX and I, from NY-it has worked well for us for 35 years. (He just puts tabasco on my "Yankee" food!)

 

[middie]

didn't have to change much. we're both pretty picky eaters and we like pretty much the same things. but there are things i like that he doesn't like so i don't get to make them much.

 

[AllenOK]

Not really so much major changes, but both PeppA and myself have had to learn to accept foods from outside our experiences. I'm a fairly open-minded person when it comes to food, as long as it's flavorful. Unfortunately, PeppA was raised on plain, absolutely, plain food, no salt, pepper, etc. I have to tone down many of the things that I make so that she can eat it.

Sadly, while PeppA usually eats what I make, I have to force myself to eat what she or her mother makes. Many times, I just can't eat it. It's not that the food is burned or anything, I just have some hangup's as to how food should be prepared, due to my culinary background and training.

 

[Lugaru]

I lived for several years with a girl who couldent boil water without burning it. She was a nice person and a good eater but I really couldent make stuff from scratch... I remember her thinking my rustic spagetti sauce tasted weird (as it didint come out of a jar) and when she tried my lasagna she thought it was great and asked me what brand it was. Im like "From scratch (tm)!".

Also we briefly did the atkins... that was fun if anything due to the creativity I had to pour into it. With some world cook books, the internet, biochemical (and microbiology) background and a little creativity I designed some really good low carb eats.

 

[corazon]

When I first met my husband, I thought he was one of those guys who would eat anything in front of him. As it turns out he is pickier than our toddler. He doesn't like eggs, what am I to make for breakfast? He doesn't like seafood, living in the Pacific NW. No Thai, cooked carrots or cooked spinach, goat cheese, chinese, anything too exotic, and it seems everything I really like he doesn't like at all. I am slowly getting him to like certain things but it takes a lot of time. He likes fruity desserts and I can't go a day without chocolate desserts. Opposites attract.

One thing that gets me through this is my husband's work schedule. He works 24-hour shifts, so on those days I get to cook for myself. Omlettes with goat cheese, sauteed spinach and grilled corn on the cob.
-Brooke

 

[luvs]

i don't live with my fiance yet. (he wants to get a pitbull and hang a mounted deer head in our house and i just won't have either in my house, so the chances of us finally getting hitched are diminishing rather quickly. if we do, i'll probably accidentally drop the deer head into the trash can on trash day, then accidentally put an ad in the paper for the pitbull.)
but i cook for him sometimes and we go out to eat a lot. we like the same things. we have steaks and pierogies a lot. eat n park if it's 2 or 3 in the morning.
we usually go to ruth's chris for dinner, or to this sushi bar that we love. he hates sushi but they also have a kitchen that offers Chinese food, so he orders that or something else that he likes.
i love my babe with all my heart. but i wouldn't change my cooking style or tastes for him or anyone else. cooking is my main thing, cooking is my fascination, and if he doesn't like what i'm making, well, he can make himself a sandwich.

 

[kyles]

My husband would not eat much in the way of veggies, he had been brought up on boring boiled veg. He had to change, and now eats all veg except celery!

 

[Bee]

When we got together he was a single man living out of tins and I was a divorcee who knew how to cook. I think I could've fed him practically anything and he would've sobbed with gratitude. I didn't have to change my cooking style until 9 years into our marriage when, at the age of 34 he was diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes. Overnight every meal had to contain some form of slow release carbohydrate. Nine years on and with son no2 also having been diagnosed it's a habit to plan every meal around the carbs. On the rare occasions when they are both out of the house I might prepare a meal without carbs just for the sheer **** of it!

 

[luvs]

My husband would not eat much in the way of veggies, he had been brought up on boring boiled veg. He had to change, and now eats all veg except celery!

boring boiled veggies are probably the main reason some people don't like them.
i wasn't allowed not to like my boiled veggies, lol. my Mom or Dad would say 'eat your vegetables' and that was that. i loved veggies, though. i still do, but i only cook them for a few minutes, usually.

 

[AllenOK]

For the life of me, I cannot force myself to eat canned spinach (smell makes me want to hurl), and the texture of boiled-to-death squash is the same. Lightly sauteed squash, or briefly grilled squash is great. I've always been able to eat raw spinach.

 

[kadesma]

For the life of me, I cannot force myself to eat canned spinach (smell makes me want to hurl), and the texture of boiled-to-death squash is the same. Lightly sauteed squash, or briefly grilled squash is great. I've always been able to eat raw spinach.

I'm with you Allen, the spinach tastes like tin cans to me..I feel the same way about soda in cans as well..I don't like any veggie cooked to death I want to taste and feel the texture..Shoot if I didn't want to shew, I'd stick a straw in baby food and have a go at that..
kadesma

 

[htc]

I think certain veggies in a can have a smell or funny taste to them. I can't eat canned baby corn, water chestnuts or mushrooms w/o rinsing them really well. If I don't, I swear I can taste/smell the tin.