Do you cook meals your spouse hates?

[Anonymous]

My husband and I want to start a family so we are very focused on saving money. We used to both work very long hours out of the home and eat out for lunch and dinner. I accepted a new job and now work very close to home. I make a couple of really good dishes he likes but he is the pickier eater. I’ve made some recent recipes I’ve loved but he didn’t like. I want to make them again but I know my husband won’t eat them.

Do you cook meals your spouse won’t eat? If you do, how well does that go for you guys? Is it reasonable to cook meals I like but he doesn’t like?

[Anonymous]

Once in while. Sometimes he'll eat it, other times he'll work on leftovers or make a sandwich

[Anonymous]

No. And he cooks things we both like when it's his turn.

[Anonymous]

No. I'll make them when he's not home or I'll make them and eat them for lunch. Or sometimes we can modify certain things to make it more enjoyable. That said, we are not particularly picky so us not liking something is few and far between which makes it a bit easier to be accommodating.

[Anonymous]

We compromise on takeout by rotating in things one person likes but the other is not as big a fan of. But when cooking I always t try to make something my spouse will like. Part of the joy of cooking (to me) is their enjoyment.

[Anonymous]

No. There are some things I don't cook anymore because he doesn't like them and vice versa.

[Anonymous]

In short, no. But if there's a helping of leftovers for him, then you should feel free to make something he doesn't like. Then you can take the leftovers for lunch.

[Anonymous]

I cook for myself. Spouse cooks for himself.

Minimally OP, why isn't your spouse cooking -- some? Of course he's not going to be grateful if he never has to put in the effort.

[Anonymous]

I don’t cook meals my spouse or (teen) kids dislike, but they are not picky eaters. DH likes about 75% of anything you could order at any restaurant in the DMV that’s not super spicy, the kids maybe 90%, and me close to 100%. As the primary cook, I’ll gladly make foods in DH’s sweet spot if he’s around, and more adventurous stuff if he’s not. But I would never limit myself that way for an adult picky eater. You don’t like to eat a variety of food? You are going to have to feed yourself most of the time.

[Anonymous]

Not frequently. More likely if he's out if town or I have time to cook myself a more involved lunch. I almost stopped eating mushrooms, eggplants, and olives for years. The good thing is that over time he's coming around to them in some dishes, so the horizons are expanding again.

I do cook meals my kids hate. Constantly. I need to eat things other than pizza, spaghetti, and sandwiches.

[Anonymous]

Yes because he has left all the cooking to me for 10+ years, he is picky in that he is a vegetarian but has a whole list of vegetables he won’t eat like Brussels sprouts, asparagus, bok choy etc etc, won’t eat cream sauce, casseroles, and more. I’m tired of doing all the cooking and catering to all his weird food issues so every once in awhile he can fend for himself.

[Anonymous]

Only when he’s not home. I love him - why would I make things for him that he doesn’t like? Just make them for yourself and take them for lunch.

[Anonymous]

When my wife is away, I make the stuff the rest of us like (fish mostly), but not when she's there. I'll meet meals I know she isn't jazzed about, but nothing she won't eat.

[Anonymous]

If my wife were a picky eater, I would definitely cook meals she didn't like. I'm not going to be hemmed in by such immaturity. Picky eaters are on their own. Then again, I wouldn't marry a picky eater in the first place. But since my wife and I are not picky eaters, it's not that hard to accommodate each other when it comes to an occasional ingredient or dish that the other doesn't like. I just cook things she doesn't like when she's out of town or out to dinner without me and I'm on my own. I'm sure she does the same.

[Anonymous]

In normal households, it works because there are few dishes that spouses don't like. But if you're married to a really food-challenged person, then it's not fair to you to be limited in your choice of dishes. Perhaps the solution is that you cook for yourself, and if he really can't eat it, he cooks for himself.