cooking healthy for an extremely picky eater
My husband is a VERY picky eater, and im having trouble coming up with healthy dinners that the whole family will enjoy. Luckily my kids eat like I do......we arent even remotely picky!
He prefers red meat, but doesnt really like the texture of ground beef (so meatloaf, meatballs, etc... are out). He will eat burgers occasionally and is ok with small amounts of ground beef in, for example, spaghetti gravy. He also doesnt really like shredded beef (like in a pot roast) but will eat it.
He will eat chicken and pork but they must be mixed into something, like a casserole. He will rarely just eat a chicken breast (unless its breaded, fried and covered in melted cheese, lol!), or slice of ham. Less than 1x a month. He will eat italian sausage, polish sausage and brats. He doesnt like soup, but will eat strew if its thick and casseroles as long as they dont have any "bad" ingredients in them.
He doesnt like many fruits or veggies. He had his first ever strawberry about a month ago, and first pear last year (he is 32). He will not pick out produce from a meal (say I use diced onion.....he wont touch the entire meal), but usually I can puree a few and hide them on him.
Produce he will eat:
Canned green beans, never fresh or frozen
Broccolli
Russet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Canned peas, never fresh or frozen
Pureed tomatoes only in hot sauce, spaghetti gravy or salsa (just the "juice" from salsa never any of the chunks)
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Orange juice, but not a whole orange
Clementines
Corn (which is technically a grain/starch), but only canned or fresh on the cob. Never frozen or creamed.
If left to his own devices he would eat nothing but bread and steak...ever.
He will eat white rice and white pasta, but no other grains (millet, quinoa, barley, bulgar wheat, etc..).
He will not eat beans or lentils.
His eating each day usually looks like this:
Breakfast is 2 sausage mcmuffins from mcdonalds
Lunch is a large salad I make for him (romaine, a flour tortilla cut into bites, and A LOT of ranch dressing),
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I refuse to make him something else after dinner, because he's a grown up and knows where the kitchen is, lol! I do try to accomodate his preferences, but we cant eat steak and potatoes everynight, either.
Things he will always eat: steak, bread (white only...no wheat, rye, etc...!), junk food.
Im about to pull my hair out! I blame his mother, who never cooked anything other than reheating frozen packaged meals and letting him eat nothing but junk. Believe it or not, his acceptable food list has grown since we met 10 years ago!
My kids are starting to notice when daddy doesnt eat dinner (they are 5, 4, 2)...and im afraid they will become picky too!
He prefers red meat, but doesnt really like the texture of ground beef (so meatloaf, meatballs, etc... are out). He will eat burgers occasionally and is ok with small amounts of ground beef in, for example, spaghetti gravy. He also doesnt really like shredded beef (like in a pot roast) but will eat it.
He will eat chicken and pork but they must be mixed into something, like a casserole. He will rarely just eat a chicken breast (unless its breaded, fried and covered in melted cheese, lol!), or slice of ham. Less than 1x a month. He will eat italian sausage, polish sausage and brats. He doesnt like soup, but will eat strew if its thick and casseroles as long as they dont have any "bad" ingredients in them.
He doesnt like many fruits or veggies. He had his first ever strawberry about a month ago, and first pear last year (he is 32). He will not pick out produce from a meal (say I use diced onion.....he wont touch the entire meal), but usually I can puree a few and hide them on him.
Produce he will eat:
Canned green beans, never fresh or frozen
Broccolli
Russet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Canned peas, never fresh or frozen
Pureed tomatoes only in hot sauce, spaghetti gravy or salsa (just the "juice" from salsa never any of the chunks)
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Orange juice, but not a whole orange
Clementines
Corn (which is technically a grain/starch), but only canned or fresh on the cob. Never frozen or creamed.
If left to his own devices he would eat nothing but bread and steak...ever.
He will eat white rice and white pasta, but no other grains (millet, quinoa, barley, bulgar wheat, etc..).
He will not eat beans or lentils.
His eating each day usually looks like this:
Breakfast is 2 sausage mcmuffins from mcdonalds
Lunch is a large salad I make for him (romaine, a flour tortilla cut into bites, and A LOT of ranch dressing),
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I refuse to make him something else after dinner, because he's a grown up and knows where the kitchen is, lol! I do try to accomodate his preferences, but we cant eat steak and potatoes everynight, either.
Things he will always eat: steak, bread (white only...no wheat, rye, etc...!), junk food.
Im about to pull my hair out! I blame his mother, who never cooked anything other than reheating frozen packaged meals and letting him eat nothing but junk. Believe it or not, his acceptable food list has grown since we met 10 years ago!
My kids are starting to notice when daddy doesnt eat dinner (they are 5, 4, 2)...and im afraid they will become picky too!
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Replies
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My husband is a VERY picky eater, and im having trouble coming up with healthy dinners that the whole family will enjoy. Luckily my kids eat like I do......we arent even remotely picky!
He prefers red meat, but doesnt really like the texture of ground beef (so meatloaf, meatballs, etc... are out). He will eat burgers occasionally and is ok with small amounts of ground beef in, for example, spaghetti gravy. He also doesnt really like shredded beef (like in a pot roast) but will eat it.
He will eat chicken and pork but they must be mixed into something, like a casserole. He will rarely just eat a chicken breast (unless its breaded, fried and covered in melted cheese, lol!), or slice of ham. Less than 1x a month. He will eat italian sausage, polish sausage and brats. He doesnt like soup, but will eat strew if its thick and casseroles as long as they dont have any "bad" ingredients in them.
He doesnt like many fruits or veggies. He had his first ever strawberry about a month ago, and first pear last year (he is 32). He will not pick out produce from a meal (say I use diced onion.....he wont touch the entire meal), but usually I can puree a few and hide them on him.
Produce he will eat:
Canned green beans, never fresh or frozen
Broccolli
Russet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Canned peas, never fresh or frozen
Pureed tomatoes only in hot sauce, spaghetti gravy or salsa (just the "juice" from salsa never any of the chunks)
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Orange juice, but not a whole orange
Clementines
Corn (which is technically a grain/starch), but only canned or fresh on the cob. Never frozen or creamed.
If left to his own devices he would eat nothing but bread and steak...ever.
He will eat white rice and white pasta, but no other grains (millet, quinoa, barley, bulgar wheat, etc..).
He will not eat beans or lentils.
His eating each day usually looks like this:
Breakfast is 2 sausage mcmuffins from mcdonalds
Lunch is a large salad I make for him (romaine, a flour tortilla cut into bites, and A LOT of ranch dressing),
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I refuse to make him something else after dinner, because he's a grown up and knows where the kitchen is, lol! I do try to accomodate his preferences, but we cant eat steak and potatoes everynight, either.
Things he will always eat: steak, bread (white only...no wheat, rye, etc...!), junk food.
Im about to pull my hair out! I blame his mother, who never cooked anything other than reheating frozen packaged meals and letting him eat nothing but junk. Believe it or not, his acceptable food list has grown since we met 10 years ago!
My kids are starting to notice when daddy doesnt eat dinner (they are 5, 4, 2)...and im afraid they will become picky too!
Steak and bread aren't unhealthy so he can always eat his fav meal
What does he order when you go out to eat, steak and baked potato?0 -
I have to be honest, the only thing that's really jumping out at me is curries (although you'd have to emit the onion and use passata rather than chopped tomatoes) or things like steak with potatoes and veg. Does he like fish?
There's a lot of good recipes on www.skinnytaste.com, you may be able to find something on there that he likes.
Although I have to be honest, based on this;
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I would honestly be telling him to make his own dinner. Like you said, he is an adult. If he is really that picky and not open to anything new then you and your children shouldn't be forced to eat the same thing all the time, or you having to cook seperate meals.0 -
My husband is a VERY picky eater, and im having trouble coming up with healthy dinners that the whole family will enjoy. Luckily my kids eat like I do......we arent even remotely picky!
He prefers red meat, but doesnt really like the texture of ground beef (so meatloaf, meatballs, etc... are out). He will eat burgers occasionally and is ok with small amounts of ground beef in, for example, spaghetti gravy. He also doesnt really like shredded beef (like in a pot roast) but will eat it.
He will eat chicken and pork but they must be mixed into something, like a casserole. He will rarely just eat a chicken breast (unless its breaded, fried and covered in melted cheese, lol!), or slice of ham. Less than 1x a month. He will eat italian sausage, polish sausage and brats. He doesnt like soup, but will eat strew if its thick and casseroles as long as they dont have any "bad" ingredients in them.
He doesnt like many fruits or veggies. He had his first ever strawberry about a month ago, and first pear last year (he is 32). He will not pick out produce from a meal (say I use diced onion.....he wont touch the entire meal), but usually I can puree a few and hide them on him.
Produce he will eat:
Canned green beans, never fresh or frozen
Broccolli
Russet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Canned peas, never fresh or frozen
Pureed tomatoes only in hot sauce, spaghetti gravy or salsa (just the "juice" from salsa never any of the chunks)
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Orange juice, but not a whole orange
Clementines
Corn (which is technically a grain/starch), but only canned or fresh on the cob. Never frozen or creamed.
If left to his own devices he would eat nothing but bread and steak...ever.
He will eat white rice and white pasta, but no other grains (millet, quinoa, barley, bulgar wheat, etc..).
He will not eat beans or lentils.
His eating each day usually looks like this:
Breakfast is 2 sausage mcmuffins from mcdonalds
Lunch is a large salad I make for him (romaine, a flour tortilla cut into bites, and A LOT of ranch dressing),
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I refuse to make him something else after dinner, because he's a grown up and knows where the kitchen is, lol! I do try to accomodate his preferences, but we cant eat steak and potatoes everynight, either.
Things he will always eat: steak, bread (white only...no wheat, rye, etc...!), junk food.
Im about to pull my hair out! I blame his mother, who never cooked anything other than reheating frozen packaged meals and letting him eat nothing but junk. Believe it or not, his acceptable food list has grown since we met 10 years ago!
My kids are starting to notice when daddy doesnt eat dinner (they are 5, 4, 2)...and im afraid they will become picky too!
Steak and bread aren't unhealthy so he can always eat his fav meal
What does he order when you go out to eat, steak and baked potato?
I never said steak and bread are unhealthy. We just cant eat it every night. We cant afford it.
When we go out he orders a large steak (usually in the 25 to 30 oz range) and french fries. He also eats the basket of bread. Never a salad or anything with it. To be fair, I usually order the same thing, but i skip the bread and get a side salad, lol! But we eat out like 2xs a year.0 -
I have to be honest, the only thing that's really jumping out at me is curries (although you'd have to emit the onion and use passata rather than chopped tomatoes) or things like steak with potatoes and veg. Does he like fish?
There's a lot of good recipes on www.skinnytaste.com, you may be able to find something on there that he likes.
Although I have to be honest, based on this;
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I would honestly be telling him to make his own dinner. Like you said, he is an adult. If he is really that picky and not open to anything new then you and your children shouldn't be forced to eat the same thing all the time, or you having to cook seperate meals.
Fish isnt an option. Ive never had curry, but am willing to try it! Thanks for the idea!0 -
LOL...18 years ago I could have written the same post, though mine only wanted Hamburger Helper every night -I blame his mother, too, BTW. I won't touch Hamburger Helper, though, so initially, I made it for him, and I made something else for myself. I realize not everyone is willing/able/ to do that.
Like yours, mine has slowly added to his list of "acceptable" foods.
It wasn't until his doctor told him he had enough cholesterol for four people that he started making changes and trying new things...then all of sudden he was the expert in all things healthy and I had to endure lengthy lectures about transfats. <eyeroll>
The only thing I can tell you is to buy cheaper cuts of of meat and start making them differently, but slowly. Try a skirt steak cooked Mexican style (carne asada), then later try it again but made with chicken. Or make gyros with beef forst, then try it later with lamb or chicken.
Another way is to encourage him to try new things and eat a wider range of foods...if nothing else, then for your kids' sake. We have a two bite rule in our house...everyone has to eat two bites of each dish. After that they are free to finish it, or not.0 -
Wow. That's annoying AF. Seriously.
As someone else stated, maybe you should push him to make his own meals... that way the food you made him doesn't go to waste. Then again... I'm unsure of what the implication would then be if the kids see dad eating a different dinner from them everyday.
Sorry, this was completely unhelpful.0 -
If my husband doesn't like what I cook for the family, he cooks his own! He's a picky eater too. If I cooked to satisfy him, i would be a complete mess and not the 1/2 mess I am now. I gained all my weight after I got married trying to be a good wife and make meals my husband would enjoy. He understands that he can eat, cook or be hungry!0
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My husband is a VERY picky eater, and im having trouble coming up with healthy dinners that the whole family will enjoy. Luckily my kids eat like I do......we arent even remotely picky!
He prefers red meat, but doesnt really like the texture of ground beef (so meatloaf, meatballs, etc... are out). He will eat burgers occasionally and is ok with small amounts of ground beef in, for example, spaghetti gravy. He also doesnt really like shredded beef (like in a pot roast) but will eat it.
He will eat chicken and pork but they must be mixed into something, like a casserole. He will rarely just eat a chicken breast (unless its breaded, fried and covered in melted cheese, lol!), or slice of ham. Less than 1x a month. He will eat italian sausage, polish sausage and brats. He doesnt like soup, but will eat strew if its thick and casseroles as long as they dont have any "bad" ingredients in them.
He doesnt like many fruits or veggies. He had his first ever strawberry about a month ago, and first pear last year (he is 32). He will not pick out produce from a meal (say I use diced onion.....he wont touch the entire meal), but usually I can puree a few and hide them on him.
Produce he will eat:
Canned green beans, never fresh or frozen
Broccolli
Russet potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Canned peas, never fresh or frozen
Pureed tomatoes only in hot sauce, spaghetti gravy or salsa (just the "juice" from salsa never any of the chunks)
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Orange juice, but not a whole orange
Clementines
Corn (which is technically a grain/starch), but only canned or fresh on the cob. Never frozen or creamed.
If left to his own devices he would eat nothing but bread and steak...ever.
He will eat white rice and white pasta, but no other grains (millet, quinoa, barley, bulgar wheat, etc..).
He will not eat beans or lentils.
His eating each day usually looks like this:
Breakfast is 2 sausage mcmuffins from mcdonalds
Lunch is a large salad I make for him (romaine, a flour tortilla cut into bites, and A LOT of ranch dressing),
Dinner he will push around whatever I made, not really eating anything, then complain all evening how hungry he is.
I refuse to make him something else after dinner, because he's a grown up and knows where the kitchen is, lol! I do try to accomodate his preferences, but we cant eat steak and potatoes everynight, either.
Things he will always eat: steak, bread (white only...no wheat, rye, etc...!), junk food.
Im about to pull my hair out! I blame his mother, who never cooked anything other than reheating frozen packaged meals and letting him eat nothing but junk. Believe it or not, his acceptable food list has grown since we met 10 years ago!
My kids are starting to notice when daddy doesnt eat dinner (they are 5, 4, 2)...and im afraid they will become picky too!
Steak and bread aren't unhealthy so he can always eat his fav meal
What does he order when you go out to eat, steak and baked potato?
I never said steak and bread are unhealthy. We just cant eat it every night. We cant afford it.
When we go out he orders a large steak (usually in the 25 to 30 oz range) and french fries. He also eats the basket of bread. Never a salad or anything with it. To be fair, I usually order the same thing, but i skip the bread and get a side salad, lol! But we eat out like 2xs a year.
Cheaper cuts of beef like short ribs (braise them), flank steak (marinate and grill), stew meat (beef stew with potatoes) etc0
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