How to cook for 4 people when I am the only one that wants to be healthy.
wretchedeinstein
Posts: 7 Member
My boyfriend, his dad, and his uncle all work at the same jobsite (oil/gas refinery workers). They burn off plenty of calories because their work is insanely hard. Naturally these roughneck boys only want meat, potatoes, and more meat. They want grease, grease, grease. So, it's a little hard to cook for 4 adults as it is. But I want to eat healthier so I can lose weight. I can either eat the frozen health food crap or I can cook separate meals for myself and for them. Also, as hard as I try these guys will not eat anything healthy. The only vegetables they like are potatoes, corn, and green beans. So anything other than that, for them, is out of the question. Does anyone else have this problem? If so, how did you deal with it.
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Replies
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I have a similar problem at my house with my husband working at a bakery. All he wants to eat are the bad things and I started eating either smaller portions of what he eats or a salad for me and the meat and potatoes stuff for him. Its hard, but eventually cooking separate will be easier or the smaller portions will help. I have also ampped up my excercize with my friends and my son to try to offset any backslides.0
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I have this issue with my fiance. He likes the same veggies as your group. It is hard, most times i have a salad or frozen stuff for dinner so I don't have to cook twice. I like fajitas, I can do veggies and chicken and make him steak with rice and beans. It is easy to make for them and I have time to prepare my stuff.
The biggest thing is probably portion control, you can still have the other stuff, but if you add in a salad, veggies (love the steam bags) and have those for the largest portion of your meal you can eat the part of the other meal so you are still involved in their dinner.
not sure where you are at but costco has Tyson panko crusted chicken that you bake. I do pasta and sauce for him with the chicken (sometimes I top it with mozzarella cheese) and then I chop my chicken up and use it in a salad or wrap. Add some veggies and good dressing and it is really good. I do the same idea with fish, but I usually use cabbage, it is like a fish taco salad.
Good luck, you can add me as a friend if you want. I can always use more accountability.
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Is it really such problem? Fry meat in a pan, maybe a barbecue pan with ripples so that you can cook with less fat. Put your smaller serving in last as it'll need less time to cook. Then make a heavy gravy next to it that the boys can pour over their food. Cook potatoes (hey, potatoes are not bad for you!) as usual. If the guys want something else over their potatoes they can put it over after cooking. Make a big serving of veggies for you. If the boys like it they'll eat along, if not then not. You can prepare veggies very quickly in a wok or deep pan with a little bit of oil. No need to cook them for a long period of time. You could also put peeled potatoes in an oven dish with some oil, spices and salt and let the oven do the cooking for you. Or buy huge potatoes with peal, microwave them and serve with a mayonnaise/yoghurt dip with some garlic. It's all very simple, fast dishes that don't mean masses of time in the kitchen. You cook, thus you know what goes in there. Thus you can just eat along and take the amount that fits your calorie goal.0
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My husband only eats potato carrot and peas, my solution is to cook those veg for him, add extra veg for me, we have the same meat but mine is smaller and I have less of the carb side (rice, potato whatever). I make mash with light laughing cow cheese and light sour cream, he's never noticed the difference.0
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Here's what I would do. Cook the meat, potatoes and green beans for the men. Also have a bag of salad in the fridge, even if the men won't eat it. Serve yourself a small portion of the meat, as many green beans as you want and dump a nice helping of salad on your plate with a bit of dressing. You're pretty much eating the same things as the men, minus the potatoes and with salad added. Not much extra effort if you keep it simple.0
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Hang on.
Why are meat, potatoes and more meat not 'healthy'?
- Cook the food you choose as well as theirs.
- Eat what everyone else is eating within your daily goals
I can't really see an issue here.0 -
If it is their home/budget, they decide what they buy and what they eat. If there is an agreement that cooking is your responsibility, then yes, you cook what they wish to eat, and either adapt it to your preferences or buy separate ingredients and cook a second meal. Most probably just adding a side dish or a salad will be enough to transform the meal, and simple.
If this is your home/budget and they are guests, then a talk with them is needed, as they cannot dictate what you buy and cook. They could just buy and prepare their own meals.0 -
Plan your day such that you can fit in a small portion of what you cook for their dinner.
Consider "pre-ccoking" your dinners so that you do not feel like you are doing so much work. For example, when you cook a side dish for yourself, make enough for three or four meals that you can reheat in in the future.0 -
Cook things that are easy to modify. Cook a simple meat first, remove your portion, and then add whatever sauces or high calorie items you may be having. Even "meat and potato" boys tend to like grilled meat. Grill up a big, lean steak for all of you. If you make a carb (like pasta or potato) just take a reasonable portion. Again, if you want Mac and cheese either take your noodles out when it's still plain or have a small portion.
I do this with my boyfriend all the time. He is picky like a five year old. I make him a lot of cheesy, saucy items that I simply do not have room for. I take a tiny portion, and then a huge serving of vegetables and we usually eat the same protein. Burritos (if they like them) are an easy item to modify to the person. Big pasta skillets. Roasts and stews are healthy and guys like em.0 -
If they don't participate in the shopping/cooking, then I'd say they can eat it, or not.
"back in my day" I had two choices when others prepared meals for me. Take it or leave it.
No, just take it, because momma said we don't waste food.
If they wish to be particular about the meals, they can purchase and make their own meals.0 -
Before my boyfriend was so into eating healthily, I used to make the same thing for both of us, but his portion would have the majority of the carbs, and mine would have the majority of the veg. It shouldn't be too difficult to amend a meal so you can all have it with variations after plating up.0
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Hang on.
Why are meat, potatoes and more meat not 'healthy'?
- Cook the food you choose as well as theirs.
- Eat what everyone else is eating within your daily goals
I can't really see an issue here.
Maybe meat and potatoes are not what she wants to eat...what constitutes "healthy" is very different for people.
I batch cook some meat and vegetables that I want to eat over the weekend and cook things that my family likes daily. Sometimes, the protein that I make for them is suitable for me and I will eat that with vegetables and leave the other sides to them.0 -
yes: i just cook what i want to eat because I AM THE ONE THAT'S COOKING. i'm not a short order cook! but that's just me
that said, meat and potatoes can totally be healthy. we are heavy meat and potato eaters but i buy lean meats (chicken, some beef, turkey) and bake them with herbs/spices - no sauces. bbq is also a great option to cook your meats. as for potatoes - sweet potatoes are amazing baked as wedges with a little paprika, sea salt and pepper. you can include squashes if you like. perhaps they won't eat because they've never tried!
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hollyrayburn wrote: »If they don't participate in the shopping/cooking, then I'd say they can eat it, or not.
"back in my day" I had two choices when others prepared meals for me. Take it or leave it.
No, just take it, because momma said we don't waste food.
If they wish to be particular about the meals, they can purchase and make their own meals.
Now this I like!0 -
Why can't you eat less of the meat and potatoes or swap out some of the items with a salad?
I'm not a short order cook, but it is also one of my household "duties" and think its a little ridiculous if they're out there working to be told "tough" when they are served a meal you know they don't like because it fits your goals, not theirs. If they are active all day, they will be needing more calories than you do.
I have a husband, teenage stepson, and a toddler at home. We all have different tastes/needs. I make roughly the same things for everyone. I might skip a side for myself or add in one for others. If I make homemade pizza, as an example, I know my stepson dislikes a lot of dairy so I'll go very light on the cheese on a portion of his pizza. Sometimes after cooking the meat portion of the meal I'll take some out for myself and put it on a salad before I add in the sauce/noodles.0 -
Either they eat what you put on the table or they cook for themselves.0
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At our house we use a website, www.allrecipes.com , and they have some really good recipes and it won't kill your waistline 9 times out of ten. With that said, if my husband cooks he can have whatever he wants and I will just either make my own healthy separate food or eat small portions of his depending on the dish. I ALWAYS nutrient check the meals that were making now since I want to be healthier. I have acid reflux as well so if it's a meal that strictly does not fit within the contents of keeping my body healthy and strong and not having pain, bloat, or irritation later then the meal is off my list. With that in mind, I feed my family of 3 sometimes 4-6 if company comes over with no issues and have list 90 pounds over the last year.0
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I have two men in my life...son and husband.
Husband is a power engineer who works 12hour shifts and works hard....son is a welder who is on his feet all day and works hard.
I cook food. Meat/potatoes and veggies (usually green beans actually) for all of our meals and I still lose weight...why because I eat within my calories.
Roast beef with gravy and mashed potatoes, sheppards pie, pasta, roasted chicken with all the fixins, bbq'd everything including burgers, hotdogs etc.
These men are working hard and burning a lot of calories...I bet they are working 12-18 hour days and they need that fuel. Feed them. You can eat what they eat in a small portion. *unless you are one of those people who is eating 1200 or lower* if that's the case re-evaluate your definition of healthy.0 -
Eat smaller portions than them.0
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My kids are kind of picky and it's not their fault that I have certain goals. Many times what I will do to compromise is turn whatever protein I have cooked into a big salad for myself and just have a smaller portion of whatever they are having on the side. That makes them happy because I make the best macaroni and cheese on the planet and they get to eat even more of it.0
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My husband, too, works hard. I basically will fry whatever meat then bake or grill mine. I roast, grill or steam veggies or for my side or eat smaller portions of the other.
I know what justifies healthy is a big debate. I have high cholesterol so I try to limit fried foods. As far as eat it, or go hungry. Well, in my opinion (just mine), my husband works hard to provide for our family so I try to make him an enjoyable meal. Just because I'm cutting back on calories and eating different doesn't mean he has to also.0 -
I'm trying to figure out the problem. It just sounds like a portion size issue. Make the meat and potatoes and then make yourself a salad or cut up veggies or fruit. Eat the portion of meat and potatoes that you want and then fill up on the other stuff if you'd like. The fact that they don't eat it doesn't mean that you can't.
In my house, my husband loves his carbs. So he eats more potatoes and rice and some meat. I love protein so I eat more protein and a small serving of rice/potatoes. Then I eat veggies/fruit on top of that. Our daughter is somewhere in the middle, depending on the day.0 -
I used to have boyfriend who doesn't eat veggies, salads, soups, seafood. Only way was to make meat for both & then different side dish. It's annoying but possible. Also you can make your healthy food prep for a few days in advance & just add some on the plate every day.0
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Meat and potatoes are perfectly healthy....I cook some kind of meat, poultry, or fish every night...I eat baked potatoes a few nights per week and rice on other nights...I usually serve some kind of veg with all of that. There's nothing wrong with meat and potatoes...they can have bigger servings, you can have smaller ones.
Being men in general they are going to need to eat a lot...having very active jobs, they will have to eat a lot more...needing to eat a lot more and get a lot more calories is healthy for them...0 -
Question:
Hang on.
Why are meat, potatoes and more meat not 'healthy'?
Answer:
Well, unless it is "organic" virtually all red meat and poultry has drug resistant bacteria in it due to antibiotics in the feed, red meat is directly linked to a lot of cancers, and plain starches consumed regularly or to excess increase your chances of diabetes. A portion size most consider "normal" is usually to excess, unless you do heavy labour or are a professional athlete.
That said, I consume all of these items in small amounts on an occasional/rare basis, but only if the meat is cooked thoroughly and usually organic. White rice, white bread, potatoes slathered in butter, well, a reasonably healthy portion is pretty damn small.
I suggest filling up on steamed veggies and then having small amounts of that other stuff as a possible strategy. Salad is good for you (without dressing), but very hard to eat enough to feel satiated.
my 2 cents0 -
Davidc1961 wrote: »Question:
Hang on.
Why are meat, potatoes and more meat not 'healthy'?
Answer:
Well, unless it is "organic" virtually all red meat and poultry has drug resistant bacteria in it due to antibiotics in the feed, red meat is directly linked to a lot of cancers, and plain starches consumed regularly or to excess increase your chances of diabetes. A portion size most consider "normal" is usually to excess, unless you do heavy labour or are a professional athlete.
That said, I consume all of these items in small amounts on an occasional/rare basis, but only if the meat is cooked thoroughly and usually organic. White rice, white bread, potatoes slathered in butter, well, a reasonably healthy portion is pretty damn small.
I suggest filling up on steamed veggies and then having small amounts of that other stuff as a possible strategy. Salad is good for you (without dressing), but very hard to eat enough to feel satiated.
my 2 cents
my 2 cents
also, did you even read the part where the men she's cooking for do heavy, manual labor?0 -
budgetbytes.com has a lot of recipies that are full of good healthy food. the portion sizes might not be good enough for a bigger person that is doing manual labor all day, so just double the recipe and let them have at it.0
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Here's how I handle that: Either eat what I make or cook for yourself. I'm not anyone's mommy and certainly not anyone's domestic servant - ESPECIALLY to someone I'm not married to.0
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You aren't married or mother to any of these guys, so I can't really figure out why you got tasked with cooking for them in the first place.
Weigh out your portion of meat and potato, both are good foods to include in your diet. Serve a salad with every meal and take a large portion. Set out raw veggies and dip to go with meals and ration your dip carefully. If you are cooking, I don't see why you should be restricted on veg, it's not like you are giving them tofu surprise if you mix up the veg scene a bit.0 -
That works with kids. Adults have money and will go out and buy something else to eat and more than likely have animosity created between each other at dinner time.This is how i'd deal with it. I'd make the food i want and i'd say "this is what i made for dinner." If someone says, "i don't want that" i'd use the same line my grandma used to tell me, "well don't eat."
The OP is trying to lose weight, not the others. No reason to insist putting them on the same "health kick" as the others.
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