Healthy eating for two? Picky partner..

CommanderEmily
CommanderEmily Posts: 68 Member
So I love eating healthy. It's not hard to get me to eat well. My major downfall is a combination problem. One is my picky partner, the other is my budget. Getting her to eat outside meat and pasta is incredibly difficult. So in my past attempts to eat well I ended up cooking separate meals which is both time consuming and awful for the budget. Even worse, she hates repetition. Which also seems humorous because the range of foods she will eat is incredibly small. I want us to cut back on pasta, bread, and sugars. More veggies and proteins.
What are you guys cooking that's easy for two and will satisfy the picky?
Recipes please? :)

Replies

  • cactus1219
    cactus1219 Posts: 3 Member
    As the picky eater in my relationship, what worked for us came down to making meal plans together. We started by making small adjustments to our menu options, so whole wheat pasta instead of regular, adding more veggies as a side dish. The biggest advantage is the fact that my OH has been willing to try different ways of cooking veggies as opposed to just steaming them to within an inch of their life. It isn't easy being the picky eater because you often know that your partner may be getting sick of the same dishes over and over. Eventually we reached a compromise and worked on making menus together. This way the OH can pick dishes that are more "wild" and I can make suggestions to tone it down with a small side, the same can be done on their end, say my basic spaghetti with red sauce, they can suggest a veggie on the side.
    It won't be easy, but working together to create a plan, one that provideds some comfort foods (perhaps with tweaks to make them a bit healthier) but also allows for expanding the palate.
    I hope that helps, I realize that it isn't any real recipes, but hopefully it can be a jumping off point for you two?
  • lewbear911_
    lewbear911_ Posts: 8 Member
    I am in a similar situation. Except my partner has the palate of a 6 year old. Frozen pizzas, sloppy joes, and spaghetti are her basic meal plans. The problem is that she doesn't like my healthier substitutes or renditions of these items either. I tried making separate meals for us, but eventually got frustrated with that. What I've found works - and this may work for you as well, since your partner is a meat eater - is something like a chicken and veggie stir fry. Chicken alone my partner won't eat, but if I cover it with veggies and season it well she doesn't complain. Plus it's pretty easy on the wallet. If pasta is a staple for her, would something like a veggie noodle substitute work?
  • revolucia78
    revolucia78 Posts: 196 Member
    bumping because I'm in the same situation.

    Also, adding that I meal plan with my boyfriend too to try to come up with something we both can eat and that has worked out so far. He doesn't have to worry about losing weight (although, clogged arteries is a different story but we're working on that one). He will not touch something that doesn't have meat in it and has a severe allergy which prevents sharing many dishes that I love. We regularly eat roasted chicken with rice and veggies; tacos (sometimes beef for him and chicken for me). I still haven't really figured out what's going to happen when I start making other dishes he can't eat. Another idea might be to cook together (to save time) making the same thing (so it fits in the budget) but each making slight variation to fit your needs (could be good bonding time too).
  • mjwarbeck
    mjwarbeck Posts: 699 Member

    I am in a similar situation. Except my partner has the palate of a 6 year old. Frozen pizzas, sloppy joes, and spaghetti are her basic meal plans. The problem is that she doesn't like my healthier substitutes or renditions of these items either. I tried making separate meals for us, but eventually got frustrated with that. What I've found works - and this may work for you as well, since your partner is a meat eater - is something like a chicken and veggie stir fry. Chicken alone my partner won't eat, but if I cover it with veggies and season it well she doesn't complain. Plus it's pretty easy on the wallet. If pasta is a staple for her, would something like a veggie noodle substitute work?

    Ha, my six year old (ok just turned 7) has a huge palate...he asked for haggis on his birthday, ate tripe at dim sum, loves sushi...it's more about what they are exposed to...our 2 year old loved Ethiopian food last time we went.

    Anyway, as for the OP, look for combinations. My wife does not eat meat other than fish, so when I make steak, pork roast, etc...I make her a piece of fish or some shrimp in a style that goes with the rest of the meal. I love to put veggies everywhere...instead of just quinoa, I'll make a pilaf with finely chopped veggies and maybe lentils...in the end, the cannot tell.

    Now when I cook Sichuan, it will be far too spicy for the kids (though they will try), so I make a non spicy dish as well.

    For pasta...no reason to look for alternates...just make a salad (hearty...not just lettuce...that will give you bulk)...pasta is not the enemy.
  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
    I'm the picky eater in my relationship. I think the important thing is for your partner to identify specific foods that 1) she absolutely hates and won't eat, 2) ones she doesn't like much, 3) ones she is fine with/tolerates, and 4) ones she loves. She may be restricting herself to mostly the number 4 category being more open to foods in categories 2 and 3 could allow for a lot more variety.

    One problem I have with foods (particularly vegetables) I don't prefer is that my husband loves huge pieces. I find a lot of those foods intolerable in large pieces (like onion and bell pepper) but have little to no problem with them if they are chopped smaller and are mixed or had a chance to blend flavors with others I do enjoy like zucchini and broccoli.

    If she likes cheese/dairy, then making a cheese sauce that can be put on top of vegetables might encourage her to eat more, while you could eat them without if desired.

    As others have suggested, getting her involved in meal planning/shopping/cooking if she isn't already would be helpful. Encourage her to find recipes/meals that appeal to her but incorporate something important to you like a large side of vegetables. My husband and I tend to gravitate toward different recipes, but always keep the other person in mind when choosing and sometimes will actually show the recipe to the other person to make sure they are on board.

    I don't know how picky she is about variety, but we make 2-3 dinners per week (off a list of approximately 30 ideas) and eat leftovers the other days. So there isn't a lot of variety within the week, but we don't eat the same thing several nights in a row. We also try to create variety week to week. So if we had steak last week, this week we will go for chicken, pork, lamb, or vegetarian; if we had soup one week, we might do pasta the next....

    Of course none of this matters if she isn't willing to try.
  • tjpeanut
    tjpeanut Posts: 1 Member
    Adding spices and herbs could help and as someone else suggested maybe try noodles. Raman noodles are super healthy or brown rice. Also asking if they are willing to try something three times if they think it is okay but not great. The chances are they may end up liking it more like my Husband now loves my oven chips cooked with oil spray (spices optional) rather than before it was only ever the deep fryer or no chips