How to feed veggies to a picky man?!

ReenieHJ wrote: »

Karliemyalgia wrote: »

Gisel2015 wrote: »

What about creamed or pureed vegetable soup?

You can use fresh or frozen vegetables (add more carrots to camouflage the other veggies). Cook them in bone broth for added protein, and when the vegetables are done use the blender, or the hand held blender, to puree everything. You can replace half the broth with cream or coconut milk.

But I also agree with other posters you are not a maid, and if he doesn't like what you cook, send him back to his mother, or to McD.

Note to self: go a kiss your husband because he loves and eats everything the you prepare...

Great suggestion! I'll have to give it a go.
And not to worry, he is not rude, he is not mean about it. He just simply wont eat what he doesn't like and I don't fault him for that. I feel that some of the responders have been a little rough on him hehe, maybe I did not word everything in a great light, but I also don't know their experiences and some people can be pretty awful! While he is a picky eater, that is his worst trait which is great in the grand scheme of things. And while I am not his maid, I am the one who cooks the meals in the household and that dynamic works for us! So he wants to try to eat healthier, he desires to, it's just hard for him and his picky brain. So I want to try to discover ways to help him out with that there are some great ideas here in the thread.

I've got to learn how to make bone broth, I cook a lot of whole chickens but throw out the bones despite knowing there is stuff I can do with it, I am just not very skilled in the kitchen.

Maybe I was rough on him. Sorry. Our circumstances are definitely different and that can give us different perspective, for sure. My dh and I separated for 12 years and he was doing fine cooking for himself. So when we got back together, one of the criteria was I wasn't going to cook for him because he was capable and he would criticize what I made. And some days I absolutely do feel guilty about not cooking because I'm retired and he is not(he's chosen to keep working which is probably healthier for our relationship but that's a whole other topic ). And I do keep asking him if there's anything special he'd like me to make(as most of us, I have a few signature dishes to my name) so the offer is there for him. He chooses to not eat so many healthier foods and that's on him. He also smokes which is on him. So I don't have much of a say for him to choose healthier. Trust me, I've tried.

When my firstborn refused veggies, I used spinach to make him smoothie type drinks; would your dh drink those? There'd be so many ways to disguise veggies and fruits there. Meat loaf is another food that could get some blended veggies in. Search for recipes using pumpkin/sweet potato/zucchini; those types of foods can be used in pies, cookies, cakes, brownies, etc., if he has a sweet tooth.

Wishing you much luck in reaching your goals for him. AND thank you for being understanding of some of your replies and you're sweet to want to do this for him.

Ohh hehe no worries at all, I don't think you personally were rough on him asking to be sure he wasn't being mean about it. And I am glad he is not, he doesn't criticize or complain. I wouldn't be able to put up with that kind of thing I'd be too sassy lol!!

I'll ask him what he liked/didn't like especially if I saw that he didn't eat it, and i'll try to figure something else out. He will give suggestions but neither of us are skilled cooks. Haha, oh well!!

Ahhh I'm sorry it was a struggle to try to get him to choose healthier options, sometimes theres nothing you can do about it really! You're not their mother, so, you can love them and dislike their negative habits. I can't "force" my hubby to do anything, and frankly why would I want to? At least in this case He's actively wanting to try to eat healthier, and I'm the one that prepares the meals so the people who suggest "he cooks his own food" that here just isn't the dynamic. And I don't think some people here really read the post because I get responses "If he won't eat any vegetables" where, my post clearly points out that he likes to eat the vegetables raw and the vegetables he will eat lmaooooo~ Sooo... I think people just jump on the hate train, we've gotten a good laugh at him I even said "I'll throw you to the MFP fourms where they'll tear you apart for being so picky" haha!! "Why bother" "If he doesn't like it than forget about him" etc... lol!! I guess they assume he's not trying. Or being childish for having picky preferences "as an adult..." But in this case its me making the meals. Is he trying to pick up stuff on his own time? Not really, but that's not up to me and he'll make that choice when he wants to. But as for the main meals? That's my domain and he wants to eat healthier but is so picky, so me looking for more suggestions to try makes sense hehe.

The smoothie thing is a great idea!! He would definitely drinks smoothies, I am just not very good at making them and to be completely honest I am really lazy in the kitchen lol so measuring and stuff is just so much hassle sometimes but then my smoothies with spinach never really turn out that nice. They're OK. But nothing amazing. If you have any you like I'd be all ears and YES to the sweet tooth, at least for me LOL!! He would have some probably, so if its healthier than normal and still tastes great I'd be down

No worries, I appreciate you taking the time to respond, I hope you don't mind but I've sent you a friend request

janejellyroll wrote: »

I married someone who is a much pickier eater than me. We just got into the habit of preparing our own meals, although we're always willing to share if what the other is preparing is appealing.

He didn't eat vegetables regularly until he was in his forties. He began to realize the value of eating them regularly and he started experimenting with different ways to prepare them. He now has a nice little collection of vegetable dishes that he enjoys and eats them daily. The point was that it was what he wanted and he was willing to do the work to find out what appealed to him.

Glad he found something that works for him!

watch_out_for_that_tree wrote: »

It'll kind of kill the point of a veggie, but I bet deep fried works.

Ahahhaa YES! Lol!

wi1234567890 wrote: »

We love vegetables around here in any form but our favorite way is to grill a lot of them. Eggplant, cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini, peppers, onions, carrots, brussel sprouts, romaine lettuce, green beans, corn etc - everything goes on the grill. Depending on the size of the pieces I either place them directly on the grill or in a grill basket. I just very lightly spray the veggies with oil and grill them. They are delicious.

Ooh interesting!! Does grilling the veggies make them soft or are they still hard? It sounds delicious!! watch out you might find me at your next BBQ

nossmf wrote: »

I'm a guy who up until age 25 or so refused to eat any vegetable not named corn or carrot.

Fast forward a couple decades, and I now eat a variety of veggies. Some things I've learned about myself...

1. Tastes change with time. Foods I hated as a kid are now among my favorite foods today. The hard part is being willing to at least try them again.
2. I found it easier to start adding vegetables to foods I already enjoyed, before expanding to eating the same veggie on its own. For example, my roast beef sandwich used to be: bread, meat, cheese. I then added onion, had it that way a few times to get used to it. Over time I've added peppers, spinach, tomato, cucumber... yet it remains a roast beef sandwich.
3. I still prefer veggies included as a part of what I'm eating rather than a separate dish. From my sandwich example above or stir fries, soups or chili, I'm much more comfortable with eating altogether. I will eat a pile of veggies on the side of my plate, but that takes a conscious decision on my part.
4. Mushy veggies remain a bugaboo for me. I'll eat raw, roasted or sauteed veggies, anything with a crunch, over most steamed examples. If soft veggies are required, adding various seasonings, from salt to paprika or whatever, helps. (The exception being broccoli...I can't stand it in its raw state.)
5. I'm a numbers nerd, and did research on which vegetables give the most bang for your buck, as in how can I get the most nutrition from eating the fewest veggies, lol. I determined that broccoli was king, so focused on finding which method of eating it was least un-appealing. For me, that proved to be steamed, with salt and butter. Eventually I grew to at first tolerate, then enjoy, now love steamed broccoli (as anybody reading my food diary can testify).
6. My wife got my son to eat more vegetables by encouraging him to dip them in something, whether ranch or melted garlic butter or melted cheese, something. Once she determined what he was at least ok with, that became a standard snack item given while he's watching tv or playing video games, something where he's distracted and mindlessly eating with only minimal attention spent on the flavor before he's distracted again by the explosion or whatnot on the screen. Swapping out chips for veggies and dips was healthier, and we stopped giving him grief over eating veggies during dinner.

Thanks for your feedback! Great lessons come with time. I definitely need to learn how to prepare more vegetables and keep their crunch! The mushy, soggy or even soft vegetables he doesn't enjoy much and I find just raw vegetables to be so bland sometimes. I don't even know what spices would be good to put on them lol! I think with broccolli i'd have to blend it into pasta sauces or something!!

goal06082021 wrote: »

@Karliemyalgia

bone broth = bones + water + vegetables, if desired + heat + time

"vegetables" can really be whatever, carrot/onion/celery is the classic aromatics combo. quarter your onion, roughly chop your carrot (or use a handful of baby carrots if that's what you have), roughly chop your celery, use the leafy bits too.

put your aromatics plus your bones in a big ol' pot, fill with enough water to cover, bring to a boil then lower heat to a simmer, let it go as long as you like. (edit to add: I'd do a few hours, minimum.) use a spoon to skim the foam off the top of the water periodically (the scum comes from the bones, it's not dangerous, just ugly). you can do this in a slow cooker or instant pot, too, if you have them; if you use the pressure cooker, you can put it on high pressure for like, idk, half an hour? and that'll be plenty of time.

the biggest thing is to remember, when your beautiful broth is done simmering, to strain out the bones and spent veg (toss this stuff, it's way way way overcooked and not good to eat anymore, it's given all of itself into the liquid) by pouring it INTO A BOWL and not DOWN THE SINK DRAIN, a tragic fate that has befallen many a home cook.

Thank you for your detailed and easy to follow method, I think you've convinced me to give it a try. What do you use to strain it? A spaghetti strainer with the semi-bigger holes or something meshy?

We literally make roast chicken every week and the bones get tossed. Although I don't know WHAT to do with the bone broth once its made lol I've never made homemade soups or stews or whatever else you could do with it. I just hear it makes things pretty tasty!! And thanks for the warning about the drain, don't wanna mess that up lol!