Who should cook for the family, if the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law live under the same roof?

I have a childhood friend whom I married at the same time. One year apart, she's 25, I'm 26. And after almost seven years of marriage, I can say: Mother-in-law is divided. I had a hard time at first, too. My husband’s mother and I spent a lot of time together. But in the end they found a common language. My friend was unlucky on all fronts. He often calls me and asks, What to cook for lunch. Just for 5 people at once. Because at the moment, all the cooking mother-in-law hung on her.

We call or write off often. And every time Lera does not get tired of lamenting how much she was unlucky. How envious of my warm family relationship. But I always remind you that I did not get this warm relationship for nothing either. I also had to cook in my house. And now my recipes, which she didn't care about before, turned out to be very useful.

What you can quickly cook for lunch with a large family

Unsplash At first glance, this story is quite ordinary. But recently I shared it with my friends, and our opinions are radically divided. The subject of the dispute was the answer to the question: who should cookWhat if my mother and sister live under the same roof? But don’t judge until you know the whole story. In the end, I will share the secrets of fast cooking. At one time they helped me to establish a relationship with my mother-in-law.

I met my husband while working in Germany. I didn’t even expect to find something in the profession, so I immediately went to work in gastronomy. First a dishwasher, then a small assistant, and then a junior cook. It's not an easy job, but I learned a lot, and they paid me decently. So now I know a lot about cooking. And after returning home, my fiancé and I bought an apartment. But while looking for a suitable one, we stayed with my husband's parents for about two months.

How to get along with your mother-in-law

My mother-in-law and I had our own problems - she loved interfering in our little family's affairs with unsolicited and sometimes downright harmful advice. But not out of spite, but simply because she and her husband are different. The fact is that in our marriage, most of the money is earned by me, so many questions about the house fall on my husband: all the repairs, paying bills, often cleaning and going to the market. I left the cooking to myself, because it is faster and tastier.

So at some point I ended up with my mother-in-law. kitchen alone. At first we tried cooking together, but the house is not a restaurant and teamwork requires preparation and patience. Then I will take the wrong knife, then she will start cutting incorrectly, and in the end, all the cooking turns into mutual instruction. Maybe it was different for someone, but that's what I had.

So we decided to alternate cooking days, and then everything fell into place. If I had a blockage at work, my mother-in-law took my “duty”. If she had to go somewhere, I replaced her. But my friend Valeria, unfortunately, did not have much choice, and my mother-in-law was less fortunate. Her husband's mother doesn't like everything about her, from the way she dresses to being in her house.

Who should cook in the family: daughter-in-law or mother-in-law?

I must say that especially Lera finishes cooking - before in their family in the kitchen was run by her husband, and she cleaned. But since they moved to parentage Because of the overhaul, she became a slave and did both. And the husband is silent in a rag, because in the house of her mother-in-law, everyone listens only to her. One day, I asked Lera how it came to be hung on her. It turned out that the mother-in-law argued that they were welcome guests in the house, so they would not take money for accommodation, but instead they should help with the housework.

The situation is not pleasant. They could not return home, because they decided to change everything at once so as not to suffer for a long time. They also had no money to rent after major repairs. So I had to put up with my mother-in-law's orders. Although, to be honest, it seems strange to me that my parents gently hinted that lodging is not free. They did not move forever, but asked for help for a month or two.



The question is, who should cook in the house? It seems to me fair that cooking should be divided according to the principle of duty between those who can and preferably like to cook. Otherwise, neither the sheep nor the wolves will be fed. But my mutual friends with Leroy are not in solidarity with me in everything. Someone even sided with her mother-in-law: Lera has a part-time job, why she can’t take over. household duties?

Someone suggested that cooking is not necessary for women, but the whole family. Just like cleaning. But what if we're talking about a situation where both men are in the house from morning to night at work?

And one of our older friends, who has an adult daughter, offered an alternative solution to the problem. If the daughter decided to live in her house with a young man, she would not mind to continue cooking for everyone, as the main mistress in the house. I'd just ask you to drop off on groceries and split the utility bill.



Unsplash I am more inclined to say that duty The best way out of the situation, based on your own experience. We still use this strategy when we go to the holidays. We distribute dishes that need to be prepared, and take turns occupying the kitchen. Another secret of a good relationship in a large family is a well-designed menu. After all, if there are more than four people at the table, you can not only feed everyone, but also save time. I'm sharing a list of my favorite salad dishes.

What to cook for lunch in a large family
  1. All kinds of pasta. You need to boil pasta separately and do only the sauce, you can cook it right in a large pan. It can be tomato-meat (Bolognese), creamy with chicken mince, creamy with mushrooms and cheese, even beet with bacon - at your discretion. The main thing is to have a lot of sauce.



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  2. Ragu and goulash - best friends. Enough to cut the meat and roast it with vegetables. Then add broth or tomato sauce, and then leave to reach on a slow heat. What could be easier? Serve with any side dish: potatoes, rice, puree or porridge.

  3. Pies.Ironically, it is also very helpful if you buy ready-made dough. All you need is to prepare the filling and put it baked. Here are my favorite candidates: a rice, egg and green onion pie; an onion cake with melted cheese; a cheese, ham, potato and tomato pie; a fish pie with potatoes; a chicken pie.

  4. Soups of any compositions and nationalities. This, of course, all kinds of borsch, dumplings, ear, cold vegetable soups like tarator and gazpacho, pasta soups and so on. The main thing here is to put a basket of bread on the table next to the pan. And even better to fry bread in butter with garlic, if there is enough time.



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  5. Hearty salads. They'll be better suited for dinner. These are salads like olive, Caesar, vinaigrette. There must be meat or chicken.

  6. Pizza. Big companies often order pizza, but why overpay when it can be cooked quickly? It is better to buy the finished dough (so quickly, believe me). For 7-8 people, 3 pizzas are usually enough. While everyone eats the first two, the third one is baked in the oven. This is the most budget dish in which you can put everything that is left in the fridge - a piece of sausage, tomato, cheese, mushrooms and even greens, for example, a hand (but after baking).

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Living in a large family (and there were 7 people at the table at that time) taught me that it is better to undersalt and undersalt the dish, but simply put spices on the table when serving. When you need to cook for many people, it is better to abandon the idea of portioning.

It should be something that can be placed in the center of the table, and everyone will put as much as they want on their plate. That way, you'll reduce your serving time. I would be happy if someone shared in the comments. food ideas for big company! I want to try something new. And be sure to share your thoughts on who should cook in the family: mother-in-law or daughter-in-law? Or all of them?