Hellobee Boards

This is kind of the situation we are in. Right now I'm on maternity leave, but my husband as the primary cook in the house. He's usually the one in the kitchen because he's a little bit pickier about how his food is prepared. We've come up with a few things to try to make the transition easier.

First we've agreed to a couple of freezer meals that we both like. Then we try to set a menu for the week and at least have the groceries on hand for everything we want to be able to cook.

Secondly, during the day I tried out least have the meal prepped and the kitchen cleaned up so that when he does come home he can help cook

Cooks Illustrated is the best thing that ever happened to DH's previously-pasta-only cooking skills. They present techniques in a sciencey, technical way that really appeals to him and doesn't presume any cultural familiarity with the kitchen (as also avoids the condescending tone of some of the food network beginner tips). If you subscribe, the website has full length how-to videos for specific recipes so on the nights that I can't cook, I sent him a link and tell him what time to get started. I also try to take things out of the cabinet before I go to work since he had no hand in designing the kitchen and therefore no intuition about where to find things. I'm praying he'll be more independent one day, but this (along with the Paprika app) has really helps defeat our take-out habit.

We keep it super simple at our place because we have to take turns cooking from night to night based on schedules. Easy meals like tacos or spaghetti that take minimal time to prepare work great. Crockpot meals are also fantastic and can be prepared the night before if both cooks are available!

Also, the primary cook (that's me!) plans out the weekly menu and puts it on the fridge, and preps or defrosts any needed food the night before.