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Men and salads

(113 Posts)
Aveline Fri 29-May-26 07:11:49

Is it just my DH who's not a fan of salads? I'm so fed up with it. In this hot weather I'm enjoying delicious crisp, nutty, juicy, tasty salads of all sorts. Often I'll have cold salmon as a base but use other things too. However, DH is always miserable if it's not hot and features lots of potatoes. Last night he made himself a big bowl of lentil soup despite the loaded salad nicoise I had for him. Are all men like this?

Norah Sun 31-May-26 15:56:54

ottolenghi.co.uk/pages/recipes/farro-roasted-red-pepper-salad

This is a nice salad. We don't eat feta and add a bit of quinoa.

Norah Sun 31-May-26 15:53:40

Macaydia

Salads are not a main meal.

Please explain "Main Meal"?

Tenko Sun 31-May-26 15:29:05

My DH loves salads and would prefer salad to veggies. I chop the lettuce and other ingredients. And add chicken , cheese , tuna or salmon for protein and add rice , couscous , bulgar wheat or potatoes for bulk . When I was working I’d prep salads the night before and take a dressing in a herb bottle .i also find couscous and bulgar wheat tastes better the next day as all the flavours infuse .

Lemonred Sun 31-May-26 15:28:26

Aveline

Is it just my DH who's not a fan of salads? I'm so fed up with it. In this hot weather I'm enjoying delicious crisp, nutty, juicy, tasty salads of all sorts. Often I'll have cold salmon as a base but use other things too. However, DH is always miserable if it's not hot and features lots of potatoes. Last night he made himself a big bowl of lentil soup despite the loaded salad nicoise I had for him. Are all men like this?

This is my husband to a T.
I love colourful salads of all sorts, his food is brown and beige with potatoes. Has to be hot, and is apparently inedible without gravy or white sauce!
I’m mostly vegetarian, he’s the polar opposite!

GRAMERCY Sun 31-May-26 15:23:38

Salad isn't really good for you. Have a big, juicy steak instead.

Kitty55 Sun 31-May-26 15:21:40

Aveline
So upsetting for you. After years of training and encouragement my DH will eat one, he even made himself one last week. As long as you enjoy yours he can take care of himself.

Soozikinzi Sun 31-May-26 15:09:42

My DH loves salands probably more than I do . He does likes those little boiled potatoes with it or a jacket is so easy these days microwave 5 mins spray and then air fry 5 mins ? No trouble really .

Jules777 Sun 31-May-26 15:07:59

My late dear old Dad, may he RIP, was brilliant at making tasty salads, much more skilled and adventurous than our mother, (who wasn't really a fan) and he especially loved to use unusual ingredients too. A lot of this stuff we grew in our back garden (except for the raisins of course.) He lived to the great age of 92 years and eleven and three quarter months. I'm sure his diet was a factor in his longevity.

NannieChicken Sun 31-May-26 14:54:05

My husband loves a salad but he does like a bit of pasta, rice or couscous with it.
I'm fortunate that he is not a fussy eater in any way shape or form!

Nannapat1 Sun 31-May-26 14:52:56

We have salads of various types with new potatoes and either meat or fish. Surely the cold salad vegetables just take the place of hot cooked vegetables?
My DH loves salads btw.

Nanny27 Sun 31-May-26 14:52:35

Stirred not stored

Nanny27 Sun 31-May-26 14:52:10

We eat a lot of different salads but I don't really like lettuce so rarely include it in a salad. Red cabbage thinly sliced with a little onion, some apple, radishes a few nuts perhaps a handful of raisins stored around with a lovely dressing or a little Greek yogurt. Served with crusty bread.

suelld Sun 31-May-26 14:51:16

Add a large jacket potato to the salad for him … my favourite meals are full salad, tinned salmon, and a baked potato with butter …. Can’t go wrong for men or women imo!

debbiemon123 Sun 31-May-26 14:45:51

I know I am in the minority but I hate salad . I force myself to eat lettuce , I love tomatoes, but any other salad ingredient I loath …… beetroot, spring onion …. Yuk .
I so wish I loved them and have tried but no !!!!!

Bobba Sun 31-May-26 14:35:03

My husband felt like yours Aveline, a cold raw meal isn’t a meal even when it’s very hot out. What I found was over the years he’d peer at what I’d made for myself and like the look of it, and gradually he’s become happier with a hefty salad supper from time to time. My enjoyment seemed contagious!

ExaltedWombat Sun 31-May-26 14:31:31

Marmin

I wonder if , like me, he was raised on a very english idea of what a salad is. My mother was an exceptional cook but only across a fairly narrow range of dishes. A salad was a lettuce separated into its leaves, tomatoes cut in half and a few spring onions. That was it. No seasoning, no dressing. Not even the ubiquitous jar of Heinz salad cream. I hated them!
Now, I make salads of all varieties, all packed with flavour.
Might I suggest a potato salad as a start? A greek potato salad does not use mayo but packs a lot of flavour as well as potatoes of course!

Yes! THAT'S a salad - lettuce, tomatoes... Not this silly modern idea of bits of limp 'leaf' drenched in oil.

cc Sun 31-May-26 14:16:40

AuntieE

I only eat salads if courtesy to my host forces me to, so your husband is not alone.

I do not know whether more men than women find salads a waste of time and money, or whether they are just more willing to say so than women are.

I imagine I am not the only woman in the world to find salads a completely over-rated dish.

No AuntieE you are not, I don't mind a salad if I'm not very hungry not it isn't really a filling main meal. I'm trying to lose weight at the moment and eating salad if we go out for meals, but feel pretty deprived...

AuntieE Sun 31-May-26 14:01:14

I only eat salads if courtesy to my host forces me to, so your husband is not alone.

I do not know whether more men than women find salads a waste of time and money, or whether they are just more willing to say so than women are.

I imagine I am not the only woman in the world to find salads a completely over-rated dish.

monami Sun 31-May-26 13:45:00

my DH called it rabbit meat

Jojo1950 Sun 31-May-26 13:38:48

Yes, Aveline there are. I have one of them! 🙄

Sparky51 Sun 31-May-26 13:38:32

My husband likes salads.He needs a bit of bulk in it tho.So i make. A potato salad..with onions..bit of Tuna..and cold pasta..⁰...

Primrose53 Sat 30-May-26 16:50:56

I am making a Minted Courgette and Potato Tortilla tonight to have with salad. A family favourite, easy to make and delicious.

keepingquiet Sat 30-May-26 15:57:16

Let him cook and eat what he wants, and you just have a salad with whatever he cooks when its gone cold?

MissAdventure Sat 30-May-26 15:48:23

To my mind, a good salad is not only a meal, buy, probably in the kind of proportions that are reccommended.

cc Sat 30-May-26 14:34:38

Macaydia

Salads are not a main meal.

My husband's view entirely