Women who hated cooking but now enjoy it, what made you change?
July 17, 2025
Or maybe you just weren’t good at it and now you are, what changed
45 comments
I had to cook a lot with my mom growing up. Not to talk poorly of her, but she’s not the greatest cook. So I was mostly being made to help her cook food I didn’t like. Neither of my brothers ever had to help cook, so I think that added to my dislike of it as well.
It wasn’t until I was living on my own that I was able to learn to cook properly and was able to start cooking food I actually enjoy that I started to like cooking.
My partner and I worked out (and stuck to) a cooking schedule so I wasn’t constantly the one who had to do it. They’re the one who actively enjoys cooking, but it felt like it was falling on my shoulders every single night. Now we swap days and it sucks less.
I also got over some of my “meh, I suck, *they’re* the cook, I can’t do anything in the kitchen” stuff and started messing around with ingredients and doing my own thing. I’ve thrown together quite a few dishes that we both really like, just by randomly combining stuff.
I try to make it an enjoyable experience instead of feeling like a chore. I grab my favorite apron, put on an audiobook or music and go at my own pace.
When I moved away and stopped getting to eat my mom’s food.
5 years later I love cooking for myself coz it feels like I’m back to being a kid with my favourite home cooked meals. Learnt it all from mum, mostly over video calls.
I don’t have to clean the pots and pans anymore, nor do I have to pay for groceries when I want to try something new, expensive or exotic out. All thanks to my boyfriend. At home I’m still the only daughter…
I now have a partner who can do the cleaning up part. And a less cramped kitchen.
I started using a meal kit. It provided the right amount of ingredients (less food waste), offered many weekly options to choose from, and provided easy to follow instructions. It really helped me step up my cooking skills and took a lot of anxiety out of figuring out what to buy and make each week 🙂
My ex got me into it. We would make food together and it became a fun activity. My cooking also improved and I loved having dinners together at home. There is something about cooking that makes it a lovely way to bond too.
I left my husband. He used to make fun of my cooking and so I started to hate it. Now that I cook for myself, I enjoy it again.
It’s a break I get from dealing with my children.
But in all honestly, I like cooking over baking (which I used to like) because I don’t pay much attention to measurements and I can always add my own flare. I have so many herbs and spices and whatever else I feel like and it usually works. It’s fun to experiment like that!
I can also jazz up boring recipes or premade stuff (like bagged salads or sauces or whatever).
I can also control the ingredients to fit within my diet.
I think I’m much better at it now to the point where my dad prefers my stuff and my mom asks for my recipes! I learned most of my cooking skills from her.
I took a cooking class at the community college! I chose it as an elective. It felt more like a science class actually, because there were a lot of experiments. For example, different students would be assigned different types of meatballs to make, and then we’d report on it. It was fun, and the textbook was fantastic and came with dozens and dozens of restaurant style recipes.
I really recommend it if you can. I learned a lot, and mostly it released a lot of anxieties I had about cooking. I feel like I can try anything now!
Learning a sautéed diced onion is necessary for any savory sauce base and learning how to use lemon and sugar in savory dishes to alter acid.
I used to think I hated it and was no good at it. Then I moved out of my parents house and realised I was just lazy and enjoyed my dad’s cooking so much that I’d never actually tried do it myself. I quickly became tired of eating basic ass meals and decided to be a bit more adventurous and actually try some decent recipes, and found I was pretty good. I love cooking now because basically, I love eating nice food! 🤣
Giving myself time and resources.
Cooking when you’ve already been at work for 8 hours, with 2 screaming toddlers in the background, when dinnertime is in 30 minutes, you have no recipe, and 1 clean pot, is like Hell’s Kitchen or Iron Chef for Moms everywhere.
Cooking when you have a recipe service, time to plan and prep, older children, sufficient utensils, and no deadline… is a much more pleasant experience.
TLDR: I basically don’t try to cook fancy dinners in 30 minutes. We do a lot of bulk cooking and time shifting. Embrace the life you have.
My mom did not know how to cook vegetables. At all. I did not learn this until my husband steamed some basic frozen mixed vegetables in the microwave… and I asked why it tasted so good. It was cooked correctly and had butter, salt and pepper on it… that’s all. My mom didn’t believe in putting any fats on the vegetables and also just basically boiled them, or seriously overcooked them. Now I can do what hubby can and even better fresh/from scratch.
Begin hungry
I’m retired. I have the time, and a partner who REALLY appreciates my mediocre cooking. It’s a joy.
going vegan. there wasn’t a lot of processed foods that were vegan friendly widely available at the time, so I had to start cooking form fresh. I ended up really getting into putting together tasty and healthy recipes
Practice and getting good at it has made it more enjoyable.
I started making foods that I really liked. Not thinking about anyone else but my own preference and tastes. Turns out, im a great chef lol
When I cooked because I wanted to not because I was made to.
I could cook food I actually wanted to eat. Just for myself, not a full meal for the entire family.
My husband does the cooking. Any cooking I do is for fun.
I started out not good at it, but a long period of unemployment gave me time to practice. My husband enjopyed coming home to a good dinner.
Then when I went back to work I had to pick up quicker recipes.
Honestly having a glass of wine while I’m cooking and having a movie on in the background!
COVID! almost starved one day and chose to open youtube and just cook something simple and bam i enjoyed it so much.
Using the hello fresh or similar boxes gave me good recipe ideas and showed me new combinations. I realized I just need recipes that are 30 minutes max.
I never hated cooking, but growing up, my mom always did the cooking.
After I got married, i actually started to really enjoy it. I used to cook meals for my husband, and always made a salad to go with them. But he constantly criticized my food.
Things like: Why do you spend so much time decorating the salad? Why are you setting the table like this?There’s too much salt. There’s not enough oil.
He saw everything except the love and care I put into making those meals.
Now, i don’t even go near the kitchen.
He cooks for himself and the kid.
My kid’s opinion really matters to me lol
I was averse to the idea of cooking because my mother, with her hectic professional life, didn’t cook and delegated it to cooks. So, to me, it was the norm: first earn, then rest, and chores can be delegated. It was the way cooking and anything desi were enforced by my aunts that my mom didn’t know about, but once you grew up and married, you’d need it, or else you were doomed. I just hated that; I had to learn cooking or wear certain kinds of clothes for the “future” purpose. This in turn built a hatred for cooking and I rebelled whenever my cousins cooked because their mothers taught them and in high school, I just didn’t see the point.
8 years down the line, when I was in my final year of college. I met ex-bf. He was a chef and ran a food truck business. He loved eveyrhting food. To cherish it, for health and nourishment. He taught me for fun as I hung out after classes to help with his business, to chop tomatoes the right way. We bonded through food. I visited his truck (with my girls gang) when our mutual friend said he liked me and makes mean BBQ chicken burgers. It was food that drew me to my first dating experience. He was so kind to everyone; he cooked for his mom before he started prepping his trucks for the day. He made sandwiches and packed for our early morning dates to bike rides, so I could eat healthily instead of the usual hostel food I had. He quite literally taught me to explore food and even argued that I have to unlearn whatever I was told as a child, because while you can delegate this, you as a human should know these basic skills if you can’t afford delegation. He was so right.
While that was a young and short-lived relationship of a few months, we remained friends later as he expanded his business and I moved for my job. I cherish him and his friendship deeply; he is frozen in my memories, as he passed away 3 months ago. It had been years since we lost contact, as life takes over. But at 21, we didn’t know love was, but he did show me a version of that by teaching me to cook, by feeding me, and showing me how to take life by the horns. It’s always the people with dreams bigger than life that are robbed by time. But he impacted more lives at 29 than anybody, and I, being one of them, will always keep him alive through cooking, travelling, and silliness!
I hated cooking when I lived at home because my family members had limited palates and were very picky eaters. After I moved out, I learned how to cook foods from all over thr world, and have revelled in the kitchen ever since.
I, a European, was introduced to Chinese cuisine.
I finally have my own kitchen, where I get to decide what goes where and how things are done. I can truly create freely, without someone constantly interfering.
Restaurant food has declined to the point where it’s a pleasure to cook & eat something nutritious & tastes good.
As a teen/young adult I did not want to cook because I already had a ton of chores plus school plus extracurriculars and I really did not have an interest. When I did try my family would tease me that I was not good at it.
When I moved out I had to cook out of necessity and found that being able to do it on my own terms and make something delicious was really empowering. No one was overseeing me telling me to do all my chores or my homework. I oversaw myself so learning to cook was actually enjoyable. No one judged if I failed. When I met my husband shortly after I then really started enjoying it because I had someone I wanted to bless and it gave me joy to give him joy. Now we have our own home and family but I still like cooking for everyone, especially my husband, because it makes them happy and that makes me happy.
Anthony bourdain shows , I started appreciating food more , food is history love power and sex!!
I loathed cooking until I started Hungryroot and it’s been so easy and fun! My boyfriend likes 99% of the meals too. It’s helped us eat a lot healthier and try new things
I still despise doing dishes afterwards though lol
I’ll be honest, I started reading a cooking manga about an older gay couple (What Did You Eat Yesterday?). I’ve never been a bad cook, but usually I just cook for myself and that’s not as fun as cooking for others. That the cooking manga uses things like frozen food and microwaves makes it much more accessible to me, and after reading several volumes, it gave me courage to try some new recipes.
I think something people really underestimate is that when you’re the one cooking, you can adjust it to your tastes. Having complete control over what into a dish gives me more confidence about trying new recipes. I also have a lot of food allergies, so I’ve been experimenting with ingredient substitutes.
Some weeks I still struggle with cooking, but generally if I have ham, eggs, cheese, and bread on hand, I can cook myself something I’ll want to eat.
Being able to spend a whole afternoon in the kitchen. I don’t love cooking dinner for myself on a Wednesday post work and the gym when I’m tired, but when I have a whole Sunday afternoon to make sauce from scratch for a lasagna? Yes, please.
Mom said I’m a woman and so need to help her in the kitchen
So did not care to learn or cook until much much later
And realized it wasn’t common to get recipe right thr first time
Now I know I’ll good at it, I feel happy to cook for ppl
Time. Before Covid, I had to waste two hours a day between getting ready and commuting to and from work. Now I work remotely, and I have all that extra time to learn more and cook wholesome meals for myself and my husband, where I used to only feel like I had the time or energy to throw a frozen pizza in the oven. It’s been very fulfilling in both a mental and physical way.
[removed]
meal prep, having more time for it, using my favorite ingredients, making a goal to try at least one new recipe every week 🙂 and growinf my own ingredients
I mostly hated cooking because of the cleaning and I was never really taught how to cook. I didn’t understand the basics, I was trying to cook everything on medium/high or high and everything came out overdone.
As an adult, I started out cooking the things my mom made, but she wasn’t a particularly good cook either. The only seasonings in the house growing up were salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Sides were primarily canned corn or green beans, used a lot of cream of mushroom soup.
Over time, I tried new recipes, new cookware and tools, and I got better by trial and error.
Now, I cook and my husband cleans the kitchen. It’s a balance. Now that I know how to cook basic stuff, and I don’t have to clean, I love cooking.
Two major things have changed my cooking… buying and using a meat thermometer, and buying an air fryer.
Meal kits which keep meal selection more interesting 🙂
Meal prep for the week. It is inconvenient for me to have to cook every single day so when I meal prep for the week. It’s good. it won’t feel like a chore.
I started using supercook and it opened up a whole new world of cooking for me. Ingredients can be used so many different ways
45 comments
I had to cook a lot with my mom growing up. Not to talk poorly of her, but she’s not the greatest cook. So I was mostly being made to help her cook food I didn’t like. Neither of my brothers ever had to help cook, so I think that added to my dislike of it as well.
It wasn’t until I was living on my own that I was able to learn to cook properly and was able to start cooking food I actually enjoy that I started to like cooking.
My partner and I worked out (and stuck to) a cooking schedule so I wasn’t constantly the one who had to do it. They’re the one who actively enjoys cooking, but it felt like it was falling on my shoulders every single night. Now we swap days and it sucks less.
I also got over some of my “meh, I suck, *they’re* the cook, I can’t do anything in the kitchen” stuff and started messing around with ingredients and doing my own thing. I’ve thrown together quite a few dishes that we both really like, just by randomly combining stuff.
I try to make it an enjoyable experience instead of feeling like a chore. I grab my favorite apron, put on an audiobook or music and go at my own pace.
When I moved away and stopped getting to eat my mom’s food.
5 years later I love cooking for myself coz it feels like I’m back to being a kid with my favourite home cooked meals. Learnt it all from mum, mostly over video calls.
I don’t have to clean the pots and pans anymore, nor do I have to pay for groceries when I want to try something new, expensive or exotic out. All thanks to my boyfriend. At home I’m still the only daughter…
I now have a partner who can do the cleaning up part. And a less cramped kitchen.
I started using a meal kit. It provided the right amount of ingredients (less food waste), offered many weekly options to choose from, and provided easy to follow instructions. It really helped me step up my cooking skills and took a lot of anxiety out of figuring out what to buy and make each week 🙂
My ex got me into it. We would make food together and it became a fun activity. My cooking also improved and I loved having dinners together at home. There is something about cooking that makes it a lovely way to bond too.
I left my husband. He used to make fun of my cooking and so I started to hate it. Now that I cook for myself, I enjoy it again.
It’s a break I get from dealing with my children.
But in all honestly, I like cooking over baking (which I used to like) because I don’t pay much attention to measurements and I can always add my own flare. I have so many herbs and spices and whatever else I feel like and it usually works. It’s fun to experiment like that!
I can also jazz up boring recipes or premade stuff (like bagged salads or sauces or whatever).
I can also control the ingredients to fit within my diet.
I think I’m much better at it now to the point where my dad prefers my stuff and my mom asks for my recipes! I learned most of my cooking skills from her.
I took a cooking class at the community college! I chose it as an elective. It felt more like a science class actually, because there were a lot of experiments. For example, different students would be assigned different types of meatballs to make, and then we’d report on it. It was fun, and the textbook was fantastic and came with dozens and dozens of restaurant style recipes.
I really recommend it if you can. I learned a lot, and mostly it released a lot of anxieties I had about cooking. I feel like I can try anything now!
Learning a sautéed diced onion is necessary for any savory sauce base and learning how to use lemon and sugar in savory dishes to alter acid.
I used to think I hated it and was no good at it. Then I moved out of my parents house and realised I was just lazy and enjoyed my dad’s cooking so much that I’d never actually tried do it myself. I quickly became tired of eating basic ass meals and decided to be a bit more adventurous and actually try some decent recipes, and found I was pretty good. I love cooking now because basically, I love eating nice food! 🤣
Giving myself time and resources.
Cooking when you’ve already been at work for 8 hours, with 2 screaming toddlers in the background, when dinnertime is in 30 minutes, you have no recipe, and 1 clean pot, is like Hell’s Kitchen or Iron Chef for Moms everywhere.
Cooking when you have a recipe service, time to plan and prep, older children, sufficient utensils, and no deadline… is a much more pleasant experience.
TLDR: I basically don’t try to cook fancy dinners in 30 minutes. We do a lot of bulk cooking and time shifting. Embrace the life you have.
My mom did not know how to cook vegetables. At all. I did not learn this until my husband steamed some basic frozen mixed vegetables in the microwave… and I asked why it tasted so good. It was cooked correctly and had butter, salt and pepper on it… that’s all. My mom didn’t believe in putting any fats on the vegetables and also just basically boiled them, or seriously overcooked them. Now I can do what hubby can and even better fresh/from scratch.
Begin hungry
I’m retired. I have the time, and a partner who REALLY appreciates my mediocre cooking. It’s a joy.
going vegan. there wasn’t a lot of processed foods that were vegan friendly widely available at the time, so I had to start cooking form fresh. I ended up really getting into putting together tasty and healthy recipes
Practice and getting good at it has made it more enjoyable.
I started making foods that I really liked. Not thinking about anyone else but my own preference and tastes. Turns out, im a great chef lol
When I cooked because I wanted to not because I was made to.
I could cook food I actually wanted to eat. Just for myself, not a full meal for the entire family.
My husband does the cooking. Any cooking I do is for fun.
I started out not good at it, but a long period of unemployment gave me time to practice. My husband enjopyed coming home to a good dinner.
Then when I went back to work I had to pick up quicker recipes.
Honestly having a glass of wine while I’m cooking and having a movie on in the background!
COVID! almost starved one day and chose to open youtube and just cook something simple and bam i enjoyed it so much.
Using the hello fresh or similar boxes gave me good recipe ideas and showed me new combinations. I realized I just need recipes that are 30 minutes max.
I never hated cooking, but growing up, my mom always did the cooking.
After I got married, i actually started to really enjoy it. I used to cook meals for my husband, and always made a salad to go with them. But he constantly criticized my food.
Things like: Why do you spend so much time decorating the salad? Why are you setting the table like this?There’s too much salt. There’s not enough oil.
He saw everything except the love and care I put into making those meals.
Now, i don’t even go near the kitchen.
He cooks for himself and the kid.
My kid’s opinion really matters to me lol
I was averse to the idea of cooking because my mother, with her hectic professional life, didn’t cook and delegated it to cooks. So, to me, it was the norm: first earn, then rest, and chores can be delegated. It was the way cooking and anything desi were enforced by my aunts that my mom didn’t know about, but once you grew up and married, you’d need it, or else you were doomed. I just hated that; I had to learn cooking or wear certain kinds of clothes for the “future” purpose. This in turn built a hatred for cooking and I rebelled whenever my cousins cooked because their mothers taught them and in high school, I just didn’t see the point.
8 years down the line, when I was in my final year of college. I met ex-bf. He was a chef and ran a food truck business. He loved eveyrhting food. To cherish it, for health and nourishment. He taught me for fun as I hung out after classes to help with his business, to chop tomatoes the right way. We bonded through food. I visited his truck (with my girls gang) when our mutual friend said he liked me and makes mean BBQ chicken burgers. It was food that drew me to my first dating experience. He was so kind to everyone; he cooked for his mom before he started prepping his trucks for the day. He made sandwiches and packed for our early morning dates to bike rides, so I could eat healthily instead of the usual hostel food I had. He quite literally taught me to explore food and even argued that I have to unlearn whatever I was told as a child, because while you can delegate this, you as a human should know these basic skills if you can’t afford delegation. He was so right.
While that was a young and short-lived relationship of a few months, we remained friends later as he expanded his business and I moved for my job. I cherish him and his friendship deeply; he is frozen in my memories, as he passed away 3 months ago. It had been years since we lost contact, as life takes over. But at 21, we didn’t know love was, but he did show me a version of that by teaching me to cook, by feeding me, and showing me how to take life by the horns. It’s always the people with dreams bigger than life that are robbed by time. But he impacted more lives at 29 than anybody, and I, being one of them, will always keep him alive through cooking, travelling, and silliness!
I hated cooking when I lived at home because my family members had limited palates and were very picky eaters. After I moved out, I learned how to cook foods from all over thr world, and have revelled in the kitchen ever since.
I, a European, was introduced to Chinese cuisine.
I finally have my own kitchen, where I get to decide what goes where and how things are done. I can truly create freely, without someone constantly interfering.
Restaurant food has declined to the point where it’s a pleasure to cook & eat something nutritious & tastes good.
As a teen/young adult I did not want to cook because I already had a ton of chores plus school plus extracurriculars and I really did not have an interest. When I did try my family would tease me that I was not good at it.
When I moved out I had to cook out of necessity and found that being able to do it on my own terms and make something delicious was really empowering. No one was overseeing me telling me to do all my chores or my homework. I oversaw myself so learning to cook was actually enjoyable. No one judged if I failed. When I met my husband shortly after I then really started enjoying it because I had someone I wanted to bless and it gave me joy to give him joy. Now we have our own home and family but I still like cooking for everyone, especially my husband, because it makes them happy and that makes me happy.
Anthony bourdain shows , I started appreciating food more , food is history love power and sex!!
I loathed cooking until I started Hungryroot and it’s been so easy and fun! My boyfriend likes 99% of the meals too. It’s helped us eat a lot healthier and try new things
I still despise doing dishes afterwards though lol
I’ll be honest, I started reading a cooking manga about an older gay couple (What Did You Eat Yesterday?). I’ve never been a bad cook, but usually I just cook for myself and that’s not as fun as cooking for others. That the cooking manga uses things like frozen food and microwaves makes it much more accessible to me, and after reading several volumes, it gave me courage to try some new recipes.
I think something people really underestimate is that when you’re the one cooking, you can adjust it to your tastes. Having complete control over what into a dish gives me more confidence about trying new recipes. I also have a lot of food allergies, so I’ve been experimenting with ingredient substitutes.
Some weeks I still struggle with cooking, but generally if I have ham, eggs, cheese, and bread on hand, I can cook myself something I’ll want to eat.
Being able to spend a whole afternoon in the kitchen. I don’t love cooking dinner for myself on a Wednesday post work and the gym when I’m tired, but when I have a whole Sunday afternoon to make sauce from scratch for a lasagna? Yes, please.
Mom said I’m a woman and so need to help her in the kitchen
So did not care to learn or cook until much much later
And realized it wasn’t common to get recipe right thr first time
Now I know I’ll good at it, I feel happy to cook for ppl
Time. Before Covid, I had to waste two hours a day between getting ready and commuting to and from work. Now I work remotely, and I have all that extra time to learn more and cook wholesome meals for myself and my husband, where I used to only feel like I had the time or energy to throw a frozen pizza in the oven. It’s been very fulfilling in both a mental and physical way.
[removed]
meal prep, having more time for it, using my favorite ingredients, making a goal to try at least one new recipe every week 🙂 and growinf my own ingredients
I mostly hated cooking because of the cleaning and I was never really taught how to cook. I didn’t understand the basics, I was trying to cook everything on medium/high or high and everything came out overdone.
As an adult, I started out cooking the things my mom made, but she wasn’t a particularly good cook either. The only seasonings in the house growing up were salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Sides were primarily canned corn or green beans, used a lot of cream of mushroom soup.
Over time, I tried new recipes, new cookware and tools, and I got better by trial and error.
Now, I cook and my husband cleans the kitchen. It’s a balance. Now that I know how to cook basic stuff, and I don’t have to clean, I love cooking.
Two major things have changed my cooking… buying and using a meat thermometer, and buying an air fryer.
Meal kits which keep meal selection more interesting 🙂
Meal prep for the week. It is inconvenient for me to have to cook every single day so when I meal prep for the week. It’s good. it won’t feel like a chore.
I started using supercook and it opened up a whole new world of cooking for me. Ingredients can be used so many different ways