Husband stops cooking after wife kept criticizing food and pretended to throw up dinner

Picture this: rather than expressing appreciation, your spouse begins to complain unnecessarily about things every day. Matters might get even worse when the whole world lauds you for your talent, except for the self-appointed critic, your partner. It can be a difficult and emotionally draining situation. Similarly, a 39-year-old man—who goes by u/winter_reveal_5894 on Reddit—revealed how he refused to cook for his 37-year-old wife, Jennifer, after she repeatedly insulted his cooking skills. 

The couple had been married for eight years and had two kids. While the man worked full-time, his wife was a stay-at-home mother who looked after the kids. Although she was a wonderful mother, she absolutely hated cooking. However, the man was fine with taking on that responsibility since he described himself as a phenomenal cook.

"My father was a chef, and I’ve been cooking since I was ten years old. I also worked as a line cook for several years. Virtually everyone loves my cooking. When we have company, it gets rave reviews. Our children always ask for seconds. I put a lot into it, and I take pride in my cooking skills," he wrote. While everyone around him loved his cooking, the only person who constantly complained about the food was Jennifer.

The man revealed, "She also backseat cooks a lot when I’m in the kitchen making something, and she won’t shut up about what I should be doing differently." The worst part was after insulting her husband's cooking skills, she would grab a packet of frozen meals, wasting the homecooked meals. The man somehow managed to keep his calm until one fine day, he decided to stop cooking for Jennifer. "Last Wednesday, I made Salisbury steaks with mushroom gravy, cream cheese mashed potatoes, and roasted asparagus. When I put Jennifer’s plate in front of her, she made a disgusted face. She poked at her Salisbury steak for a few seconds and took the tiniest bite imaginable," he shared.

After her first bite, she pretended to throw up and went to heat a burrito for dinner. This was the final straw. Although he did not react since the kids were around, he decided not to cook for his wife any further. "The next day, I made Teriyaki bowls with broccoli. Jennifer sat at the table waiting for hers, and I informed her that I was done cooking for her. When she asked why, I told her it was a waste of food and that she should just go have a Hot Pocket," the man wrote. Jennifer was furious and said that instead of giving up, he should try and improve his cooking. "I think she should just subsist on whatever microwaveable slop she likes and stop complaining. Did I escalate [things] too much here?" the man sought advice from people on Reddit. 

Reacting to the post, u/quietriot7222310 commented, "Did you marry a five-year-old? She behaved like a child. If you are not willing to do something, you don’t get to complain about the people who do. In my house, whoever is cooking makes what they make and everybody else shuts up and eats it. If you honestly can’t eat it for some reason, you thank the person for making the meal and then make yourself something quietly and politely."

u/parkergroove added, "The behavior is the worst part. What on earth is she thinking? Insanely rude. Maybe she doesn’t like the texture or something but to be so rude night after night is not only disrespectful and childish but teaching horrible manners to her kids. Frankly, I think OP's behavior was probably more than called for."

u/nozookeepergame9552 wrote, "The retching sound and throwing off the fork deserves the cut off without any other discussion, as you are still cooking for the kids and because your kids should know that that kind of rudeness is not acceptable and comes with reasonable consequences."