Is it time for men to get in the kitchen?
Back when National Men Make Dinner Day was created, in 2001, the idea was already becoming outdated. The idea, that is, that men aren’t often seen in the kitchen. That mentality was pushed by Western society standards focused on the mom, dad, and two kids household of the 1800s and early 1900s.
But by the time that 2001 had come around, Western, and specifically U.S., households looked a lot differently. When it came to men, the idea that cooking was a woman’s job was slowly fading away. Men were being raised with the idea that they’ll need to know how to cook a dish or two. And that breakdown of unnecessary social norms is even greater today. Part of that may be in thanks to Men Make Dinner Day.
Taking place on the first Thursday of November, National Men Make Dinner Day gives men the opportunity to hone their cooking skills. Of course, the day is focused more on men who don’t typically do the dishes. Thus, these men gain a new appreciation for the people who cook for them on a regular basis.
Perhaps, it is time to slightly update the name of this day. Instead of making it National Men Make Dinner Day, it should change to National Cooking Appreciation Day. Or something a little more catchy. The day should be about cooking for those who more often cook for you. Kids can cook for their parents, with teens leading the charge. Husbands can cook for their wives if they cook the most in the household. (And the same for wives cooking for their husbands, or husbands for their husbands, or wives for their wives. You get the idea).
Despite our personal thoughts on the title, many Americans expressed support of the day and its name. Talking to the Pekin Times, Teryl Billingsley of Creve Coeur, Missouri expressed her love of the day’s idea.
“I think National Men Make Dinner Day is a wonderful idea,” Billingsley said. “They may get in the kitchen and find out they like to cook. It may be a way to bring them closer to their children and their families. When my children were young, we always set aside a day where we did an international meal. We would do something from a different country and talk about what that country’s favorite foods were.”
As for Marcus McDonnough of Pekin, Missouri, he says more men should be cooking in the kitchen on a regular basis.
“I’m the one who cooks probably 95 percent of the time,” he explained. ” I believe more men should cook. There are too many men who don’t know how.”
