This Simple Step Makes Cooking With A Partner So Much Smoother

Sharing a meal with someone you love is a wonderful experience. When you prepare the meal together as well, it may make the moment that much more memorable — but not always in the way you intend. If you've found yourself on the verge of a divorce because your partner forgot to add salt to a dish (meanwhile, they thought you were in charge of adding the salt), there's a solution to make the cooking process smoother for both of you: Decide on which steps you'll each tackle beforehand, and stick to the plan.

Maybe one of you makes the perfect fried vegetables, while the other wants to get better at seasoning and cooking meat. Or maybe one person is designated to find ingredients in the fridge and pantry and pull out utensils from the drawers, set timers and do other logistic tasks, while the other stirs and measures. There are many ways you can split up the steps, but either way, some research has shown that cooking together can help you develop your problem solving and communication skills as a group as you take the time to discern what each of you is best at and compromise on a path forward. And this isn't just true for romantic partners; the same communication benefits extend to cooking a meal with a friend, a sibling, or even your kids.

Here's where it gets hard. Odds are that despite successfully dividing the steps of the recipe, you're going to want to sneak a peek over at your partner's pan and make a so-called "helpful comment" about what they could be doing differently. But unless they're new to cooking and specifically asking for your advice, what they're doing likely isn't wrong — it's just different. And that's okay.

If they grew up in a different family or culture than you, they may have different kitchen habits, be it using spices you wouldn't typically use, roasting vegetables rather than pan-frying them, or putting something in the refrigerator that you're 110% sure does not need to be refrigerated. Although it's tempting to criticize, this meal could be an opportunity to learn something new about your partner, and to practice listening to their ideas and trusting that if they say they know what they're doing, they truly, actually do know what they're doing. After all, if you can't trust them to make spaghetti, are you really going to trust them during the more important moments of your life?

In lieu of debating who forgot to preheat the oven, try listening to music while you cook (or eat), watching a favorite TV show or listening to a podcast that you can talk about later while enjoying your scrumptious culinary collaboration. Create a calming and fun atmosphere, and above all, don't forget to focus on the fact that you're spending quality time with someone you love.