Cook together
Choose cooking when the ingredients are in and you will split the work. One chops, one cooks, or you take turns. A spectator is not cooking together.
All comparisons
Date night
Cook together or order in
Cooking together is a date only if you both wanted the task. Otherwise it is one person cooking and one person hovering.
Cooking together needs a recipe one of you has done, ingredients already bought, and a kitchen big enough for two. Ordering in needs a shop that is open and a decision that does not take the whole hour. Then the evening can be the meal and whatever you do after.
A new complicated recipe on a weeknight is a project with an audience. If you want that, shop in the afternoon. If you did not shop, order. Do not wander a shop hungry and call it a date.
Order in
Choose ordering in when you want the time for each other rather than for the food. Pick from two or three places you already trust. Then put the phones away.
What actually differs
| Difference | Cook together | Order in |
|---|---|---|
| Prep | Afternoon, if the recipe is new | A short menu |
| Together | Real, if you split tasks | At the table |
| Cleanup | Part of the date | Almost none |
| Risk | A missing ingredient | A slow delivery |
| After | You may be tired of the kitchen | You still have the evening |
Questions about this choice
What if only one of us can cook?
Then it is not cooking together. It is one person cooking for the other, which can be a gift. Name it, including who cleans up.
Does the meal have to be impressive?
No. Pasta you both like beats a showpiece that takes two hours and a mood you do not have.