Germans must eat exactly one warm meal per day

haxn1.jpgI am not sure what would happen to a German if they mistakenly eat two heated meals in one day, but I am sure it would be devastation, because all Germans make sure that they eat exactly one warm meal each day.

In fact, if you eat with your colleagues at work in the cafeteria, you can tell which ones are married, because they will grab a salad and a roll, then remind you that they have a wife at home who will cook warmes for them later. Even if the cafeteria is serving their favorite heated dish, the German must consider that his wife will cook later, and he cannot break the cardinal rule of never, ever, under any circumstances, eating two meals above room temperature in one calendar day.

deutsche Übersetzung für Astrid ein/ausblenden

17 Responses to “Germans must eat exactly one warm meal per day”

  1. Astrid Says:

    Es soll auch Deutsche geben, die eine oder mehrere warme Mahlzeiten durch Helgoländer Eiergrog ersetzen… :-D

  2. Jana Says:

    Es soll auch Deutsche geben die nur am Wochenende warm essen, einfach keine Zeit unter der Woche….lol.

  3. John Says:

    Hmmm Eiergrog. Hört sich gut an.

  4. Bastian Says:

    I would say this is just partially true. Especially students do actually eat more then one warm or hot meal a day.

    I think the “one per day”-rule only attaches to people older then 40 and depends on the fact, that a warm meal usually contents of things with a high degree of fat and/or calories in germany.

    So start talking to younger people, they propably eat two or three times a day a hot or warm meal.

  5. Bettina Says:

    @ Bastian: not true. I am a young german woman and only eat one warm meal a day! So do my friends. My parents, who are older than 40, mostly eat warm meals twice a day…

  6. Joerg Says:

    I guess this has something to do with post-war memories. My gradma hated basically just two things:

    1. Not finishing your meal. (waste)
    2. Eating warm twice a day. (decadent/unnecessary)

    yep

  7. Ares Says:

    I had more than one warm meal a day for a couple of months once in university. The result was apparent and simple: I became fat.

  8. TabulaRasa Says:

    Well, you sure have heard the saying “3* Bier** ersetzen eine warme Mahlzeit” (3* Beers* substitute one warm meal)?
    Given the fact that we germans LOVE beer, maybe you understand why we have to cut back on the real warm meals… ;)

    *The number of beers that substitute one meal are hotly disputed; and as some people justifiably note, a meal without a beer to drink is no meal at all, so the only safe assumption can be that (X+1) Beers subsitute one meal.

    **What is considered “one beer” may vary from region to region.
    In Cologne, you’ll get 0,2 Liters if you order one beer, while the same order in Munich will get you a full liter, a “Maß Bier”.

  9. MuGo Says:

    Wait a second - there are people voluntarily missing a warm meal just because they will have one later on?
    I can’t understand that - the best thing during Zivildienst was the possibility to get two warm meals a day; warm lunch at the cafeteria and warm dinner at home with my parents. Nearly forgot how good German bread tastes…^^

  10. Stefan Says:

    That’s the reason why we germans are not so fat…
    ;)

  11. Tsherman Says:

    Stefan: you wish ;)

  12. Ares Says:

    Beer was a substitute for food by monks during the Lenten season, mostly in the Middle Ages. So yes, you can put quite a few calories in Starkbier.

    There is a competition going on in the world, and it’s all about: which nation has the fatest citizens. The US might still be in the lead, but UK and Germany are closing in fast. Heck, even Italy ain’t what it used to be. German soldiers in Afghanistan are so fat, the Taliban confuse them with GIs and shoot at them.

    P.S.: What do American beer and making love in a canoe have in common ? Both are f*cking close to water. :D

  13. HermanTheGerman Says:

    Again: I’m from Germany and I eat 2 warm meals per day very often, but personnaly i have no problem with eating just one.

  14. Sigurd Says:

    I’m a German, living in exile. It’s very hard for me to have to eat two warm meals on most days. It makes me fat, but what can I do?

  15. Suzume (germany) Says:

    Not entirely true xP

    My family and me often eat on the weekends two warm meals: For lunch Spaghetti and for dinner Pizza ^^

  16. simi1983 Says:

    might be the reason why (though we get more fat through americanisation of our food) the average german is still slimmer than the average american

  17. Curieuse Says:

    I noticed this as well as the university Mensa. My fellow German students and I always have lunch at the mensa, and then they are always so surprised when I offer to make dinner at my house before doing something in the evening, such as going to a party or dance. Rather, most of them eat bread and cheese for dinner, or fruit.

    Also, has anyone ever noticed that Germans don’t rinse their dishes after washing them? They wash them in soapy water, that gets murkier with every dish that gets washed, and then just leave it on the side to dry, or wipe off with a towel.. so strange.

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