Get teens into kitchen

I THINK I have found my project for the year — to help get kids more involved at home.

Teens specifically, but really kids of any age.

In the past week I have been absorbed reading an Australian Institute of Family Studies paper on the distribution of household chores among family members.

Now, I’m no advocate of that well-worn trope that ‘kids these days are getting away with murder’.

However, the current data is striking, although I’d hazard a guess that many parents would already understand it intuitively.

One third of boys and a little less than one sixth of girls do no chores at all, nor contribute in any way to the maintenance of the home.

Moreover, while fathers still work on average at double the rate of mothers, that figure is dwarfed when child care, domestic contribution and volunteering are also measured.

I don’t want to have the debate about how men and women manage their domestic arrangements, that is for individual couples to negotiate. But for the sake of our future, we must get our kids to understand their vital role in that most basic of community units, the family.

The first place to start, if you want my advice, is to teach your teens to cook.

Nothing too complicated or fancy, just simple, healthy, learnable dishes and flavours — think aromatic chicken skewers with noodles and an easy salad. Ignore the complaints and arguments, it’s totally worth the effort.

Not only will it make them better people, it will make yours a stronger family too.

LIME AND SOY CHICKEN SKEWERS WITH RICE NOODLES AND SPINACH serves / 4

2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce 1 tbsp fish sauce 2 tsp sesame oil 200g flat rice noodles 4 cups baby spinach leaves Chopped peanuts, mung bean sprouts, capsicum, lime wedges and coriander leaves, to serve