The kitchen can be a sensitive room in the house for many families. It is inevitable that everybody will have slightly different tastes and preferences when it comes to cooking, and being the person who has to try and cater to them all can be exhausting. It can be a challenge for even the most accomplished of chefs.

This can prove even more true when it comes to cooking for partners and in-laws. There is every chance they grew up eating a lot differently from how you did, and this has to be taken into account. 

Also, many relatives by marriage love to use things like culinary prowess to judge those who join their families, often unfairly. Meals together can quickly be turned into power trips with the wrong kinds of people, making a situation that is already a lot of work into something that is just plain unpleasant. After a point, a reaction is inevitable.