I need to do the shopping and cook.
'Cucinare' — cu-ci-NA-re. Stress on the third syllable. 'Spesa' — SPE-za, stress on the first syllable.
Use with close friends when domestic tasks genuinely take priority. In Italian culture, food shopping and cooking are daily rituals taken seriously — not dismissed as trivial.
'Fare la spesa' (to do the food shopping) is a fixed Italian phrase — you don't say 'comprare la spesa'. The combination of shopping and cooking suggests you're preparing a proper meal, which Italians respect.
Ho da sistemare casa.
I have to tidy the house.
Domestic chores as a reason — less compelling but accepted among close friends
Devo cucinare per tutta la settimana.
I need to cook for the whole week.
Meal prepping — increasingly common among busy Italians in cities
Ho ospiti stasera e devo preparare tutto.
I have guests tonight and need to prepare everything.
Combining cooking obligation with hospitality — very powerful excuse
An empty fridge ('il frigo vuoto') is a genuine source of mild crisis in Italian households. Daily or near-daily fresh food shopping is still common in Italy, especially in smaller towns, and it's treated as a necessary domestic duty.