Kids are picky eaters I'm all out ideas on what meals to make for them?

Question

always bologna or pepperoni sandwhiches, bagels, hot dogs, burgers, and grilled cheese, they don't seem to like anything else.

my boys are 8&10 and I have always made different things for them to eat but the food goes to waste because they won't eat it no matter how hungry they are and I don't like wasting food.

Answer 1

They really SHOULD eat vegetables because the effect on their body is just to strong if they don't. Children who grow need to make a good base for later. If they don't eat enough vegetables they will more easy get diseases (like cancer) when they are grown-ups!

Something that might work is letting them help you in the kitchen. If they help to prepare the food (in a nice, fun and playfull manner) they will enjoy it much more to eat.

Try these sites:
http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/kids/
http://www.cspinet.org/smartmouth/recipes_articles/index.html
http://dmoz.org/Home/Cooking/For_Children/
http://kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/

Answer 2

I have the same problem and it is not fun. My kids have accepted pancakes with syrup, waffles, chicken nuggets (store bought and homemade), pizza, mac and cheese, spaghetti, canned pasta, raisins, strawberries with whipped cream. Hiding fruit under whipped cream can work sometimes- other times they lick all the whipped cream off and leave the fruit.

Sometimes I cheat and mix baby food (like carrots) into their food (like put it in the pasta sauce for example) to get some vegetables into them. You can also try making milkshakes/smoothies with frozen yogurt and fresh fruit in the blender. I also found that respond well to the cereal variety packs. (The ones that come with 8 little single serving boxes of cereal.) Getting them to eat cereal has really helped. Chicken nuggets are easy - I use boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut them into nugget size and coat them with shake and bake and bake at 400 for about 10-15 minutes. Home made fries work too.

Pizza can be fun if the kids help make it - when they put the toppings on they are a little more likely to eat them and I have also had some success with soft tacos that they make themselves.

Good luck, I know how hard it is. I was cooking two or three meals a night and loosing my mind. My kids will go to bed hungry and still not eat.

Oh and try peant butter if they are not allergic. It is a good protein food. And watermelon might work on a hot summer day.

Answer 3

I have a very picky eater and a couple of things we read about in a magazine article work for us, most of the time. One thing we do, that I was shocked actually worked was, we tell her she has to take 3 bites of whatever she has on her plate because she is 3 years old. Don't ask me why, but she just accepts this and does it, usually without arguing. We will of course adjust this rule as she ages and change the number of bites with the number of years. The other thing we have her do is choose the piece that she wants to eat. Like if I fix meatloaf and cut it into pieces, she gets to pick which piece she wants to eat next. This gives her some control and almost always works. Also, the number one rule is "If it goes in, it goes down." No spitting out food you don't like. You don't have to eat anymore if it doesn't taste good, but you have to swallow it once it goes in your mouth. Good luck!

Answer 4

my question is...why did you ever give them a choice? Kids will only be picky if given an opportunity to be picky.

Fix them something to eat, if they don't eat it, put it in the fridge, and put them down for a nap. When they get up saying they are hungry, bring out the meal that they refused to eat and give it to them again. Eventually they will get the message that they are to eat what is in front of them.

you have to stop this NOW or you will be fixing 3 and 4 different meals, one for each member of your family.

Answer 5

How old are they? If they're 3 years and younger, they'll outgrow it. If they're older than that - what about getting them involved in meals? Take them to the store (one on one is preferable) and let them wander the produce department (for starters) and tell them to pick out one item that looks like something they want to try. Then the two of you prepare it together. (Peel and section the orange, slice the apple and get the peanut butter to dip it into, snap the green beans, shell the peas, husk the corn.Melt cheese on veggies.) Maybe by letting them pick stuff out, you might get them to eat more. Reward them for trying new stuff with something that interests them - an extra hour on the computer, something like that.

Answer 6

kids are tough.
at my house we always ate what my mom made.
if we didn't then we didn't eat...simple.
kind of like my doggie. if he doesn't eat, then he starves. i'm not going to deal with picky puppies and kiddies!
eventually, they will learn that you are the mommy, not just a cook to make them whatever they want.

of course, you want things to be kid freindly, but as a kid i always liked various pasta, lasagna, spaghetti, manacotti..and meat, like meatloaf, roasted chicken, chicken and rice.
or course my moms' baked macaroni and cheese is still my favorite!

as for veggies...i have a friend that doesn't make many side dishes with dinner, they just snack on veggie trays all the time. or what my grandmother called rabbit food.
so giving them raw carrots, green peppers, celery sticks, cauliflower, broccoli and cherry tomatoes may work better than trying to cook and serve them.

i hope some of this works for you!

take care!

Answer 7

chicken tenders, pop tarts, jell-o. Me being a 17 year old picky eater, I'm probably not the best person to be receiving advice from. Try Raviolli, waffles, or easy mac.

Answer 8

Try something new, but act like they can't have it. Buy kiwi and munch on it, and then like "hide" it when they come in the room. If they ask, say "you wouldn't like it" and then eventually they will be all over you. Let them have a bite and then wait a while to reintroduce it. Then they'll be like, I remember that, and you can give them another bite, and they'll be like yummy and you can say oh great, we're having this for dinner.

Answer 9

--Make healthy foods, various sandwiches (BLT, PB&J), but use a cookie cutter to cut various shapes to make them more appealing.
--Get fresh veggies (baby carrots, corn, peas, cherry tomatoes) and arrange them in different patterns, with a dip to go along.
--Make quesadillas, flour tortillas with shredded melted cheese and chicken,
-- Ants on a log? Celery with peanut butter and raisins..
--Make sweet/salty crepes and have them help cut strawberries, or fruit
--Try wraps, with ham, turkey veggies and cut at an angle,
-- Make your own burgers, with ground beef, and add in corn, and peas, they'll never know the difference

It is all about presentation for children, anything cute and fun is something they'll like. Also, get them to help out, it's fun for them to eat their own creations.
Good luck.

Answer 10

I found some good ideas at the local book store. There are tons of kid friendly cook books available now. It gives a great chance to spend time with your kids, and gives them a good feeling knowing they helped make a dinner. There are some really neat recipes, that taste good, are nutritious, and lots of fun to make.