How do I get my 23 month old to eat vegetables?

Question

My son still refuses vegetables and will only eat baby food veggies, everything else he loves as we eat it, but he won't eat vegetables unless they are baby food. Any ideas? I have tried using frozen peas and carrots, to no avail....

Answer 1

lol i im an adult and i skip veggies alot too theres just not appealing.... my 2yr old loves them but not all the time and b/c i dont eat mine she wont eat hers....

So i found a way we both can get the vitamins from them there's these V8 juices with fruit they taste like fruit but there a full serving of veggies too...

then at dinner time i STILL serve greenbeans or beans etc... but i dont gotta freak if she only picks at them b/c i know shes had a cup of V8 :)

so dont give up on the veggies but add v8 juices to his diet.

Answer 2

With my 2 ½ year old grandson I find making a green smoothie to be the only way he will touch a veggie. Its easy and they have no clue what there drinking. In a blender experiment with the following:
Water, fresh spinach leaves, Romanian lettuce, banana, (favorite fruit) pineapples are good and some of the juice. Blend together and taste for sweetness. Add a few ice cubes if you are serving right away because this is better cold. You can even add a little apple juice. This should taste fruity. Ok now hears the fun part. It looks bad, all green so don’t allow your child to watch you make it. Pour into one of the “closed top sippy cups” preferably one with a straw. That way when you hand him a nice cold drink from the sippy they just start drinking and love the fruity taste. Be sure to blend down to as smooth of a texture as you can.
Otherwise don't worry too much they get plenty of vitamins from there multi vitamins they should be taking. Another good idea is carnation instant breakfast chocolate drink. (loaded with vitamins).

Answer 3

Well, Maya always loved veggies, so we don't have this problem often, but we do have it if I introduce something new (it could be anything, not necessarily veggies).

I always tell Maya she has to eat 'one bite' just to try it. Then I leave it alone until she wants to get out of her seat, then I tell her one more. Usually the next time I just put it on her plate and she will at least try it again.

Also, another good thing to try is to put a VERY SMALL portion of each thing on his plate. We are talking two bites of chicken, 4 peas and 2 or 3 noodles for example. Then tell your son that when he clears his plate, he can have more of whatever he wants, but only after he has cleared it. This makes it so he has to eat the veggies in order to get more of what he likes. It doesn't work the first time usually, but it'll work the next day after he has gone to bed hungry once.

Keep in mind that the more used to the flavor and texture of veggies he is, the more willing he will be to eat them. Also, don't refer to stuff as vvegetables (like, "eat your egetables") Refer to beans, broccoli, asparagus, etc with the proper names. If you just lump them all in together, then he will associate them all. Maya hates broccoli, and will not eat it no matter what, but she loves peas. If I called them all the same thing then she would refuse it all out of hand. I know that doesn't make much sense, but she's 2, hardly anything she does makes much sense.

Answer 4

try steaming or boiling the veggies. I'll put breadcrumbs on my daughters cauliflower and she loves it. Im lucky with her- she eats almost all fruits and veggies willingly- since infancy up to 4 years currently. Try giving a side of ranch with carrots to get him into them or cooking them in a pan and adding a little soy sauce and brown sugar to give them a glaze. Applesauce is great, or peeling some apples and giving him some small pieces to try. Or you can just tell him the store doesnt make baby veggies anymore, always works when my daughter wants something. I dont know what the price difference is but I always buy fresh veggies. All kids are different so good luck.

Answer 5

try offering the veggies first and don't let him see the rest of the food. I take care of a 2 yr old and he will eat his veggies if I give it to him first and he doesn't see the rest of the food he'll be getting that is sweeter. Have you tried the Gerber graduates? They have soft mushy carrot sticks and things like that. Maybe he just doesn't like the consistancy of the vegetables. Goodluck!

Answer 6

My daughter loves rice, so I put her veggies in the rice. She loves peas now. Just keep mixing the veggies in with different foods. Whenever I'm eating something she wants some so sometimes I'll put extra veggies on my plate and she'll share them with me.

Answer 7

Have you tried letting you child try to dip his vegetable in dressing. We use ranch dressing and my children love it. Another good one is melted cheese or cheese sauce. My two year old likes his w/ ketchup, don't ask me why, at least his eating them.

Answer 8

my daughter had this thing with veggies and meats too. she would dip them in her drink and then she started eating them normal- weird i know, try a sauce or something.

Answer 9

my son typically will not touch it if it grew from the ground. recently, we've been having stir fry, and if it's coated in stir fry sauce, he will...also, soups worked, and mashing different veggies into potatoes...but i haven't had any consistent luck, so i'll be watching your answers!

Answer 10

For me my son wouldn't eat them either but he loved ketchup so i gave him some with his greenbeans he ate them fine as long as he had ketchup with them then after he got used to them he ate them by thereself. Just keep trying