How To Get Kids Involved With Healthy Cooking

One thing that kids are known for is being picky eaters. Fortunately, you might be able to rectify that by getting them into the kitchen and involved in the cooking process. A kid who knows more about their food might be more willing to try more things, whether it’s a meal at a restaurant or something cooked up with ingredients from the local organic food market. Here’s how you can “demystify” cooking and get your children to broaden their horizons a bit, along with some of the benefits of doing so.

Teach Them About Different Ingredients

Once your kids are in the kitchen, teach them about different ingredients and why you’re using them in the dish you’re making. You can tell them where different vegetables came from, why you’re using certain seasonings, and show them how all of these different items come together to form the meals that they eat. You can even let them sample some of the ingredients if they’re safe to eat on their own. This can be a great way to get them to try new things.

Seeing how different ingredients work together and form a whole can be especially fun when baking since kids get the opportunity to see how the liquid and dry ingredients come together to form a batter.

Kids Get a Chance to Appreciate the Act of Cooking

When you involve your kids in the kitchen, they get to see the cooking process firsthand. Even if they are quite young, they are still going to notice just how much work goes into the meals that you put on the table for them. This might make it easier to make them try new things or it could help encourage them to clear their plates. After all, they know “mommy or daddy worked hard on this.”

The Chance to Help Out is Good for Self Esteem

For many young kids, being involved in what the adults are doing is all they want. If you’re cooking, they will be so excited that you’re asking for their help. It gives them a sense of responsibility that they crave.

You can have them help with family meals, or you can even have an older sibling specifically help with the preparation of a younger sibling’s meal. This can make them feel like a role model. Then, once the meal is all done, be sure to compliment them on the role they played in getting such a delicious meal to the table.

You Can Help Them Build Better Habits for Life

If you get your kids to build confidence in the kitchen when they’re young, they’ll grow into teens and young adults who want to cook and expand their skill sets. If both parents work, sometimes kids end up coming home after school and being left to their own devices when it comes to getting food. They could eat junk or order unhealthy takeout, but a kid who can cook might be able to whip up something far healthier on their own.

Find More Kid-Friendly, Healthy Options

If you want to learn more about kid-friendly and healthy food options in your area, visit the Organic Restaurants website. We have plenty of resources that can help you learn more about healthy home cooking, local vegetarian and vegan restaurants, and plenty more.