Food Talk  Discussion Forum

Any nutricious and balanced at the same time tasty food for fussy children?? Alan Smith replied. tasty food and healthy food never come together....


Smith Alan
PJP replied. hi KIM, Its understood that u need advice on tasty food for FUSSY kids. and u seem 2 have got good replies as well. i have a suggestion to make. The child must first develop good food habits. The reason a child is fussy is basically coz of 2 main things: shildren tend to observe and imitate elders. If the elders are fussy in certain things and fuss in front of the shildren, they tend to do the same. children also tend to learn from other children but that can be outdone when the elders in the family portray more sophiticated habits. Good food habits will help the child eat properly. As parents u must ensure that u be an example by:

1) not fussing. even if u dont like the food, pretend to enjoy it or if u cant do that, dont pass a negative comment in front of the child.
2) 1 meal of the day must be eaten with the family TOGETHER. display good dining ethics. children will imitate u.
3) if the child fusses about something, ignore it, & u continue eating or u may even purposely & indirectly pass comments about the food being exclusively nicer than other days. when u ignore, the child will think twice if the food really is good and try to eat a morsel more to test it. if he doesnt eat, let him be. if he gets up and goes away, let him. he will do this once and twice. next he wont. coz he will realize tht the ultimate loser is he, coz he goes hungry coz of his fuss and stubbornness.
4) wait till all has finished eating on the dinind table and get up to go only when all are done.
5) dining time must be the same everyday. ofcourse a little late or early.
6) as elders, eat clean without messing ur fingers or spilling.when children start messing with their fingers and messing the plate, they will lose concentration over eating. dont waste food on your plate. if you think u cant eat tht much, serve less and take more. the child will learn the same habit. when he learns not to waste food, he will eventually learn to eat all and eat well.
6)DONT switch on the tv while eating. better still DONT serve food anywhere else than the dinin table.NO bed, NO sofa, NO relaxing chair. the child must be taught to respect food.
7)what food elders eat must be given to the child and vice versa. dont eat anything tht the child cannot eat in his presence.when he asks for something, give it.if it cannot be eaten, either dont bring it in front of him or give a little and firmly say 'thats all u can have.' and u dont go on eating when u have told him tht he wont be given.this will make him more fussy and stubborn.

u dont have to teach the child ANY of these. u start practising these all by urselves, and u will see ur kid practising the same all by himself just by looking at u.dont advice him.let him learn by watching u all display good eating habits.im sure he will learn to eat well without fussing within a week.but ofcourse, cook something interesting and dont repeat the recipe 4 the next 2 days. with a variety everyday, and something thts not the usual, the child will love to eat.

love,
Priyadarshani Jai Prakash (PJP). mommy replied. Hi Kim,
Kids love colourful food. I wud say paratha with veggies esp green leafy with some sweet chutnies maybe tomatoes, garlic, or some other flavor but again use some veggies in it. Add variety in parathas too, alu, mooli, palak, methi, gajar, califlower, cabbage etc.
Kids often love the taste of Jams and tomato ketchup. As a change u can offer that once.
Another healthy meal I can think of rice preparation is Khichdi. U can add rice and diff types of dals, plus seasoning and veggies depending on the age of the kids and likings. Don't forget to add spoonful of ghee while serving. Becomes all the more healthy. Ayesha replied. Hi,
I understand ur difficulty.Why don't u try Bread Omlet?It is very easy.just beat 1 egg with salt and pepper.Dip 1 slice of wheat bread or white bread in it and put in tawa.for 1 egg u can make 2 omlets.children will surely like it.in case u r non-vege then u can try fish fry.buy fish fillets,put ur usual masalas and pat it in bread crumbs b4 deep frying.