Getting kids involved in the kitchen doesn't have to mean handing over dinner and hoping for the best. Some of the best kitchen learning happens in small, ordinary ways.
Here are a few easy ways to get kids involved—and hopefully have some fun along the way.
1. Give them one meal that's "theirs."
Let your child choose a meal they love and learn how to make it. Tacos, spaghetti, homemade pizza, quesadillas—keep it simple. Making the same meal several times is how confidence grows.
2. Let them be in charge of one part of dinner.
They don't have to make the whole meal. Ask them to make the salad, roast the vegetables, cook the rice, or prepare a side dish.
3. Give them some say in the meal plan.
Ask everyone in the family to choose one dinner for the week. Kids are much more interested in helping when they've had a hand in deciding what's being made.
4. Take them grocery shopping—with a job.
Give them part of the list. Have them find the ingredients for the meal they're making, compare prices, choose a new fruit or vegetable, or figure out how much you'll need.
5. Start with foods they already love.
Cooking doesn't have to begin with kale. Make pizza. Bake muffins. Create a smoothie. Make homemade granola. Once kids are comfortable in the kitchen, it's much easier to expand from there.
6. Let it be imperfect.
The vegetables won't all be the same size. There may be flour on the floor. The pizza might look a little funny. That's okay. If we correct every little thing, cooking quickly stops being fun.
7. Eat what they make together.
There's something pretty great about putting food on the table and being able to say, "I made that." Let them serve it, tell everyone what they made, and enjoy it together.
The goal isn't to turn every child into a chef. It's to help them become comfortable enough in the kitchen that feeding themselves someday doesn't feel intimidating.
Start small. Keep it fun. And give them plenty of chances to practice.
Those little moments in the kitchen add up to some pretty important life skills.
Sara & Lily
Nourished