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"Why should I eat steamed broccoli when I can eat tasty bacon?"
Moms often struggle to get their kids to eat vegetables. According to researchers at Texas A&M University, the food choices available on kids' plates greatly affect their decision on what they’ll eat. If you want to help your child appreciate veggies more, put more delicious veggie options on his plate during meal time.
Check out some of these simple ideas that can help you feed your kids more veggies:
Have fun with your kids when buying and preparing food
Turn grocery shopping into a treasure hunt! Ask your kids to get the freshest fruits and veggies, explaining to them how to pick the ripe and fresh ones. When it's time to cook, let the little ones wash or cut (if they're old enough) the fruits and vegetables, so they feel involved and will get excited to eat the fruits of their labor.
Presentation is key when it comes to getting your kids' appetite going. If it looks nice and enticing enough to eat, your kids will surely want to taste it. Cut fruits and veggies into interesting shapes and sizes. You can also serve them in skewers or colorful plates and cups.
Hide veggies in a tasty dish
Sneak in some veggies into meals so that kids get to eat the good stuff without feeling forced to do it. Puree or grate some carrots then include them into your spaghetti sauce or mince sayote then add them to a stir-fry meal with a flavorful sauce.
When your kids are craving for a snack, serve some banana with peanut butter or whole-wheat crackers instead of the usual cake and cookies. You can also try making squash or camote chips instead of giving packaged chips. Make tasty dips like strawberry yogurt or salsa to add more flavor to the snack.
Cook more of the healthy food kids love to eat like sinigang
Incorporate more healthy fare in the family meals and observe which food your kids eat more of. Once you determine their faves, prepare those dishes as often as possible. Most kids love to eat sinigang because the sour soup energizes their taste buds. This classic Pinoy dish is also loaded with vitamins, proteins, and nutrients. With Sinigang, they end up eating a lot of veggies like kangkong, kamote tops, labanos, gabi, okra, and sitaw, not to mention more rice—giving them more energy for school and play.
Add more sarap-asim flavors to your recipe by using Knorr Sinigang sa Sampalok Mix, a full-flavored seasoning made with real tamarind and spices.
If, despite all your efforts, you still can't make your kids eat fruits and vegetables, dieticians advise parents not to force their children to eat food they don't like. It will only reinforce their hatred over it. Instead of lecturing them, encourage your kids to eat healthy. Cook hearty meals the entire family will bond over. They don't have to be complicated or expensive, just prepare them with love.
For more scrumptious sinigang recipes and tasty meal ideas click here!
Sources:
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/06/02/kids.eat.vegetables.ep/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2016/02/28/clever-ways-to-sneak-veggies-into-kids-food/
http://www.parents.com/kids/nutrition/healthy-eating/get-your-kids-to-eat-better/
