Little ones cooking

[lau86]

My son is 6 and loves food, he really enjoys watching master chef and I want to get him into cooking. Do any of you cook with children and what kind of things do you make? Any tips? I just worry about him burning himself or cutting himself with a knife. Obviously I will supervise whatever he's doing though!

 

[Vickie]

My kids help on occasion though neither has a big interest in it. They've both helped with cutting (though my son is a bit more on the dangerous side and has to be very closely supervised). And they have both helped with cooking, though this tends to fall more to my daughter as she is the older of the two.

They have helped with meal prep (vegetables etc.), making bread, making desserts is probably their favorite. My daughter enjoys cooking tortillas when we make those.

 

[WackyMumof2]

My 2 have some interest in cooking but I don't cook with them. I don't like children in the kitchen - supervised or not - which I think I get from my mother. But they both cook with an uncle and their Grandmother. One seems to enjoy it more than the other. As for what to cook, baking cookies is always a good choice but you want to encourage healthy food habits too so make sure you get them in the kitchen when you are cooking healthy dinner options too. I'm a firm believer in a healthy, balanced diet from the beginning as it teaches them that we need to be healthy and fuel our bodies with good food. Treats are okay but not too often.

 

[Natsku]

Since Maria started school in August I've been having her cook dinner once a week with supervision and minimal help from me. So far she's cooked things like pizza (pre-made base but did sauce and toppings herself), jacket potatoes with chickpea salad, pizza breads, chicken tray bake. She mostly wants to just cook pizza but I won't let her do that too often so she has to try to cook more healthy things and the meal has to include vegetables.

 

[DJJ]

How about getting a children's cook book from the library and letting them choose what they want to cook?

 

[lau86]

I think we will try a cook book. I asked him what he wanted to make and he said pizza so we're Doing that tomorrow. I think a cook book will be really
Good as a lot of it for me is just chopping and stirring!

 

[Bevziibubble]

Holly is starting showing a bit more interest in cooking lately. She has started making her own toast every morning out of her own choice and we will take it from there if she wants to make /help make other things.
A cooking book sounds like a good place to start

 

[Eleanor ace]

DD1 (4.5) loves to cook and bake. DS used to enjoy it but has lost interest in it for the most part, boo!
DD1's favourite dish to will make is bolognese; I do the onion, garlic and mince and she will chop the veg (celery, peppers, courgette and mushrooms) and stir the sauce once the veg is in.
She also makes pizza, chicken and vegetable pie (her shortcrust pastry is better than mine )- I cook the chicken, she preps the veg and makes the sauce, shephards pie and fish pie, fishcakes (really good starter cooking for toddlers too), fajitas. DS loves making salad, randomly! DD1 uses a sharpish butter knife, DS (6) uses a sharper knife under careful supervision or uses the sharper butter knife.
DD2 doesn't like to get her hands dirty and isn't into cooking/baking but I'm on the lookout for some dishes to start with her.

 

[biglebowski]

My lo loves to cook and bake.
When we make things I let him chop softer veg with a butter knife: mushrooms, peppers, brocolli. He will do hand over hand with me to chop potatoes etc. I also do hand over hand with him to grate cheese and carrots.
He has helped to put frozen veg, pasta or rice in pots since he was about 2. He knows he cant go near boiling water but he likes to measure out paella and risotto rice. I give him a tablespoon and a bowl to count spoonfuls into.
He likes to make pizza and he makes his own with a pitta base and spreads passata or tomato paste himself. He also loves smelling and measuring spices and herbs.
When I make pasta Ill let him chop cooked chicken, ham or smoked sausage go put in.
He will stand on a chair to add things to the pot. Once there is boiling water or hot oil in a pan he knows its not safe.
Hes got his own baking gear: apron, scales, electric whisk. Hes a dab hand at cracking eggs now. I get him to do it over a bowl so I can fish out egg shell!!
Hes loves watching cooking shows with me and knows Jamie Oliver, Hairy Bikers and Rachel Khoo on sight. I was a bit obsessed with the Food network when I was on mat leave so its clearly left its mark!!
Hes always super proud of himself when he makes something and is a bit more willing to try something if he makes it with me. Its a great way to talk about dangers in the kitchen too. My lo is always very safe and knows he would be asked to stop a task if he wasnt listening.
He also loves chopping his fruit to make smoothies.

 

[Berri]

My 5yo uses a knife pretty well and enjoys helping make most things. My 3yo also helps out but he usually gets the job of washing the veg (it's about all his concentration span can handle). It's just a matter of watching and being patient.

 

[Wobbles]

Mine love helping but I'v not been keen on giving my girls a knife for chopping... I think mostly because my eldest is so clumsy. It is something I plan to start more with them.

They make their own toast and sandwiches if I have time for the snail speed

They are 8 & 9. The things they have done over time is layer lasagne, grate cheese (those you buy that has a handle to spin are great for kids rather than sliding their hands over a grater), make bread (50p bread mixes from Tesco) and anything that goes in the mixer.

 

[zorak]

My 4 and 2 year old love cooking. We do a lot of baking. They also help me make things like soup, I chop the veg and they put it in a pan. If I'm doing a tray bake type thing they help me layer it. They are never allowed to touch the oven but I do let me 4 year old stir things by standing on a chair under strict supervision. It's a life skill I want them to learn.

 

[AnneD]

Mine is 4 and can do easy things like bread dough (if I put the ingredients out and tell her how much of what to put in, then help with the mixing and kneading as required, as she can't really properly knead a large loaf for the family), cake (just have to put up with the odd egg going on the floor), chop softer veg and fruit with a butter knife, put stuff in pots or trays, use mixer to whip egg whites, grate cheese, peel carrots if we do it together and I have a hold on the peeler. I let her stir the pot if I'm right there watching. I don't let her near the oven or anything that might spit on the hob. She is desperate to use a proper knife, but I'm not keen on risking having to talk about in in A&E so I only let her do that if we are using it together and I'm holding the knife, too. She'd also love to season a whole raw chicken, but I can't bear the thought yet (as she tends to put her hands in her mouth a lot).

 

[Rags]

My Ds (7) makes scrambled egg independently (with no one else in the kitchen) and has done since he was 6. He'd always been interested in cooking and I'd let him help me out often, we'd made scrambled eggs together for years when he eventually asked me to please leave him to it. We watch GBBO and every couple of weeks choose one of the recipes and bake it together, I have to say Pru's mini chocolate rolls were very sweet!