Like a pro: cooking with kids - how to involve them in the kitchen

When it comes to cooking with your kids, the challenge is to get them excited about food, where it comes from and how to cook it. A child that is well versed in the kitchen has not only a healthier relationship with food but also a lot more of fun time as well as precious memories of time with their parents in the kitchen, later. Read some great tips on getting your kids passionate about cooking and having a fun time with them in the kitchen.

The key to success is to invest time when your children are young, curious and hungry to try new things. Expose them to the best variety of nutritious foods you can because the more experience and food knowledge they get, the more confident they’ll be later on when it comes to cooking and eating.

Involve your kids with small jobs such as preparing ingredients, picking herbs or mixing and measuring ingredients at the beginning. Give them small decisions to make and empower them. Soon, they will be ready for the next level – preparing smaller elements of a recipe. The more they cook, the better they will get. Keep on sparking their hunger to be involved.

We all have busy lifestyles, but be sure to make time to cook together. Keep it simple on workdays and get them involved by helping you preparing some quick smoothies for their breakfast. Save more time for cooking on weekends and make it a special occasion. For example, discuss the menu with them, involve them in shopping and allocate responsibilities to them.

The more experience you share with your kids, the better. Get your children to use all their senses and to taste, touch and smell the ingredients of your cooking. Also encourage them; get them to understand that they don’t have to like everything, but it’s always worth giving things a try.