Having Kids Help with Dinner

I suggest you say this is what we are making this week; what would you like to help with?

This way you are controlling their choices and they are getting a variety.

You can also do a "dinner lottery" where one meal a week is chosen from the "hat." So you can each put a choice down on a piece of paper along with the options of "eat out" or "take out" etc. and that is another way of getting them involved in the food choices.

Sometimes my son will ask me to teach him how to make something specific, but usually I just include him in on whatever it is I already planned to do.

If you want them to have input, pick two things that you already want to make and let them choose one. Win-win.

I dragged a chair to the counter, faced it backwards, and gave the kids tasks. Like grating cheese, tearing lettuce, measuring & pouring wet or dry ingredients, etc.

Not once a week, but every night.

The number of tasks gradually increased, and then the tasks got more speedy, and then I had a whiz bang! of a prep cook (over a couple of years). I also let him work the stove as desired. Obviously, I was there for all of it (a lough at 11 I really don't need to be).

We toss out meal ideas in the beginning of the week, and bring up certain ideas during the day.

MAKE SURE to include cleanup as part of the ritual.

Be this wiping down counters, a quick sweep, loading dishes... DO INCLUDE cleaning as you go as part of the work. Young kids often find this as much fun as the rest... So hat by age 5 or 6 when cleaning is "boring" it's already ingrained.

We've been doing this at our house for a while. My children are now 7.5 and 4.5. I simply plan the menu and try to incorporate a few nights that the kids can help. Sometimes I let them choose, but they will almost always pick the same things...their favorite foods. I never relied on kid cook books because so many of those recipes seemed a bit dumbed down and boring to me. Hands on meals...with assembly and veggies seem to work best when I have helpers.

Make your own salad night is always a big hit. They get to help wash the veggies. When they were younger they ripped the lettuce and used the salad spinner. Now that they are older my 4.5 uses a lettuce knife and my son chops the tomatoes.

Egg rolls and lumpia are another one they enjoy helping with. They help me cook up the veggies and meat and help roll the egg rolls up. This one starts out as a one on one project, but they get it pretty quickly.

We do lots of pasta dishes with fresh veggies. We mix it up with mini meatballs (great for little hands). And once in a while we change it up with spaghetti squash. They love to help scrape it out after it has baked. We have a garden and love to run out and get fresh basil or thyme, which works so well with pasta dishes.

We do pizza night every few months. We like cooking ours on the grill. This is great because you can even do personalized pizzas if you like. If you don't like cooking from scratch, french bread pizza is a great choice. Even on pizza night we try to mix it up. We'll make faves of course. But we usually have one pizza a little different...spinach and chicken with alfredo sauce. margarita pizza (started as a mix up and is now a kid fave), fresh mozzarella balls instead of shredded. Just little things to help our kids be more adventurous eaters without the battle of wills at dinner.

Great idea! Little kids love to help mom cook. It's one of my regrets, that I didn't cook much with my kids, since I don't particularly like cooking.

But I'm sure going to do it with my grandkids one day.

My first grader began "helping" me cook dinner when he was 2.5, and my second son, 3 yrs old, also helps me now. We keep it pretty simple, I just say "Hey, come help me fix dinner" and they come and do whatever. I chop and measure, they pour, mix, drain, stir, etc. They form the meatballs (I pinch off the correct sizes from the bowl for my 3 yr old, but the 6 yr old understands how to eye the size for a meatball by now). Last night they each had a cutting board and stabbed the steaks with a fork and did a dry rub on them, then dropped them in the marinade...when the corn on the cob was done they rubbed the butter on the cobs....they washed the broccoli and dropped them into the steamer. I do the hot stuff (putting steaks in/out of the broiler, boiling/draining the corn, steaming/draining the broccoli) for safety reasons. I diced onions but let my 6 yr old, under my supervision, slice mushrooms while my 3 yr old poured the wine and stuff for gravy (from a measuring cup, not the bottle). My 6 yr old stirred it while it was on lower heat. My 3 yr old washed grapes and put all the sliced fruits into the bowl for a fruit salad. All that to say it doesn't have to be a special "kid dinner", it could be anything. (Just pre-prep so they don't get bored waiting on you---like, you start the oven and do chopping or whatever you don't want them doing before they begin helping). I started cooking with my oldest to fight the 2 yr old "I won't eat ANYTHING" phase. I found he'd eat whatever he cooked with me, so I was able to start feeding him chicken fettucini alfredo and added spinach, rotels, and even mushrooms if they are chopped small enough for him to not "feel" them. He doesn't mind them in food as long as he doesn't have to deal with the texture. We found those things out through cooking together.
My kids like to make meatballs and burgers where they get to "get their hands dirty" and feel more involved, but they also like to dip meats in egg wash and flour mixtures. They like playing with the rolling pin whenever possible. Especially my little guy, he stands on a chair or sits in his booster seat at the table with a project like making crumbs for me: I put crackers in a gallon size ziploc and let him beat it up at the table and then roll it into little bitty crumbs to add to the mix I coat country fried steaks with. That keeps him busy but out of my way while I chop onions and okra or whatever....or he can do the same thing with corn chips in a bag when I'm making a mexican meatloaf, etc. It's fun, just takes a little figuring out who will do what. They also love to make pizza together. I instruct them on how or where to pour sauce, how to evenly top the pizza, etc and they do it. That way they're not just cooking to cook, but to learn how to make things GOOD for later in life. :)

First, make a menu that works for you, with one or two days each week for the kids to chime in on items they would like to help make. If you are worried about too much repetition with a dish, just tell them "okay, we can do spaghetti and meatballs two times this month, and then we have to think of some other idea."

Molly Katzen has some good kids cookbooks. These would be good to check out from the library for the kids to look at.

When my son was about 3.5 or so, we got a handled crinkle cutter for him to cut chunks of fruit and veggies with. The cutter usually requires two hands for this age, so this will help with not getting fingers caught underneath.

Kids can help: wash fruit and veggies, cut up softer fruits and veggies, use a melon baller, peel some foods (depending on the kind of peeler you have), measure water for a pan, arrange cheese on bread (for grilled cheese), grate cheese carefully, scramble eggs, mix batters, etc.

You can make a chart of things that need to go into a meal (picture charts are helpful for younger kids).... only give them control over things that you can. (like, don't ask them 'which veggies you want' if you know that the flavor profiles of the dish you are making don't allow for some).

I'd also encourage you to keep things simple and versatile-- strips of peppers could be fried/grilled for fajitas OR the kids could eat pepper strips with cheese quesadillas and the meat on the side.

Sometimes I tell my son "go to the crisper and find two veggie for tonight"... then he can choose from what's available. Or sometimes I just ask "which veggie *don't* you want on your plate?" while I'm making a stir fry for my husband and myself, (he likes his veg raw), so I'll just cut up a few extra slices of what he does like. He can put butter on a piece of bread for himself; I often have him help out with making his sandwiches, too.

Kids can also put together a simple fruit salad for dessert. If you cut an apple into big quarters and remove the core, they can further chop it down, add in some other fruits (they can wash them, cut the tops off strawberries, cut them in half, etc.) and make a simple dressing of the juice of half a lemon mixed with a bit of honey and cinnamon. That's a favorite with the kids I've worked with as well as my family.

I had my daughter in the kitchen with me at an early age. She did a lot of observing, we measured things, she participated in age appropriate tasks such as pouring, etc.

She is 18 now and like me she LOVES to cook.

We do a lot of pasta and my homemade marinara. It is pretty much served as a side at every meal. She enjoys stuffed shells and manicotti and she helps with the prep of those.

She makes the best Caprese Salad I've had.... not 1 restaurant beats her recipe. Like me, we look at a couple of recipes and then incorporate what we like in the dish.

We do make a lot of salads, pasta salads, antipasta platters, chicken dishes and casseroles. All can be done with supervision.

Kudos to you... this activity helps strengthen your bond with your children, teaches them about food prep and cleanup, and about healthy choices for meals. It is a win-win for everyone!

My kids started "helping" with dinner pretty much from the time they could stand and stir. They helped by setting and clearing the table, stirring sauce, cracking eggs, shaping meatballs, measuring ingredients, basically the "prep" stuff they were able to handle without too much assistance from me (after all you want to train them to be helpful, not create more work for YOU.) It's nice when they get a little older and can learn how to use a sharp knife, kids LOVE to chop, and I hate it, win win!
I never thought of letting them pick the menu, I always decided what we were having. Of course I tried to take everyone's preferences and tastes in mind, and sometimes I'd say should we have tacos or spaghetti tonight? but really it was based on what I had shopped for that week. If they are just now starting to work in the kitchen I would go slow, have them assist you each night, gradually give them more jobs to do and over time they'll be ready to make simple things on their own.
ETA: don't forget the basics, hand washing, stove/tool safety, cross contamination, etc. Always work those rules into your nightly routine, so that it becomes a life long good habit. My daughter is 14 now and I STILL have to remind her to tie her long hair back. We have a gas stove, long hair + open flame = potential disaster :-(

Let them help. If pasta is what they want, the so it is. Just know that you change your menus to include the extra carbons and balance out the others with less.

Children are fine in the kitchen as long as you have a "safe spot" for them. It could be someplace away from the stove that is all theirs. I had a cabinet in mine where all the mixing bowls (plastic) lived and a wooden spoon. When I was in the kitchen preparing the meals she was there (age 1 to 3). When she got older she started to help with small chores.

Children want to help when they are young so don't stop them just make sure what they can do is appropriate for their age and change it as they get older. The three year old is a bit young but could possibly put the silverware on the table to set the table.

You can also use this time as a way to do math. Measuring cups and how much is this to this line? How much doe we need when reading a recipe. Use a paper and a pencil so that they can write it down and do the math.

Good luck and enjoy the "help" as messy as it may be.

I recall making cookies with my mom at about 3. These were the rolled sugar cookies. She hated making them after a while but since I enjoyed it, she endured it for about two years.

It is also mom time and bonding doing something together. It's called memories.

the other S.

PS You may have the next great chef in your house!

Get a kids cookbook and let them choose from that. Most are separated by breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, and dessert and have pictures so it will be easy for them to choose.

You can also have have the "not what we had last week" rule so you will have at least two dinners in rotation.

My kids enjoy exploring different foods when they are the cooks. I think it's the challenge of seeing what they can do.

I would get the kids cook book, make copeis of the repies that you are willing to make. Pick enough for two weeks or a month of meals. Put them in two piles.. One pile is alredy eaten for the month, the other pile is what they can choose from. This will help you know what foods you have in stock as well.

You can seperate it to Main corse, veggietable etc..

Great Job getting them involved.

Salads and sandwiches will be your best bet for awhile.
In my Mom's day - when Mama was making the soup, the kids would be making the kluski (noodles).
You can mix up a dough and have them roll it out then use a plastic knife to cut noodle strips.
You can do the same thing with pie crusts and they can help you make biscuits too.

good for you! i started my kids doing this a little older, like 7 and 11, but there's no reason in the world not to begin now and have them work up to more. at their age i would definitely have a varied list of staples from which they can pick rather than leaving it wide open. they're way too young to select from 'whatever you want' without it being pizza or spaghetti every single time. sit down with them at the beginning of the month and have them each pick four meals to be 'theirs' throughout next four weeks, and then you can shop and plan with them. when they're older and this is a long-standing routine you can let them go a little hogwild.
that being said, my kids were fairly pedestrian about it. my younger is still a better and more adventurous chef, my older (26 now!) is stuck in his pre-teens. he'd always go for hot dogs or pizza, and that's pretty much how he still eats. i suggest you encourage variety, with reasonable expectations.
have fun, mama!
:) khairete
S.

I have 3 kids. The older two can make dinner (13 and 11). They started with scrambled eggs and toasts (yep, for dinner), soups, grilled cheese and pastas. I have found that having kids help to prepare dinner is a good thing and they feel much more capable as a result. Now, my youngest is 8. She SHOULD be able to make dinner, at least prep, but as the baby of the family no one really wants her to do this. She can help me put together a veggie plate (can peel and core a pepper) and she knows when to use hot pads. Microwave use is about it (oatmeal, popcorn, reheats).

Start small. Even adding items into a blender and pushing the buttons is learning about food at their ages. Also, adding toppings ( cheese to tacos, sprinkles to cupcakes, croutons to salad) can be done by even the youngest of children.

Good luck

Your kids are young.
But its good they start to, learn about food/planning/prepping/cooking.
At 3 my son could make his own scrambled eggs, for example.
And my daughter who is older, knew how to cook.
And they both, knew about how to go about making a grocery list in order to get the ingredients for what we want to eat/cook. And how to look at recipes and weed through it.

But, I did not let them solely decide, what to eat or cook.
I do. Especially when they were younger. My kids are now 7 and 10. And although I ask them for ideas on what to cook/eat, (when I am out of ideas), I decide what the menu will be and because I know what foods/items we have in the kitchen cabinets and freezer and fridge. That way we don't waste, food. Which I also taught my kids about.
So based on that, and/or what we need, I make a menu. For the week. And my kids give their input. But in the end, I decide what to cook.
Sure, my kids "help." But I don't give them carte blanche about it all nor what to cook. I gauge it. And I decide. And if... they want to eat the same thing every night, I simply say no. And if they want junk to eat, I say no. But we don't have junk in the house anyway. We cook according to what we have in the house and what we typically buy.
I don't let my kids pick from a list nor decide on the meal.
I, decide what to cook, but will ask them for ideas when I am out of ideas.
Then, based on what I will be cooking, they may help. And they know their way in the kitchen and how to cook anyway.

So the bottom line with me is: I decide what to cook and the grocery list. But I ask their input. And I don't just let my kids tell me... what to cook. I cook what I cook and they help me with prepping or cooking it.
But I personally, do not expect nor make... my kids, make it on their own. Because, I cook from scratch and there is no way, my kids, even if they know how to cook, can make an entire dinner with all the entrees and sides, on their own. Even if they are 7 and 10. It takes me... at least 1-2 hour in the kitchen, to make dinner. If my kids were to make it all on their own... it would take them LONGER. Much longer. And along with cooking/making/prepping dinner, for us, it also includes... washing the dishes along the way and cleaning up as you go and after cooking. It is a long process.

My point in teaching my kids about the kitchen... is so that they learn how to cook (which they do), how to plan meals, how to budget, how to clean up as you go and after, and how to make things healthy. And quite frankly, most of the time, I rather do it myself... because with the kids in the kitchen it just takes longer. And then I just have them prep or make the salads or watch the stove as I chop another thing up etc., or set the table.

If I were you, being your kids are so young... I would not... let them pick a meal nor plan the meals, nor would I give them carte blanche over the whole dinner decision.
For me, I do the dinner. And then my kids just help me with what I have planned for dinner. And yes, we get lots of variation and healthy variation.

By the time my daughter was 8, she was a real able cook already. And she had even made a full dinner with sides and well balanced things. She'd make a list of what she needs. And organized it all. She was making crepes too. And I just let her have the kitchen to herself. And she'd clean up after too.

I would get a "kids" cookbook and have them pick what they want to make. The kids cookbooks now have a huge variety in them. If they help make it, they are more likely to eat it so it will expand their fruits and veggie selection too. Good luck.