5 Fun Ways To Make Your Kid A Less-Picky Eater

Having a kiddo who only wants to eat peanut butter sandwiches and Goldfish crackers can be stressful and challenging—you want to ensure your child is getting a balanced diet, but it can be difficult to convince a stubborn eater to try new things. Here are five fun ways to get your child excited to see what new flavours and ingredients they’ll fall in love with next. —Jennifer Cox

Grow your own

You don’t need to transform your entire yard into a huge garden – a few potted plants on a patio or even in front of a window in the house is all you need to grow veggies, herbs, and more. Some of the easier things to start with are green and yellow beans, cherry tomatoes, and strawberries – all of these can be planted in pots and will start yielding delicious, nutritious edibles in a matter of weeks.

Venture to markets

It’s so fun perusing a great indoor or outdoor fruit and veggie market. Not only is everything really fresh but there’s tons of variety. You’re also supporting local by purchasing produce at markets as opposed to big-box grocery stores. Oftentimes they will offer samples of their crops so you can try everything they’re selling. It’s a great opportunity to stock up on the best produce, and you can even enjoy lunch there with local delicacies.

Let them do the grocery shopping

Kids love a little responsibility, so why not get them involved in the week-to-week groceries? Hand them their own list when you get to the store and let them do a bit of shopping solo. This is also a great opportunity to teach them a few valuable life lessons, like how to find ripe and delicious produce, how to read nutrition labels, and how to price compare.

Food challenge

Want an effective way to get a fussy eater to venture into trying other foods? On your next shopping trip, challenge everyone in the family to find the most strange and unique fruit, vegetable, or other item to try together at home. Who knows- maybe dragon fruit or ground cherries will become your child’s favourite new go-to.

Cooking with kids

Get your kids involved in the meal prep. You won’t believe how much little ones as well as teens love to play in the kitchen. From chopping and dicing to mixing and pouring (and even frying for older kids), teaching your children how to cook will not only open their eyes to new dishes, but it will also allow them to take pride in their creations (and then they’ll want to eat them too!).