Raising kids open to trying new foods is important, but it can be a struggle, especially if they’re picky eaters. However, there are ways to get them excited to try out new cuisines and carry that open-minded attitude throughout childhood into adulthood. 

If you want to cook new cuisines and recipes at home but are struggling to get your kids on board, don’t worry. Our guide will outline simple methods to make trying new food a fun learning experience.

Making It Fun

Making cooking new food a fun process is an easy way to foster a lifelong appreciation for food and culture in your kids. Focus on engaging and involving your kids in the cooking process.

Kids can be great sous chefs in the kitchen. Teach them simple, age-appropriate tasks that make them feel like part of the team, like washing vegetables, stirring food, and measuring portions. 

Get them to help present the food creatively. Fun shapes and colourful arrangements will be visually appealing to them, and they’ll be proud of their role in creating the dish. You could also introduce themed cooking nights into your rotation, like a “Mexican Fiesta,” to build up excitement for the meal.  

Telling your kids about the origins of dishes and where the ingredients come from can spark their interest in new cuisines. For example, you could tell them about the origin of sushi as a method of preserving fish.

Adapting For Picky Eaters

Many kids are picky eaters. It’s a normal part of childhood. If your kids are reluctant to explore new foods, there are several ways to navigate their picky eating habits. 

Start with familiar foods and flavours and gradually introduce new ones. Start including a new food on their plate at meal times, like a different vegetable or whole grain. Repeated gentle exposure will normalise the food and eventually get them to eat it. 

Involving your kids in food shopping and meal planning by offering recipe variations can also help them get into different cuisines. Also, emphasise the cultural context of food, for example, by watching videos of celebrations that involve eating a particular dish.

Global Flavours At Home

To explore global flavours with healthy ingredients, focus on easy-to-prepare, kid-friendly recipes. The recipes should be quick, have relatively few ingredients, and not have overly complex instructions.

You could cook mini pizzas to introduce them to Italian food, chicken satay skewers for Indonesian food, and quesadillas for Mexican cuisine. To get them excited, why not use a map to pinpoint the origin of each recipe? Your kids can look at the map whenever they try something new and remember what they’ve learned.

Cooking As A Learning Experience

Cooking offers real educational benefits to kids. They will learn to understand portions and measurement units, improving their mathematical abilities. Observing how ingredients interact and react to heat can strengthen their scientific knowledge. 

By showing kids where food comes from on a map and teaching them a few phrases from the language of their country of origin, you’ll broaden their horizons and improve their geographical and language skills.

Family Adventures Beyond The Kitchen

Exploring global flavours doesn’t need to be limited to the supermarket and kitchen. Take them out on family adventures to local farmers’ markets and ethnic grocery stores to get them used to new foods. 

Try tying exploring new flavours to outdoor adventures. A solid pair of walking boots can make a family exploration of a local farmers market followed by a hike a comfortable, memorable experience. You could treat the family to a trip to a new restaurant every once in a while and get kids outdoors in the garden growing new herbs and vegetables.