My kids, ages 3 and 5, had fallen into that horrible rut where the foods they would eat were limited to chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, ham sandwiches, carrots, apples and berry yogurt. And of course, goldfish. Those darn fish.
I was so sick of stressing out over what they would eat, especially at holiday parties. You-know-what hit the fan when my husband and I got into an argument at a Christmas party because I hadn’t ensured that there would be foods for the kids to eat. There was plenty of food for the kids to eat, but they wouldn’t eat it.
Enough was enough. I resolved to fix the problem. I implemented a few rules – and boy did I get results! My five-year-old was begging me for new foods to try! The three-year-old took a bit longer to come around, but he did. Turns out he is more amenable to most foods than the big one.
I’m not saying my plan is perfect. But it worked for us. My kids tried 200 new foods – EACH – in three months. I’m at the point where I’m struggling to think of new foods for them to try. Take my ideas and mold them into something that works for you.
Track the Progress. We used a sticker chart. I did it 100 foods at a time, drawing 100 boxes on some paper for each kid. They earned one sticker for every new food. I used those foam shape stickers you can buy 1,000 for $3.99. By food #200, my kids were trying a food, then running to the chart to put up their sticker. Then counting how many they had to make sure I had labeled them right. (Bonus: The three-year-old can definitely count to 100 – that’s a kindergarten goal!)
Offer Incentives. For the first 100, I offered an incentive for every ten new foods. Something small – five extra minutes of iPad time, a new book, a dollar store toy, swimming at the rec center. For the second 100, I offered the incentive every 25 foods – a Slurpee, ice cream, etc. The incentives didn’t cost much if anything, but the kids really liked having something to work towards. They were so excited to reach a reward. Plus, they encouraged each other to try and reach them at the same time!
Throw Them A Bone. Give them some softballs every now and then. Sure, PB&J yogurt (BTW – YUM) isn’t the greatest new food ever, but technically it is a new food. Give them something easy every now and then to show them that they will like some of the foods and encourage them.
Get Creative with your Utensils. My kids did not want to try balsamic pork chops. They thought it looked disgusting. So, I pulled out some chopsticks and asked if they wanted to use those to eat them. The answer was a resounding YES. Not only did they eat three pieces each, but they also tried the balsamic onions that I cooked the pork with. With chopsticks, of course. So get creative – use chopsticks, serve it on a tiny spoon or fork. Use a toothpick. Anything to make it fun!
Look to To Things In Their Everyday Life. We have a book about a boy who eats a food called “bulgogi.” We always read about it (it is an Asian dish – thin slices of pork in a soy marinade) so I decided to make it. My kids loved it and scarfed it down. Not sure if I made it that well or if it was the familiarity, but it worked. So find something they can relate to and make that.
Listen When They Ask. My three year old asked if he could dip his apples in mustard. My first inclination was no because that’s disgusting. But then I realized he wanted to try mustard, just like his grandpa, and apples were his comfort vessel. So he tried it. He liked the mustard…”but maybe not on an apple next time.” Mission accomplished.
Encourage/Commiserate. Obviously, the hubs and I encouraged them to try new foods. I even forced my husband to try the same new foods (he’s almost as picky as the kids.) If something wasn’t good, we admitted it and thanked them for trying the foods. I also told everyone in their life about our challenge. So the boys were constantly questioned about what new foods they had tried. It helped build the excitement!
That’s it. No fighting, no begging to try something. We just implemented these seven “steps” and they tried 200 new foods in 90 days! I’ve never been more proud! We’ve quadrupled our dinner options, which makes life much easier on this working mama!
What tips or tricks have you used to get your kids to try new foods?
This is brilliant!! We will have to try it!
Good luck! My kids really enjoyed it, I hope yours do too!