3 Ways to Add Some Fun When Cooking with Children

If you have children who are interested in learning how to cook, you may wonder what it is that they can get started on. Some parents feel that their children are too young to peel vegetables or to cut them up and often do not know what to do with them to help them learn.

I have always loved to bake. I find that baking is one of the best ways to get your child used to certain techniques and rules in the kitchen. You can teach them about fractions and measurements, explain why you need to mix the dry ingredients separate from the wet before blending it all together, and then finally let them have a go with the mixer on a low speed. If you are baking cookies or cake, you can also let them express their creativity with the decorating aspect of it.

You could make up songs to sing with rhyming ingredients. Or you can make up a type of trivia game before you get started with your recipe. This helps your children to retain the information they need to know in regards to cooking so that they can not only learn it in words but also in practice. You can have candies or other treats for prizes, or even use pennies if you prefer. This often is a perfect choice to make when trying to teach more than one child how to prepare food and work in the kitchen.

There are also child safe knives like the Curious Chef brand. Letting your child practice with real tools that are meant for cutting is the best way for your child to really master the skill of dicing, paring, and cutting julienne style. When cooking with children, the more you let them do, the more fun they will have and the more they will want to keep on pursuing the art of cooking.

Always be sure to smile and praise your child when they learn a new skill or produce a great dish. This will work wonders on their personal growth for motivation and self-esteem.  If you choose simple recipes that they will be able to do a good majority of the preparations themselves, they will feel capable of accomplishing more.  Take advantage of tools like the food processor over things like vegetable peelers or slicers. Not only is it more fun to use, the blades are also enclosed and safe from little fingers.

If your children enjoy spending time with you in the kitchen mixing up new dishes, chances are they will strive to learn as many new skills as they can so that eventually they will be cooking like a real pro. With proper organization and thought on your side, cooking with children can be a rewarding time instead of stressful.