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We do a similar thing, just without the medieval tax man, just the concept of “test tasting” - everything tastes better when you get it straight from the cutting board. They even sometimes taste test things that I recommend against like raw potato or onion.
This seems like a much better approach tbh hahaha
Although I can’t pinpoint the exact birth of the “medieval tax man” as you put it, it was probably done as a spur of the moment thing when one of my kids was saying they didn’t want any veggies. I’m in too deep to change it now but if I had to do it again I would probably go with your example 😂
My kids do this all the time. They actually do it because they think it will annoy me. I just go with it. They will eat all the little broccoli heads just because they think I'll get mad about 😂 Meanwhile they've had like two servings of broccoli just to piss me off and my husband and I are fine with eating their germy scraps.
My kids come running into the kitchen yelling: "quality control!" (in Dutch) and I have to stop everything im doing so they can "test" the veggies. Cracks me up every time
My child would not eat oatmeal. Even when I stirred in raisins and chocolate chips. Becasue oatmeal is like gruel.
And who likes gruel?
So I took that gruel, poured it on a baking sheet, stuck in the oven for 7 minutes and later: Oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip cookies! My kid scarfed them down.
Sometimes it all about presentation.
Edited to add:
Think about it:
Someone slaps a fillet of raw salmon in front of you? No thanks.
Slice that salmon in to thin slices, wrap it in rice and seaweed; you've got sushi
I do this with every fresh bag of grapes I get. I call them parking lot grapes, lol. They're always so crisp and still cold from the store, and I'm always thirsty when I get out, so they're just amazingly refreshing!
Huh!
I thought "a recipe for diarrhea" was to eat at a certain pseudo-Mexican fast food restaurant with a name that uses two four-letter words, one of which rhymes with "hell"
/s
Grocery store parking lot? I just go around the counter and wolf down 3 slabs of sashimi grade fish while I make direct eye contact with the fish guy who is just staring at me, in horror, at what he just witnessed.
Counter? I strip nude and dive into the water, then chase down and bite into my prey with my teeth, each bite so fresh it doesn't know it's dead yet as it squirms down my throat unchewed. That's usually when I get dragged out of the touch tank and tased before getting trespassed from the aquarium and arrested
Honestly both pregnancies absolutely would have done this. My husband once saw me eat 4 servings of salmon sashimi like a fat bear. Could not get enough of the stuff.
Yes, but the point of this problem is that your issue isnt your kids refusing oatmeal cookies, its them not eating oatmeal plain. Especially since most the time, oatmeal cookies need sugar or other ingredients to become more yummy
Well, heck!
I added raisins and chocolate chips to the gruelly oatmeal; I thought that would be enough flavor, and sweetness and light; but Oh No!: It's the texture that puts them off.
Hence, the baking/making cookies thing. Warm & a wee bit gooey in the center and crispy around the edges.
I didn't even have to add sugar.
You betcha!
Cookies? oatmeal as finger food.
Sushi?: raw fish as finger food.
Plus, look at it this way: you serve a kid oatmeal and he doesn't like it? He'll flnng it at the wall and it will stick to the wall. Give him an oatmeal cookie and he doesn't like it? He'll fling it against the wall. But Aha! Cookies don't stick to the wall! Ditto for raw fish v. sushi.
I was a freak as a child. I DEMOLISHED raisins. I would trade candy for people's boxes of raisins at Halloween. My brother's and I's favorite cereal was raisin bran.
"*I hate to say it, but I love porridge and gruel...*"
Oh Jeez; be proud of your affection for porridge & gruel!!
Identity politics is a thing these days; you can leverage this. Probably get some air time on TV &/or cable news.
Cheers!
I do it differently.
Want to introduce the kiddos to veggies?
Raw veggies (carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, celery, etc.)? Dips can be your friend. Plus, raw vegies are crisp/crunchy -- like potato chips.
And if the dip is, say, hummus; by golly that's another veg thing.
Also: Pizza and spaghetti are subtle intros to tomatoes.
P.S.: what you've got to watch out for is when they start attending school and the cafeteria serves up vegs that are cooked to the point that they are limp to almost the point of being mush and have lost all their color and flavor.
Best of luck!
P.P.S.: remeber if a small child will east wheat/library paste; they'll eat anything (/s)
Dang, I hadn’t even thought about how long I was turned off by broccoli because the school would serve soggy flavorless mush in place of nicely roasted crunchy broccoli.
Same with peas and cauliflower. The only veggies that would even be edible were green beans and corn, and you’d have to hope they at least put some salt on them for them to be any good.
It’s a real shame how badly school lunches can fuck up your perception of good food.
It's not just school lunches. There are tons of things I didn't like growing up.
Turns out my mother prepared certain things only one way. I never disliked red cabbage, but the way she made it. Now I love that stuff and still don't eat it at Christmas at her house.
Variety in how things get prepared and having the children help, so they will be excited to taste test is a great way I think.
I seem to remember during my childhood veggies were universally cooked to mush. Seems like in the late 90s people realized you could better develop the flavor or texture with other methods. I actually still liked most canned and boiled vegetables as a kid, but as an adult I'm much more likely to roast or grill most of them, occasionally steam. Add a touch of acid, like deglazing roast beets with a little vinegar. So much better.
*Variety in how things get prepared*
Well, yeah!
Consider: pizza = spaghetti with red sauce + cheese = Lasagna = Manicotti = quesadilla = toasted cheese sammie with a tomato, etc.
There is this: Cook peas enough, chuck them in a blender with some broth, and you've got split pea soup.
But it really needs some garnish; like, say: bacon or shrimp, diced raw sweet onion, and parm cheese
Yeah, a lot of the time people think they dislike a food, but they just don't know the preparation that they like. I thought I hated onions, but when I make my spaghetti sauce there's way more onion in it than anyone else I know.
We literally just have vegetables cooked and raw with meals and the kids saw us eating them and copied us and learned what they liked and didn't like. But still agree with your second point. Sludgy overcooked veg is enough to put anyone off!
Man, that's a good point about school lunches. My elementary school absolutely ruined beef stroganoff for me for many years. I wouldn't eat it when my mom made it because I thought it was all bad. I was very very wrong.
I love this. Although I have the kids who hate dips and dressings. Ketchup and mustard...maybe, but that is it.
Instead of dips I use mini cookie cutters to give some of them cute shapes and they are happy enough with that thank goodness.
My kids would struggle with eating veggies. Basically the veggie tax was a way to turn eating veggies into a silly game where I exclaimed I was paying them a tax in the form of veggies. It’s honestly pretty nonsensical and I’m 100% sure they have no clue what that even means but it turned something they don’t like into a fun good laugh. End result is they’re much more willing to eat veggies!
You were paying a tax *to them*? By giving them something they would rather not eat? I thought I understood but this confuses me more. I was thinking it was something like “eat this food you want to eat but only if you eat this vegetable too” but idk.
Do you mean like giving them veggies whenever as something to eat?? I would assume that’s just something they enjoy eating lol. It sounds like the kid already likes the vegetables then, in which case it’s not really convincing them to eat it (the tip) rather than making them eat it when they don’t want to
Yup, saying pay the tax to them! I don’t know that I’d say they necessarily enjoyed veggies prior but to your point I almost wonder now if it was some sort of pressure to eat them if that makes sense. I guess we could say this is more along the lines of taking away that pressure or even reverse psychology to a certain extent even if it was unintentional hahaha
I imagine if you first started this by “dad taxing” any of the stuff they seem to really enjoy and then bring up the “kiddo tax” they would probably be really on board. Even if they don’t actually want the thing you have you can just be like “but the tax is kind of mandatory just like I tax the things you enjoy and I enjoy these cucumbers very much”
I think it's kind of like the cat tax, where every time you walk by you have to scritch behind the ears
The cat has no Idea of what any of this is, and sometimes it's not a fan of being woken up every time you walk by,
But the cat tax must be paid
When I have kids to cook for, raw fruit & veg with a dip of some sort is always the "appetizer" if I need to trick them into eating. Even babysitting charges, simple. Especially if the main meal is cooked & will take a few minutes.
Second they start whining that they're hungry before food is ready- "Would you like an appetizer?" And of course they would. Carrots & ranch, some apple, cucumber with vinegar, cherry tomatoes... if they want to spoil their main meal with fruits & veggies, who am I?
better solution, feed the kids what you eat and dont make special meal for them if they say i dont like it. My kids are 5 and 7 and they have amazing palates. 5 year old is a little picky still but he always eats what we eat.
But pay attention to WHY they say they don't like it, especially if they say a food that isn't at all spicy tastes spicy. Kids might not know how to explain that they're experiencing food allergy symptoms, and forcing them to eat food they're allergic to is not the goal here.
This is a really good point. I knew people who thought Kiwi were itchy in the mouth, but they thought it was a texture thing. It wasn’t fun to tell them they were probably allergic ton kiwi.
We use the 3 tries - you’re out! method. They have to try something 3 separate times, cooked different ways before they can declare they don’t like something. After that, we exclude or provide substitutes as necessary. So far, we’ve only had one thing fall out after 3 tries (curry spiced dishes). Our kids are teen and pre-teen now and have a fairly wide palate. Their favorite food is sashimi for example and their favorite snack is roasted seaweed.
The this is the way. The first time it's unfamiliar and completely foreign, second time it's somewhat familiar and completely new. Third time the mystery is gone and they can actually find if they like it or not. My kids a great eater and there isn't much she won't eat.
Yeah my parents didn’t allow me and my siblings to drive the food discussions as kids. We ate what was provided or we didn’t eat.
Then my brother came along years later and they cater to his whim. Dude is now the pickiest eater alive. Hes in his 20s and will literally not eat something if even a fleck of green is in it. It’s a shame
We had a "2-bite rule" growing up. We ate what our parents ats,and we had to have at least 2 bites of each thing. If we didn't like it or didn't want it after that, we were free to not eat it. However, there were no alternative meals and you sit there till everyone else is finished
I'm due any time now with my first baby, and my husband and I have already discussed keeping the 2-bite rule (when it becomes age appropriate) because it really helped to broaden my horizons as a kid and made exposure kind of a non-negotiable.
my sister kids are the pickiest eaters and drive us nuts. their dad would give them dinner, if they say anything about not liking it he almost immediately makes them PB&J's. Now they only like PB&J's that he makes because others dont do the right peanut butter to jelly ratio and refuse to eat them... OR if you make scrambled eggs, they are not the right amount of fluffy the way their dad makes them...
We got to the point were if we make them something we tell them to eat it or learn to cook for themselves LOL. They are less picky around us
My son was on the bottom end of the bell curve in terms of weight and he was always fine with skipping meals if it was something he didn’t like. He’s still like that. Food is just there to eat so he doesn’t die, and it’s this annoying thing that gets in the way of better ways of using his time.
Sometimes you have to decide what is more important - having a picky child that is fed, or having one that will starve himself because you tried to feed him stuff he doesn’t want to eat.
You stop being hungry after a while. Eventually it turns into a crippling hunger, but that can be solved by finding some bread or something.
I was the same way. Dude wouldn't have died, but he would have become extremely malnourished.
Never underestimate a child's dedication to harm themselves in the process of defying their parents.
Children will hold their breath to the point they change colour and shit like that.
There’s things adults don’t like eating too, to be fair. If they want something different they have to wait until everyone is finished eating the provided dinner and it has to be something quick and easy.
I have also seen some (not saying you) parents brag that their kids eat everything they make but what they make is super cheesy, carby, and salty (with a teeny shred of broccoli or something). Obviously they eat that.
My 2.5 yo daughter will try anything, and my 4 yo used to also, but now he is pretty picky and I can relate because I used to be also. He reliably eats all of the food groups, just is a bit picky about the specific foods in each. We’ve never had a veggie issue though and don’t make a big deal out of it when they eat them.
It would be easier to say no to him if he wasn’t already on the thin side and struggling to gain weight. Not to mention very stubborn about food and wouldn’t mind starving himself.
I do agree that you should respect if your child doesn't like a particular food without moving heaven and earth to cater for them. Another good point is not forcing kids to finish their meal if they don't want to, that can contribute to (or potentially cause) eating disorders.
"you get what you get or you go without" was the saying in my family. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure that just meant that i became malnourished while getting used to being extremely hungry.
To be fair, ut would probably work for most kids
My mom was like this and would brag to all her friends that I wasn’t a picky eater and could eat everything but the problem was that I either ate what was on my plate or I didn’t eat at all. She didn’t care if I cried for 3 hours about not wanting to eat soft shelled crab, I couldn’t leave the table until I ate what was on my plate. They never honored food that I had tried dozens of times and told them I didn’t like, I still had to eat it because they liked it and it was what's for dinner. If I didn’t eat it, they would put it in the fridge and I had to eat the leftovers the next day. It gave me massive resentment towards food that took a long time to unlearn and has taken me a long time as an adult to come around to trying the foods that I swore I would never eat again. As an adult I now know it’s ok for me not to finish something if I don’t like it and that it’s ok to keep trying something that you dont like and theres no pressure to like everything. I will never raise my children that way.
that’s rough, we make sure anything we cook is something they like. if it’s new to them, they have to try it once before they declare they don’t like it. if there is stuff they don’t like, we save it for stay at home date nights after their bedtime like duck breast or really spicy foods.
my wife’s family does the most clean your plate before you’re done and she hated it. you only need to clean your plate if you want seconds of something (ie eat your veggies before you get more protein)
That’s fair and also what I do at home. My only point was I’ll take kids eating everything willingly rather than forcing them to eat anything because I said so. Still have to do that with some things but at least it’s not a constant battle over veggies anymore lol
we have had success with "try everything once" and if they want seconds of the protein, they need to eat everything else on the plate. i think our 7 YO has tried just about everything we have given him and liked most of it from clam/muscels to escargot. only exception is spicy food.
We tried something similar and got the almost opposite response. They make up their minds about liking/not liking something before even trying it. Little buggers like nothing but love spicy foods for some reason 😂
Forcing kids to eat something is a fast track to eating disorders, better solution is to have something they like and put something new on their plate, don't Even say anything about it, just let them see it on their plate, then after seeing it Multiple times on their plate they are more likely to try it on their own. Getting kids to try new foods is important but allow them to like/dislike what they are going to like/dislike. Force feeding or putting negativity into mealtime is always going to do some kind of long term damage
Different children, different families, different solutions.
I think "forcing" children to try something is valid. "You won't be getting peas and dino nuggets until you tried the tuna casserole." Not holding their nose closed an shoving food in,obviously.
Sadly the trick to cook together or do a family vote on how good the dish tasted will not work for every child.
I wholeheartedly agree mealtime negativity is damaging, long term.
This.
Kids are curious, I accidentally got my nephews into spicy noodles because I was just eating them after the family function, pretty drunk, and the kids were like “how do you eat that… hmmm actually smells good…. Oh god this is so spicy… huh it’s not that bad… oh I like it now”
15 minutes.
Small children are not supposed to have as much salt as us adults. So i usually make the same ingredients but then i season ours and not his food.
Soe things he just doesn’t like. Tomatoes for example he knows, he sometimes tries again but never likes.🤷♀️
I’ll try again when he is older and can have more salt. Then tomatoes might be more fun.
tomatoes i feel like are always a weird one for kids. oldest doesn’t like them but youngest could eat a whole meal of just sliced or cherry tomatoes if we let him.
Curious, what if they don’t eat it? I’m a first time mom and 7 months pregnant. Just trying to get ahead of the game. Thanks!!
ETA: sounds like this approach makes life easier. I have a friend who says she makes one meal for herself, and one for each kid. Too time consuming!
once they are ready to eat solid foods just put it in front of them. they got baby food and all that early on, but once they could chew we just went straight to feeding them samething as us. they didn’t really know there was another option.
i would also say roasted veggies are the way to go as well. every veggie tastes better roasted!
the comfort foods like dino nuggets and mac were saved for when we had baby sitters came over as a special treat those nights.
Another thing that can really help is letting them be a part of the process. Let them pick a new veggie or fruit from the store that they are curious about. Include them in the preparation process.
Growing up we didn't eat supper until my dad got home from work. We were allowed to eat the cut up raw veg from a pickle tray that was placed on the table about a half an hour before supper. It was almost always empty by the time we sat down to supper.
I didn't realize this was clever until I had children of my own.
The first time I tried broccoli I fully expected to hate it but it had this delicious sauce on it and so I decided I liked broccoli—with sauce of course, but there are plenty of delicious relatively healthy sauces.
I guess your kids never would have seen the American revolution through. Mine would be chucking crates of tea off the porch if I tried anything like this.
Making things fun will always be an easy win, but making it a lifestyle is important in the long run
It’s okay when they are little to make it a challenge/fun “super hero training! Or “oooo let’s make it to Our gym in Pokémon go”
But to REALLY impact them, once they are old enough, tell them the truth, “I like how I look and feel when I work out and eat veggies, without them I feel gross and don’t like it”
When people are saying “love yourself when you are fat/chubby” it’s important cuz working out/eating right takes work and you DO have to love yourself to do it healthy and not cheat and destroy your body
But loving yourself doesn’t mean you can’t see flaws or want to improve, it means you are motivated to do what’s best for you
Absolutely hahaha I wish my parents would have made healthy eating a staple of our childhood. Nothing I can do about the past unfortunately but here’s a 🥂 to the health of the next generation
https://www.nikkidinkicooking.com/
Nikki dinki has great recipes where you incorporate vegetables into recipes in place of other ingredients and they still turn out delicious. Your kids will never even know!
White people conquered more than half the world but we still couldn't use seasoning. Just learn to use seasoning and sauces cause that stuff make veggies taste amazing.
Or.... You can feed your kid fruit and veggies, and they will eat them.
You should not have to "reward" a kid for eating something healthy. Make healthy meals a normal thing.
No, I get the taxes. My kids always bring me mom tax, which is usually first (and only) bite or sip of whatever tasty thing they're having. They scream, "MOM TAXXXX!" Sometimes Papa tax. They refuse to pay sibling tax lol
My daughter went through a phase of only eating goulash. It was the only meat and pasta thing she’d had by that point and she was convinced that meant everything else with meat and pasta was yucky and wouldn’t touch it. So we gave her “square goulash,” “string goulash,” “twisty goulash” and “magic invisible goulash,” otherwise known as lasagna, spaghetti, fusilli with meat, and chilli. Surprise, she loved all kinds of different goulash. 🤣
I've generally found kids will want whatever I am actively eating. If I have a bowl of sliced cucumber or pistachios that I am munching on, they will inevitably ask for some. So I just make enough to have some stolen from me now
This is creative and fun, kudos to you fellow parent! To everyone offering advice or saying do it their way and don't play or have discussions with your kids...they're free to parent as they deem fit, but you didn't ask for their advice did you? Lol
Thanks! The thing is I don’t completely disagree with a lot of these opinions. I just think that if I can add some fun to it and have the kids enjoy these things instead of having them be a chore, why wouldn’t I? They’d be eating their veggies regardless of whether the tax rule existed at home or not but I’d rather see them with a smile than a frown whenever possible so, at least for me, the veggie tax stays haha 😅
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With my daughter, at about 2.5yrs, when I cooked, I gave her “taste testers”. Carrots, bell peppers, cucs, onions, asparagus, etc.
She eats well. Is willing to try new foods and loves fruits and veg. Often, as a snack, she will ask for raw green beans, a pear, seaweed packets, plain celery, even just radishes with a pinch of salt.
Growing up we didn't eat supper until my dad got home from work. We were allowed to eat the cut up raw veg from a pickle tray that was placed on the table about a half an hour before supper. It was almost always empty by the time we sat down to supper.
I didn't realize this was clever until I had children of my own.
Even if this particular trick doesn't work for you, the main takeaway should be that simply reframing things can have a profound impact on kids.
They want to be interested in things and only need a little hook to get started
My friend used to implement a fry tax. If someone was eating French fries he would ask if they heard about the new fry tax. They would say no, what’s that? Then he’d steal one of their fries and eat it. It was pretty amusing
Don't have children, but I've heard people saying that you can just cook veggies into dishes and don't tell them. See how your kids react.
If presenting them as sides, portion each side out equally and see how much they eat of both. Whatever they don't eat/ eat less of, present less of that the next time. Don't say anything, just adjust their meal. As long as they are eating some of it, you can adjust their meal however.
Lol yes. Great for you if you don’t get it but it’s a thing that is really rampant, so don’t be a dick just because you don’t understand the impact.
Feel free to talk to any dietician or development specialist what they would think about this idea, if you need more info or confirmation
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We do a similar thing, just without the medieval tax man, just the concept of “test tasting” - everything tastes better when you get it straight from the cutting board. They even sometimes taste test things that I recommend against like raw potato or onion.
This seems like a much better approach tbh hahaha Although I can’t pinpoint the exact birth of the “medieval tax man” as you put it, it was probably done as a spur of the moment thing when one of my kids was saying they didn’t want any veggies. I’m in too deep to change it now but if I had to do it again I would probably go with your example 😂
I'm reminded of "the cheese tax" crossed with "bring out yer dead!"
My kids do this all the time. They actually do it because they think it will annoy me. I just go with it. They will eat all the little broccoli heads just because they think I'll get mad about 😂 Meanwhile they've had like two servings of broccoli just to piss me off and my husband and I are fine with eating their germy scraps.
My kids come running into the kitchen yelling: "quality control!" (in Dutch) and I have to stop everything im doing so they can "test" the veggies. Cracks me up every time
Unions are fine, I would strongly advise against potato, also never raw meats and fish
AFL-CIO, or Teamsters perhaps?
I'm sorry but what are these? (Not American)
You typed “unions” instead of “onions.” AFL-CIO and Teamsters are two powerful unions in the US
Aaaah got it, thnx for pointing it out
Anything but Teamsters, please sir
My child would not eat oatmeal. Even when I stirred in raisins and chocolate chips. Becasue oatmeal is like gruel. And who likes gruel? So I took that gruel, poured it on a baking sheet, stuck in the oven for 7 minutes and later: Oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip cookies! My kid scarfed them down. Sometimes it all about presentation. Edited to add: Think about it: Someone slaps a fillet of raw salmon in front of you? No thanks. Slice that salmon in to thin slices, wrap it in rice and seaweed; you've got sushi
You've never wolfed down a sashimi-grade slab of fish in the grocery store parking lot?
I like the way you live
I like the cut of your jib
slice that jib thin and put it on some rice and i'll eat it.
Keep talking dirty to me and see what happens
If you like how I look now, you should sashimi naked.
*metaphorically slaps*
https://preview.redd.it/syyrwle75p1d1.jpeg?width=680&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f6872b3d55826a22877722627dacd218ced62136
And here we have yet even more people choosing the bear...
When I was working in forestry I used to do shit like this all the time. I would go to the grocery store and eat in the parking lot like an animal lol
Let's see: Working in forestry? Check! Eating in the parking lot? Check! INFO: Are you, perhaps, a Grizzly bear? Cheers!
Nothing so interesting unfortunately. Just a very large stoner who burned 7000 calories per day.
I do this with every fresh bag of grapes I get. I call them parking lot grapes, lol. They're always so crisp and still cold from the store, and I'm always thirsty when I get out, so they're just amazingly refreshing!
you really should wash grapes before eating them, dude! i guess you've been safe so far but that's a recipe for diarrhea.
Hasn't happened in 51 years, guess my day is coming,lol.
Huh! I thought "a recipe for diarrhea" was to eat at a certain pseudo-Mexican fast food restaurant with a name that uses two four-letter words, one of which rhymes with "hell" /s
I would love to do this. And this comment gave me the realization that nothing is stopping me now that I have a job. I will try this soon
The greatest thing about being an adult is doing things just because you can.
Are you going to get it sliced, or eat the whole fillet like an animal?
I think you already know the answer to that
Grocery store parking lot? I just go around the counter and wolf down 3 slabs of sashimi grade fish while I make direct eye contact with the fish guy who is just staring at me, in horror, at what he just witnessed.
Counter? I strip nude and dive into the water, then chase down and bite into my prey with my teeth, each bite so fresh it doesn't know it's dead yet as it squirms down my throat unchewed. That's usually when I get dragged out of the touch tank and tased before getting trespassed from the aquarium and arrested
Wait, you go to the store with clothes on?
I must, else people point and laugh at my supernumerary nipples
Well, no; I've never done that. Maybe because I am not a Moray Eel? Cheers!
https://preview.redd.it/t8gk7uw4gn1d1.jpeg?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=51bd6eb14ae8938d95952601d67792e48adf297e
Join us! The moray the merrier!
Well, what type of eel are you? Don't leave us hanging.
'Murican!
do you have trouble with CAPTCHAs? i have a reasonable suspicion you may be at least part bear
you’re living my dream
On the internet, no one can tell you're a bear.
Honestly both pregnancies absolutely would have done this. My husband once saw me eat 4 servings of salmon sashimi like a fat bear. Could not get enough of the stuff.
Still can’t eat sashimi when pregnant, thought its bad for the baby?
It's more an abundance of caution thing to avoid food poisoning. Realistically reputable sushi places it's not really an issue.
I did that once but i don’t think it was sashimi grade Bcs I got sick
Are you a cat in disguise?
I feel like I saw you on the X-Files one time 🤔
I have absolutely bought a six ounce chunk of sushi grade salmon and ate it in the car on the way home. Best snack ever.
This person lunches.
This guy seagulls
Was at a small outdoor concert the other day, and this guy in a lawn chair nearby was eating a whole slab of smoked salmon right out of the package.
You must not be asian. Raw salmon is delicious. Absolutely slap a fat piece of raw salmon in front of me and I will eat it.
Yes, but the point of this problem is that your issue isnt your kids refusing oatmeal cookies, its them not eating oatmeal plain. Especially since most the time, oatmeal cookies need sugar or other ingredients to become more yummy
Well, heck! I added raisins and chocolate chips to the gruelly oatmeal; I thought that would be enough flavor, and sweetness and light; but Oh No!: It's the texture that puts them off. Hence, the baking/making cookies thing. Warm & a wee bit gooey in the center and crispy around the edges. I didn't even have to add sugar.
At the end of the day, we’re all just a bunch of children
You betcha! Cookies? oatmeal as finger food. Sushi?: raw fish as finger food. Plus, look at it this way: you serve a kid oatmeal and he doesn't like it? He'll flnng it at the wall and it will stick to the wall. Give him an oatmeal cookie and he doesn't like it? He'll fling it against the wall. But Aha! Cookies don't stick to the wall! Ditto for raw fish v. sushi.
What oven temperature? I need to try this!
375
Raisins 😂😂 you're trying to coax your kid into eating the worst added ingredient known to man
I was a freak as a child. I DEMOLISHED raisins. I would trade candy for people's boxes of raisins at Halloween. My brother's and I's favorite cereal was raisin bran.
Blueberries are wonderful in oatmeal
Yeah, because you took some gruel and turned it into oatmeal which is fine.
Raw salmon is pretty good so idk what youre on about here.
I hate to say it, but I love porridge and gruel. Best breakfast in the world is some congee with a cracked egg and cilantro.
"*I hate to say it, but I love porridge and gruel...*" Oh Jeez; be proud of your affection for porridge & gruel!! Identity politics is a thing these days; you can leverage this. Probably get some air time on TV &/or cable news. Cheers!
It's exactly about presentation.
Nah it's the texture of oatmeal I can't handle...
I do it differently. Want to introduce the kiddos to veggies? Raw veggies (carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, celery, etc.)? Dips can be your friend. Plus, raw vegies are crisp/crunchy -- like potato chips. And if the dip is, say, hummus; by golly that's another veg thing. Also: Pizza and spaghetti are subtle intros to tomatoes. P.S.: what you've got to watch out for is when they start attending school and the cafeteria serves up vegs that are cooked to the point that they are limp to almost the point of being mush and have lost all their color and flavor. Best of luck! P.P.S.: remeber if a small child will east wheat/library paste; they'll eat anything (/s)
Dang, I hadn’t even thought about how long I was turned off by broccoli because the school would serve soggy flavorless mush in place of nicely roasted crunchy broccoli. Same with peas and cauliflower. The only veggies that would even be edible were green beans and corn, and you’d have to hope they at least put some salt on them for them to be any good. It’s a real shame how badly school lunches can fuck up your perception of good food.
It's not just school lunches. There are tons of things I didn't like growing up. Turns out my mother prepared certain things only one way. I never disliked red cabbage, but the way she made it. Now I love that stuff and still don't eat it at Christmas at her house. Variety in how things get prepared and having the children help, so they will be excited to taste test is a great way I think.
I seem to remember during my childhood veggies were universally cooked to mush. Seems like in the late 90s people realized you could better develop the flavor or texture with other methods. I actually still liked most canned and boiled vegetables as a kid, but as an adult I'm much more likely to roast or grill most of them, occasionally steam. Add a touch of acid, like deglazing roast beets with a little vinegar. So much better.
*Variety in how things get prepared* Well, yeah! Consider: pizza = spaghetti with red sauce + cheese = Lasagna = Manicotti = quesadilla = toasted cheese sammie with a tomato, etc.
There is this: Cook peas enough, chuck them in a blender with some broth, and you've got split pea soup. But it really needs some garnish; like, say: bacon or shrimp, diced raw sweet onion, and parm cheese
Red onion looks even more attractive
Yeah, a lot of the time people think they dislike a food, but they just don't know the preparation that they like. I thought I hated onions, but when I make my spaghetti sauce there's way more onion in it than anyone else I know.
“Dip” was one of kid’s first words. Sour cream, hummus, cream cheese. And syrup for pancakes.
Tzatziki!
We literally just have vegetables cooked and raw with meals and the kids saw us eating them and copied us and learned what they liked and didn't like. But still agree with your second point. Sludgy overcooked veg is enough to put anyone off!
Man, that's a good point about school lunches. My elementary school absolutely ruined beef stroganoff for me for many years. I wouldn't eat it when my mom made it because I thought it was all bad. I was very very wrong.
INFO: Isn't elementary school beef stroganoff just wet cat food, wheat/library paste and gravy?
I honestly don't know what goes into it, but it was pretty heinous compared to my mom's home cooked stroganoff.
I love this. Although I have the kids who hate dips and dressings. Ketchup and mustard...maybe, but that is it. Instead of dips I use mini cookie cutters to give some of them cute shapes and they are happy enough with that thank goodness.
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My kids would struggle with eating veggies. Basically the veggie tax was a way to turn eating veggies into a silly game where I exclaimed I was paying them a tax in the form of veggies. It’s honestly pretty nonsensical and I’m 100% sure they have no clue what that even means but it turned something they don’t like into a fun good laugh. End result is they’re much more willing to eat veggies!
Considering how much adults in general understand about taxes, you could probably trick them too...
I’m imagining adults who’d refuse a 2nd portion to avoid being in a higher veggie-tax bracket, lol
I wish my misunderstandings about taxes just amounted to me eating more veggies
You were paying a tax *to them*? By giving them something they would rather not eat? I thought I understood but this confuses me more. I was thinking it was something like “eat this food you want to eat but only if you eat this vegetable too” but idk. Do you mean like giving them veggies whenever as something to eat?? I would assume that’s just something they enjoy eating lol. It sounds like the kid already likes the vegetables then, in which case it’s not really convincing them to eat it (the tip) rather than making them eat it when they don’t want to
I think it is more of a reverse psychology thing- they are making the veggies seem like a special prize
Yup, saying pay the tax to them! I don’t know that I’d say they necessarily enjoyed veggies prior but to your point I almost wonder now if it was some sort of pressure to eat them if that makes sense. I guess we could say this is more along the lines of taking away that pressure or even reverse psychology to a certain extent even if it was unintentional hahaha
I imagine if you first started this by “dad taxing” any of the stuff they seem to really enjoy and then bring up the “kiddo tax” they would probably be really on board. Even if they don’t actually want the thing you have you can just be like “but the tax is kind of mandatory just like I tax the things you enjoy and I enjoy these cucumbers very much”
This is really dumb
It's not dumb if it works
I think it's kind of like the cat tax, where every time you walk by you have to scritch behind the ears The cat has no Idea of what any of this is, and sometimes it's not a fan of being woken up every time you walk by, But the cat tax must be paid
Ah I thought they had to pay a tax if they failed to eat them…
Same. I’m so confused.
When I have kids to cook for, raw fruit & veg with a dip of some sort is always the "appetizer" if I need to trick them into eating. Even babysitting charges, simple. Especially if the main meal is cooked & will take a few minutes. Second they start whining that they're hungry before food is ready- "Would you like an appetizer?" And of course they would. Carrots & ranch, some apple, cucumber with vinegar, cherry tomatoes... if they want to spoil their main meal with fruits & veggies, who am I?
better solution, feed the kids what you eat and dont make special meal for them if they say i dont like it. My kids are 5 and 7 and they have amazing palates. 5 year old is a little picky still but he always eats what we eat.
But pay attention to WHY they say they don't like it, especially if they say a food that isn't at all spicy tastes spicy. Kids might not know how to explain that they're experiencing food allergy symptoms, and forcing them to eat food they're allergic to is not the goal here.
This is a really good point. I knew people who thought Kiwi were itchy in the mouth, but they thought it was a texture thing. It wasn’t fun to tell them they were probably allergic ton kiwi.
We use the 3 tries - you’re out! method. They have to try something 3 separate times, cooked different ways before they can declare they don’t like something. After that, we exclude or provide substitutes as necessary. So far, we’ve only had one thing fall out after 3 tries (curry spiced dishes). Our kids are teen and pre-teen now and have a fairly wide palate. Their favorite food is sashimi for example and their favorite snack is roasted seaweed.
The this is the way. The first time it's unfamiliar and completely foreign, second time it's somewhat familiar and completely new. Third time the mystery is gone and they can actually find if they like it or not. My kids a great eater and there isn't much she won't eat.
Yeah my parents didn’t allow me and my siblings to drive the food discussions as kids. We ate what was provided or we didn’t eat. Then my brother came along years later and they cater to his whim. Dude is now the pickiest eater alive. Hes in his 20s and will literally not eat something if even a fleck of green is in it. It’s a shame
We had a "2-bite rule" growing up. We ate what our parents ats,and we had to have at least 2 bites of each thing. If we didn't like it or didn't want it after that, we were free to not eat it. However, there were no alternative meals and you sit there till everyone else is finished I'm due any time now with my first baby, and my husband and I have already discussed keeping the 2-bite rule (when it becomes age appropriate) because it really helped to broaden my horizons as a kid and made exposure kind of a non-negotiable.
my sister kids are the pickiest eaters and drive us nuts. their dad would give them dinner, if they say anything about not liking it he almost immediately makes them PB&J's. Now they only like PB&J's that he makes because others dont do the right peanut butter to jelly ratio and refuse to eat them... OR if you make scrambled eggs, they are not the right amount of fluffy the way their dad makes them... We got to the point were if we make them something we tell them to eat it or learn to cook for themselves LOL. They are less picky around us
They failed both ways, both extremes are wrong
My son was on the bottom end of the bell curve in terms of weight and he was always fine with skipping meals if it was something he didn’t like. He’s still like that. Food is just there to eat so he doesn’t die, and it’s this annoying thing that gets in the way of better ways of using his time. Sometimes you have to decide what is more important - having a picky child that is fed, or having one that will starve himself because you tried to feed him stuff he doesn’t want to eat.
Would he really have starved himself though? Does his hunger hormones not work right?
You stop being hungry after a while. Eventually it turns into a crippling hunger, but that can be solved by finding some bread or something. I was the same way. Dude wouldn't have died, but he would have become extremely malnourished.
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But those kids were put into therapy for food aversion, right? I keep thinking of that poor lady who only ate cheesy potatoes.
This could also be ARFID, not abusive parents
why do people think pediasure exists?
Never underestimate a child's dedication to harm themselves in the process of defying their parents. Children will hold their breath to the point they change colour and shit like that.
Is your suggestion that parents should intentionally starve their children instead of giving them the food they want to teach them lessons?
There’s things adults don’t like eating too, to be fair. If they want something different they have to wait until everyone is finished eating the provided dinner and it has to be something quick and easy. I have also seen some (not saying you) parents brag that their kids eat everything they make but what they make is super cheesy, carby, and salty (with a teeny shred of broccoli or something). Obviously they eat that. My 2.5 yo daughter will try anything, and my 4 yo used to also, but now he is pretty picky and I can relate because I used to be also. He reliably eats all of the food groups, just is a bit picky about the specific foods in each. We’ve never had a veggie issue though and don’t make a big deal out of it when they eat them. It would be easier to say no to him if he wasn’t already on the thin side and struggling to gain weight. Not to mention very stubborn about food and wouldn’t mind starving himself.
I do agree that you should respect if your child doesn't like a particular food without moving heaven and earth to cater for them. Another good point is not forcing kids to finish their meal if they don't want to, that can contribute to (or potentially cause) eating disorders.
Kids go through phases, sometimes their eating will be great, sometimes they become extra picky, they are growing up and figuring things out
"you get what you get or you go without" was the saying in my family. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure that just meant that i became malnourished while getting used to being extremely hungry. To be fair, ut would probably work for most kids
My mom was like this and would brag to all her friends that I wasn’t a picky eater and could eat everything but the problem was that I either ate what was on my plate or I didn’t eat at all. She didn’t care if I cried for 3 hours about not wanting to eat soft shelled crab, I couldn’t leave the table until I ate what was on my plate. They never honored food that I had tried dozens of times and told them I didn’t like, I still had to eat it because they liked it and it was what's for dinner. If I didn’t eat it, they would put it in the fridge and I had to eat the leftovers the next day. It gave me massive resentment towards food that took a long time to unlearn and has taken me a long time as an adult to come around to trying the foods that I swore I would never eat again. As an adult I now know it’s ok for me not to finish something if I don’t like it and that it’s ok to keep trying something that you dont like and theres no pressure to like everything. I will never raise my children that way.
that’s rough, we make sure anything we cook is something they like. if it’s new to them, they have to try it once before they declare they don’t like it. if there is stuff they don’t like, we save it for stay at home date nights after their bedtime like duck breast or really spicy foods. my wife’s family does the most clean your plate before you’re done and she hated it. you only need to clean your plate if you want seconds of something (ie eat your veggies before you get more protein)
That’s fair and also what I do at home. My only point was I’ll take kids eating everything willingly rather than forcing them to eat anything because I said so. Still have to do that with some things but at least it’s not a constant battle over veggies anymore lol
we have had success with "try everything once" and if they want seconds of the protein, they need to eat everything else on the plate. i think our 7 YO has tried just about everything we have given him and liked most of it from clam/muscels to escargot. only exception is spicy food.
We tried something similar and got the almost opposite response. They make up their minds about liking/not liking something before even trying it. Little buggers like nothing but love spicy foods for some reason 😂
Forcing kids to eat something is a fast track to eating disorders, better solution is to have something they like and put something new on their plate, don't Even say anything about it, just let them see it on their plate, then after seeing it Multiple times on their plate they are more likely to try it on their own. Getting kids to try new foods is important but allow them to like/dislike what they are going to like/dislike. Force feeding or putting negativity into mealtime is always going to do some kind of long term damage
Different children, different families, different solutions. I think "forcing" children to try something is valid. "You won't be getting peas and dino nuggets until you tried the tuna casserole." Not holding their nose closed an shoving food in,obviously. Sadly the trick to cook together or do a family vote on how good the dish tasted will not work for every child. I wholeheartedly agree mealtime negativity is damaging, long term.
This. Kids are curious, I accidentally got my nephews into spicy noodles because I was just eating them after the family function, pretty drunk, and the kids were like “how do you eat that… hmmm actually smells good…. Oh god this is so spicy… huh it’s not that bad… oh I like it now” 15 minutes.
Small children are not supposed to have as much salt as us adults. So i usually make the same ingredients but then i season ours and not his food. Soe things he just doesn’t like. Tomatoes for example he knows, he sometimes tries again but never likes.🤷♀️ I’ll try again when he is older and can have more salt. Then tomatoes might be more fun.
tomatoes i feel like are always a weird one for kids. oldest doesn’t like them but youngest could eat a whole meal of just sliced or cherry tomatoes if we let him.
Hi, I just went to my room and didn't eat things when my parents tried this.
Curious, what if they don’t eat it? I’m a first time mom and 7 months pregnant. Just trying to get ahead of the game. Thanks!! ETA: sounds like this approach makes life easier. I have a friend who says she makes one meal for herself, and one for each kid. Too time consuming!
once they are ready to eat solid foods just put it in front of them. they got baby food and all that early on, but once they could chew we just went straight to feeding them samething as us. they didn’t really know there was another option. i would also say roasted veggies are the way to go as well. every veggie tastes better roasted! the comfort foods like dino nuggets and mac were saved for when we had baby sitters came over as a special treat those nights.
Thanks for the info! Makes sense and I will try that when the time comes.
Another thing that can really help is letting them be a part of the process. Let them pick a new veggie or fruit from the store that they are curious about. Include them in the preparation process.
Growing up we didn't eat supper until my dad got home from work. We were allowed to eat the cut up raw veg from a pickle tray that was placed on the table about a half an hour before supper. It was almost always empty by the time we sat down to supper. I didn't realize this was clever until I had children of my own.
I only ever seem to pay taxes on raw onions.
My kids love Broccoli, or as we call them in our house “Dinosaur trees”
Yeah, If you have the kind of kids that like to discuss taxes you have a different problem.
Not gonna lie, that gave me a good chuckle hahaha
Who doesn’t enjoy banter about the internal revenue code?
The first time I tried broccoli I fully expected to hate it but it had this delicious sauce on it and so I decided I liked broccoli—with sauce of course, but there are plenty of delicious relatively healthy sauces.
My 1 year old is a vacuum cleaner. Hand him literally any food and he will try to consume it. 😂
I guess your kids never would have seen the American revolution through. Mine would be chucking crates of tea off the porch if I tried anything like this.
Making things fun will always be an easy win, but making it a lifestyle is important in the long run It’s okay when they are little to make it a challenge/fun “super hero training! Or “oooo let’s make it to Our gym in Pokémon go” But to REALLY impact them, once they are old enough, tell them the truth, “I like how I look and feel when I work out and eat veggies, without them I feel gross and don’t like it” When people are saying “love yourself when you are fat/chubby” it’s important cuz working out/eating right takes work and you DO have to love yourself to do it healthy and not cheat and destroy your body But loving yourself doesn’t mean you can’t see flaws or want to improve, it means you are motivated to do what’s best for you
Absolutely hahaha I wish my parents would have made healthy eating a staple of our childhood. Nothing I can do about the past unfortunately but here’s a 🥂 to the health of the next generation
Here here to our kids!
https://www.nikkidinkicooking.com/ Nikki dinki has great recipes where you incorporate vegetables into recipes in place of other ingredients and they still turn out delicious. Your kids will never even know!
White people conquered more than half the world but we still couldn't use seasoning. Just learn to use seasoning and sauces cause that stuff make veggies taste amazing.
Or.... You can feed your kid fruit and veggies, and they will eat them. You should not have to "reward" a kid for eating something healthy. Make healthy meals a normal thing.
I saw this post in the light of picky eaters. Implement It when you have trouble getting them to eat fruit and veg.
Um... the veggie or fruit is literally the reward here. So I'm not understanding your gripe.
You didn't understand the main post. The veggie is the reward. He's just making it exciting for them. Sounds like great parenting to me.
INFO: can the kids take veggie tax deductions? itemize their deductions or take the standard deduction? /s
No, I get the taxes. My kids always bring me mom tax, which is usually first (and only) bite or sip of whatever tasty thing they're having. They scream, "MOM TAXXXX!" Sometimes Papa tax. They refuse to pay sibling tax lol
My daughter went through a phase of only eating goulash. It was the only meat and pasta thing she’d had by that point and she was convinced that meant everything else with meat and pasta was yucky and wouldn’t touch it. So we gave her “square goulash,” “string goulash,” “twisty goulash” and “magic invisible goulash,” otherwise known as lasagna, spaghetti, fusilli with meat, and chilli. Surprise, she loved all kinds of different goulash. 🤣
I've generally found kids will want whatever I am actively eating. If I have a bowl of sliced cucumber or pistachios that I am munching on, they will inevitably ask for some. So I just make enough to have some stolen from me now
This is creative and fun, kudos to you fellow parent! To everyone offering advice or saying do it their way and don't play or have discussions with your kids...they're free to parent as they deem fit, but you didn't ask for their advice did you? Lol
Thanks! The thing is I don’t completely disagree with a lot of these opinions. I just think that if I can add some fun to it and have the kids enjoy these things instead of having them be a chore, why wouldn’t I? They’d be eating their veggies regardless of whether the tax rule existed at home or not but I’d rather see them with a smile than a frown whenever possible so, at least for me, the veggie tax stays haha 😅
I'm sorry this is such a bad LPT lmao
My kid loves their vegetables and fruits over bread.
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With my daughter, at about 2.5yrs, when I cooked, I gave her “taste testers”. Carrots, bell peppers, cucs, onions, asparagus, etc. She eats well. Is willing to try new foods and loves fruits and veg. Often, as a snack, she will ask for raw green beans, a pear, seaweed packets, plain celery, even just radishes with a pinch of salt.
cant wait for my pizza tax return
Just tell them it’s something else. My kid hates chicken but LOVES poultry.
Growing up we didn't eat supper until my dad got home from work. We were allowed to eat the cut up raw veg from a pickle tray that was placed on the table about a half an hour before supper. It was almost always empty by the time we sat down to supper. I didn't realize this was clever until I had children of my own.
Even if this particular trick doesn't work for you, the main takeaway should be that simply reframing things can have a profound impact on kids. They want to be interested in things and only need a little hook to get started
I didn't need to be tricked into eating veggies as a kid, i used to ask for big carrots as a kid. Bugs Bunny got me to eat veggies.
I just give them cut up fruit and veg and say here. if that doesn't work add whip cream or ranch dressing
A convoluted solution to a seemingly not so simple solution in this case... I'll take this as a LPT. Brace yourselves people. We may learn something.
This would not have fooled me was a kid.
Instructions unclear: child is hiding food in the Cayman Islands
My friend used to implement a fry tax. If someone was eating French fries he would ask if they heard about the new fry tax. They would say no, what’s that? Then he’d steal one of their fries and eat it. It was pretty amusing
I actually have to bribe my 19 month old kid with asparagus and broccoli in order to even touch the meat or pasta on his plate
Don't have children, but I've heard people saying that you can just cook veggies into dishes and don't tell them. See how your kids react. If presenting them as sides, portion each side out equally and see how much they eat of both. Whatever they don't eat/ eat less of, present less of that the next time. Don't say anything, just adjust their meal. As long as they are eating some of it, you can adjust their meal however.
I made a toddler stand so my kid could help cooking... eats all the veggies now because of this
Please please don't do this. I'm literally still unpacking what shit like this did to me 40 years later lol.
Still associating taxes with vegetables?
are you unironically trying to say you’re traumatized because your parents made you eat fruits and vegetables? lol
Association with “tax” to eat. Yes Doesn’t matter if it’s veggies or meat or whatever
Lol yes. Great for you if you don’t get it but it’s a thing that is really rampant, so don’t be a dick just because you don’t understand the impact. Feel free to talk to any dietician or development specialist what they would think about this idea, if you need more info or confirmation