Getting kids to eat healthy food can be a trial sometimes. According to the government’s most recent “State of the Plate” report, Americans are still not eating enough fresh fruit and vegetables.
This is especially bad for growing kids, who need all the nutrition they can get to support their growing bodies. That’s why we’ve put together this list of kid-friendly recipes that are bound to be a hit with your little ones.
Ready to learn some great healthy dinner ideas for kids? Then read on and get ready to cook up a storm!
1. Chicken Kebabs
Kebabs are some of the most nutritious and kid-friendly meals that you can make. They’re easy too! All you need are some skewers and the meat and vegetables of your choice.
We’d recommend marinating some chicken in a tasty, herby sauce then threading them onto a skewer. Add some colorful veg like bell peppers, tomatoes, red onions, and the like. Then grill until done!
Your kids will love the bright colors of these kebabs and you can rest easy knowing that they’re getting much-needed fresh vegetables! They’re light on the wallet too, so an all-round great addition to your weeknight meal rotation.
2. Twice-Baked Potatoes
A particular favorite during winter, twice-baked potatoes is sure to be a favorite with your children. The trick here is to add veg alongside cheese and sour cream, to keep their tastebuds happy while they’re munching on the veg! Even the pickiest eaters won’t care that you’ve added some broccoli florets or other veg into the mix.
When you stuff the baked potatoes and bake them for a second time, you enrich the potatoes with all the flavors that you’ve added. Don’t be afraid to be adventurous!
3. Chicken or Pork Burritos
Burritos are a great way to add a lot of vegetables to a meal without upsetting a picky eater. You can make burrito filling in advance with grilled chicken or pulled pork, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, peppers, and other vegetables, then freeze it. Cook up some rice and add it and the filling to a tortilla for easy weeknight burritos.
You can also add some sour cream (reduced-fat if preferred) and salsa, then serve up! These can be a little messy, so we’d recommend bringing napkins!
4. Smoothies
These may not be meals by themselves but they’re a fantastic drink to serve with lunch or breakfast and delicious, too! Bring your child into the kitchen and have them make the smoothie with you. Involve them every step of the way and let them pick out the fruits and vegetables that they’d like to add.
Top it off with milk or water and blitz it in the blender. Treat it as a teachable moment, showing the importance of eating healthily.
If it’s a particularly hot day, you can also consider adding ice to the blender to make a healthy slushie.
5. Baked Salmon With Roasted Potatoes and Vegetables
Omega-3 fats are very important for your child’s overall wellbeing. While capsules are a good way for them to get omega-3s, why not serve up meals packed with it instead?
One great source of omega-3s is salmon! This recipe only needs one pan too, which means it’s amazingly easy to cook after a long day at work.
To start, put a wide and shallow baking tray into the oven at around 400 degrees. Leave this to warm up for 20 minutes.
Wash and cut some baby potatoes and toss them with olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Then, once the 20 minutes is up, put them onto the tray, flat side down, cook for 25 minutes.
Cut up some colorful veg like onions, broccoli, asparagus, or bell peppers and toss in oil, salt, and pepper. Coat salmon fillets with pesto or any other sauce that your children love.
After the potatoes have cooked for 25 minutes, add the vegetables and salmon to the tray, then cook for 15 more minutes. Remove from the oven and serve!
Your children will love the delicious flavor of the fish, coupled with crisp potatoes and healthy roasted vegetables.
6. Healthy Pizzas
Almost every kid loves pizzas. We understand why too: most adults love the greasy, cheesy deliciousness that comes with pizza. However, they aren’t the healthiest: luckily, there are plenty of good choices available for healthy alternatives.
Like most other recipes on this list, these are quick too. It uses tortillas for the base, so there’s no need to make dough from scratch.
Brush a tortilla with olive oil, and bake for a few minutes. Add chopped tomatoes, onion, and bell peppers. Break an egg on top and add a little shredded cheese, then bake for 10 minutes.
To make it even more healthy, you can serve this with some leafy greens on the side, like spinach or rocket.
7. Meat and Vegetable Chili
Chilis represent a great way to introduce your child to spice, new flavors, and a lot of veg! You can add almost any vegetables to chili and it’ll taste delicious: carrots, celery, bell peppers, mushrooms; the sky’s the limit.
As a base for your chili, you’ll need tinned tomatoes and beef stock. Fry up ground beef, then remove it from the pan. Sautee your vegetables, and then add the beef back to the pan, and add your beef stock and tomatoes, as well as any spices you’re adding.
We’d also recommend adding black beans or kidney beans to the mix here, to make the recipe go further. Cook for a couple of hours and let the flavors get to know each other. Then serve up with rice, sour cream, and cheese!
Enjoyed These Healthy Dinner Ideas for Kids?
We hope that you’ll enjoy these healthy dinner ideas for kids. They’re guaranteed to make even the pickiest of little eaters enjoy their daily portions of fruit and vegetables.
For more interesting and informative articles like this, be sure to check out the rest of our blog!