Kid-Friendly Kitchen Tips for Your Young Chefs

Empower Your Kids in the Kitchen

Teaching kid-friendly kitchen tips to your young chefs empowers kids, whether in the kitchen or elsewhere, lets them develop independence and confidence to allow them to explore new tasks in their lives. It is one thing I stress to my parent patients and in all my Human Body Detectives books and curricula.

At some point, most kids want to venture into the kitchen and make their own meals; it’s a perfect proactive and empowering experience for them. And kids, our little young chefs, love to help, and this might help you have to cook fewer meals, an added benefit.

Empowering your kids with kid-friendly kitchen tips just may bud aspiring chefs!

The Kitchen

1. Show your kids around the kitchen; where you keep bowls, knives etc.
2. How to use knives correctly.; Eating Well explains this great. Read here to learn more. I suggest starting as early as 3, with non-sharp knives and soft foods. 
3. Teach them or show them how to put a fire out. You will always be in the kitchen with them for a few years, so showing them a fire is possible and how to put it out can help manage any anxiety that could happen if one does occur.

Using the Oven and Stove Wisely

1. Practice turning the stove off and on.
2. Use the correct burner size: When my kids were younger, they would use the larger burner with a small pot. This combination creates unnecessary heat loss. Once I pointed this out to them, they completely understood what I was saying.
3. Use the top rack of the oven: Sometimes, kids throw their food onto any rack; however, keeping the food closer to the heat source can help reduce cooking time.
4. Use the oven light: It is more energy efficient to take oven peeks by using the over light versus opening and shutting the over door.

One of the best first meals for kids to make is scrambled eggs. Show them how to do that and colour it up – spinach, tomatoes etc. – and let them make the next family breakfast (or dinner!)

xx

dr. heather