HOW TO GET YOUR PRESCHOOLER TO EAT MEAT
“Getting” your child to eat a certain food may sound negative at first. We don’t want to get your preschooler eating meat but rather we want your child to feel comfortable with exposures to meat which overtime will lead to eating meat.
“How to get your preschooler to eat meat” is a topic that I constantly hear a lot of buzz about. It is important to first unpack why meat is a difficult food for picky eaters in the first place.
Meat is oftentimes a challenging food for picky eaters and problem feeders. Why? The texture of one piece of meat to another varies and can be unpredictable. Also, there is no other food that quite has the same texture as meat which makes meat full of unknowns for picky eaters. Meat also has a distinct taste and requires significantly more chewing than other foods which makes eating meat a tedious task for some children.
Before I tell you how to get your preschooler to eat meat, I want to remind you that there are many other ways for your child to get adequate protein even without meat. Children require significantly less protein than adults, so keep this in mind if your child is not eating meat *yet.*
Tip #1: Use sauce!
Use what your child likes to eat to your advantage. I have a feeling that I know what you’re thinking…
“My picky eater doesn’t like sauce and only eats plain food.”
When I say sauce, I really mean any type of sauce (not just red sauce) or any condiment. It doesn’t even have to be ketchup or BBQ sauce.
Maybe your child is a fast food lover and loves the sweet and sour sauce from McDonald’s. I know you might not love the idea of using McDonald’s sauce because it isn’t the healthiest, but hear me out.
If you use a few pieces of chicken breast and have your child dip it in the McDonald’s sweet and sour sauce, I bet your child will be WAY more interested than just the plain chicken breast by itself.
Why? Because you added a familiar and enjoyable flavor!
Tip #2: Use ground meat!
Ground meat requires less chewing and is typically more moist than a regular piece of meat. This makes ground meat more attractive to picky eaters.
There are SO many ways to serve ground meat and so many variations of ground meat.
3 ways to serve ground meat to your picky eater:
*Use ground beef to make hamburger patties
*Use ground turkey to make turkey meatballs
*Use ground chicken to make homemade chicken nuggets
Tip #3: Try bacon!
Again, you might be thinking that bacon isn’t the “healthiest,” and you might have been hoping to feed your child a different meat…
…but bacon has 3 grams of protein per slice!!
Small servings of protein are better than none.
Bacon tends to be a favorite among super picky eaters because it is salty and crunchy which are two qualities of foods that are often preferred by picky eaters.
Ways to add bacon to your child’s meals:
*Sprinkle it on top of pizza
*Add it onto a grilled cheese sandwich
*Make egg muffins and add bacon bits before baking
*With toast
*Dip it into maple syrup or ketchup
Now that you know how to get your preschooler to eat meat, try it out! Send us a message if you have success, and let us know what other foods you’d like support with!