ADVICE: how to get your LO to eat veggies?

Hi lovely BB ppl,

My DS is 15 mths and won't eat his veggies at dinner. I'm trying to get him to eat them as finger food but he will always eat the meat first and then peas (or chips). I have tried putting tomato sauce but thought this might not be a healthy option.

Any advice would be great?

Thanks in advance.

Jubear

Sorry the only advice I have is hide them!!!! Hide them well!!!! Puree all of them and add it to everything its the only thing that works here:( But I will be looking to see if anyone else has any ideas.
My MIL can make food fun by making faces or flowers works over there but not at home

Give them to him earlier when he is 'really' hungry. Kids often have a hungry window of opportunity in the afternoon between 3 -4.30 (this happens to be the time of day when we best absorb nutrients!) feed them veggies and rice then, and then part of the family meal when you eat later on. Also juicing veggies for a mid morning snack, carrots, beetroot, spinach, parsley and some fruit to sweeten it, kids love it and it's a nice boost before lunch.

Make sure you are not missing his hungry period and filling him with snacks trying to stretch him to dinner.

If you don't want to hide them exactly, can you make them a part of the meal instead of a side? It also might mean they have more flavour then too... For example a stir fry, curry or even Spag bog but with chunks of veggies?

Another idea - could you offer some veggies on their own first before adding the meat?

I would just give veggies first and then when he's done give the meat.

For my kids I just give them veggies and if they don't eat them they will be hungry, lol. Maybe I'm mean though.

Yes there's definitely that hunger window, that's when my DD actually eats cooked carrots.

In find she eats well when the veggies are soft and in a sauce, like a casserole. I squish it into the rice. Eggplant is great for this, even beans. Sometimes she eats raw mushroom pieces while I'm cutting them.
My DD also loves pumpklin soup or lentil soup, it's the novelty of dunking the bread in that makes it fun for her. And you can obviously puree anything into the soup.

I grate veggies into things for my older kids. Mash potato comes with pumpkin or sweet potato mashed in as well. Lasagna has grated carrot at least in it.
DD2 & DS have just started to realise they like carrot, after I told them I was secretly mixing it in (could've gone the other way though!)

DD3 will eat everything in a mixed dinner, but won't touch the veggies alone. She'll eat stirfry, pasta dishes, cassaroles etc & eat everything on the plate, but meat & 3 veg & the veg doesn't get touched, so maybe try those types of meals?

Mine didn't eat veggies until they were about five. At all.

I agree with hiding them! Puree or grate them into dishes such as spag bog and casseroles. I always put grated zucchini and carrot in my bolognese sauce.

We realised early on that DD1 preferred salad vegies (which I know a lot are 'technically' fruits) so we just went with that a lot of the time. She has always and still does love capsicum (red especially), grape tomatoes, avocado and cucumber. She loves carrot these days but would much prefer it raw and corn on the cob is another fave.

Try raw and cooked vegies and also serving them with some dip such as French Onion). Some kids just suck the dip off though :lol: Juices can work really well too. And we also had a stash of the vegie Rafferty's sachets on hand as a 'squeezy' treat for DD1 when she was younger. She rarely knocked them back.

Veggies are great hidden in a taco sauce too - and that way they have the fun of putting the taco together too

DS went off his veggies for a couple of months so I hid them into things. But I started letting him "help" me cook. He is only just gone 20months so cant really do much lol, but when I am shopping I will hand him a bit of veggie. So say a broccoli. When we get home, he helps me put it away. Then later he watches/helps me wash it, then watches me cut it up. Then he helps put it in the pot (not hot lol). Afterwards I serve it to him, "Here is the broccoli we cooked!", and if he is still a bit hesitant I go and get the rest of the broccoli thats left for him to hold and explore again. Has worked a charm with broccoli and cauliflower so far.

I have also been told that young toddlers need at least 3 serves of veg OR fruit, it doesnt matter if its only fruit at this age. I think as long as you're offering, they have the opportunity to try it but I try not to stress if DS doesnt want it