When it comes to cooking and cleaning in the presence of a kid, parents’ and families’ opinions and beliefs vary a lot. For some, the child shouldn’t take part in everyday duties that involve dangers such as burns, cuts, spillages, and other often-occurring mishaps in the kitchen. For others, who believe kids should be educated with regards to most aspects of a house and family’s maintenance, cooking together and encouraging their independence in the kitchen is a must.
On the surface, cooking with kids can be a modality to help them develop their literacy and numeracy skills, enhance their hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills, and improve their creativity and reflexes, among other obvious benefits. But diving deeper, one can conclude that engaging in gastronomic activities together will assist in developing a more varied and adventurous palate, encouraging them to experiment with new foods enthusiastically and be open to introducing more foodstuffs into their regime. But when is the right time to present the kitchen to kids and involve them in different activities? And how can you do it responsibly and efficiently? The answers to these questions are to be found below.
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When should kids be involved in the kitchen?
Truthfully, you’ll likely not introduce the kitchen to your kid too early, as long as they’re over two years old. Toddlers can be taught real cooking skills from a fragile age if all the supervision can be involved in the process. There are TV shows and courses where kids are welcomed in the kitchen as early as two years old. In such situations, a crucial question is, “How do I determine the tasks my child could engage in depending on their age?”. The answer to this question varies wildly, but mainly, it’s all about how well they’re supervised, how willing you are to narrate everything happening in there in the smallest detail, and the preparedness of the kitchen.
Here are the age thresholds that tell you how much they can be involved in cooking activities:
- Kids between two and five years old can help with basic tasks such as decorating, rinsing dishes, sprinkling sugar, stirring creams, and so on. If you don’t feel prepared to have your toddler assist with cooking, a helpful idea would be to have them pass equipment to you.
- Children between the ages of five and seven can do all the tasks already enumerated and more, meaning activities involving their motor skills. Examples include, but cannot be limited to, cutting, chopping, grating, and other tasks that involve kid-safe kitchen tools to minimise the risks of sustaining injuries from accidents.
- From seven to ten years old, kids have already grasped the basics of cooking. They can proceed with more complicated and complex tasks, including making measurements, understanding how combinations of ingredients work, and others.
Regardless of the age of your kids, it’s crucial to ensure that the kitchen furniture poses no dangers to their safety, as some units could feature sharp corners that might hurt them if they trip or slip. You might even want to change the kitchen cabinets before allowing your children to join you for a cooking lesson so your family’s safety and enjoyment are enhanced.
Now, show them easy techniques
Watching some really complicated cooking techniques that make you feel like you need some kind of degree or diploma to attempt to do the same can be the most off-putting thing when you (especially your kid) are navigating the waters of a new activity. What may seem easily doable for you may put your kid in difficulty if they’ve just set foot in the kitchen, so make sure not to overcomplicate things unnecessarily.
Something that may seem dangerous or trigger bad memories could even scare your kid, but since they sometimes struggle to shout what’s in their heads when they’re afraid, they might not send the right, intelligible signs. Thus, you must be highly involved and attentive so your kids will feel the excitement around the cooking area instead of overwhelming, scary, and confusing feelings.
Select easy recipes
You can pick some easy-to-cook recipes that involve creativity and imagination to keep their focus and interest sharp. A quick, loaded omelette can be among the best ideas since it can be incorporated and quickly cooked. You don’t want to make prime ribs or risotto that takes hours to prepare, as their patience will be tested, and probably this achievement you want to live on another time.
Other ideas you can choose from include, but are not limited to:
- Chicken fingers
- Yoghourt parfaits
- Pasta salads
- Frittatas
- Fajitas
- Pizza.
Shop together
Write down the ingredients you’re looking for before you set foot outside to go grocery shopping and ensure you’re organising almost every step with your cooking assistant. If they’re enthusiastic about the adventure, let them drive the cart and look for the items on the shelves, teaching them about the prices and how they’re dedicated to different amounts and quantities. After they learn how to reference the shopping list, give them some liberty to choose ingredients, such as the fruits for the cake’s décor. Engaging and conducting such tasks will empower them and make them feel capable and proud, boosting the attractiveness of the kitchen and cooking that helped them unearth an ability inside of them.
If you stumble across a farmers’ market or can find one nearby, you’ve come across a priceless opportunity to teach your kids everything about seasonal offerings.
Arrange the scene
Take some time to arrange the kitchen’s setting for an excellent family-centric gastronomic experience when you’re all set up on cooking. It’s fun to see children wear uniforms or look for specific items to increase their efficiency in the kitchen.
Make or get some adorable aprons for them to wear, and store them in a special place in the kitchen. Not only will they look like real chefs when cooking, but they will also learn how important keeping everything clean is.
And when you’re prepared to leave them more independent and can see them in action, look for some kid-friendly kitchen utensils they can use around. Setting up stations for every cooking family member will benefit everyone’s experience in the kitchen.
Impart responsibilities
Your kids don’t have to do everything just because they’re younger. Splitting up some duties will help efficiency tasks and leave more time for family discussions.
Teach your child that the post-meal cleanup can be fun by imparting tasks and having each other offer help where needed. After everything is said and done and the family is ready to serve the meal, have your kid help you carry all your culinary inventions to the table. Even the most fun and rewarding part of cooking can serve as a lesson in disguise if you’re involved in teaching them valuable skills every step of the process.
Take our advice by heart that you can transform mundane, tedious cooking experiences into fun adventures from which your kid can learn a lot.
