Getting your child to eat the same as you can sometimes be a difficult task
Parents are having to make an extra 2.36 million extra meals each week to satisfy the nation's picky children.
One in five parents said they have to make an alternative meal to the main family meal around twice a week, according to the research conducted by Philips airfryer.
Parents are finding themselves contending with their little fussy eaters who often refuse point blank to eat what the rest of the family is having.
"Pleasing all family members all of the time is a challenge every parent faces, especially when it comes to the inevitable daily question of 'what's for dinner?'," says Beverley Glock, children's cookery expert, author and TV cook.
"Mealtime, from preparing it to eating it, needn't be a chore. It should be a time for getting creative in the kitchen and encouraging the children to be more adventurous. Meals don't need to be 'unhealthy' to appeal to children."
Parents say their children are so demanding about what they eat that two fifths of those interviewed by Philips airfryer believe their children would be more critical of the meals they cook than a celebrity chef or food critic. However, the cause could be due to the fact that parents are not making meals from scratch from fresh or store cupboard ingredients.
Although the nation’s parents spend time cooking additional meals, excuses such as “lack of time” and “too tired” were cited as reasons why parents do not cook from scratch for their little ones. This is surprising as almost all parents acknowledged that preparing a meal from scratch for their child is much healthier than giving them a frozen meal.
Beverley continues: “Making meals from scratch is a real passion of mine and although many parents simply don’t have the time, the research by Philips airfryer revealed that almost nine out of 10 parents do in fact enjoy it, so there’s no better time than this half-term for parents to plan and prepare meals in advance. It’s encouraging to see that almost half of parents already plan, but the majority simply decide what to have on the day which is sure to play a part in the top excuse, “lack of time”, which careful meal planning can help to combat. It will be a fun way to engage your children in cooking also!”
Parents spend a large amount of time simply preparing their child’s meal after the school day, with almost half spending between 30 minutes and one hour doing so, each night. Meals such as ‘burger and chips’, ‘lasagne’ and ‘curry’ were considered to be children’s mealtime favourites by a number of parents interviewed. Beverley continues: “After-school favourites can be made quicker and healthier – thanks to careful meal planning and helpful kitchen gadgets, mealtime no longer has to be a chore for busy parents. However, it’s important to encompass the children into the decision making when it comes to meals. That way, they feel more involved and inclined to try new dishes – especially if they have helped to make it!”
Beverley Glock’s top ‘time saving’ tips for parents when planning and preparing meals
1. Get the children involved
Discuss with your family what they would like to eat – give them one night a week each where they have what they want on the proviso that every family members has the same thing. You could even encourage the children to look through cookery books or magazines, or even research on the internet a new dish every week or two weeks that they'd like to try. This should save time on disagreements later in the week.
2. Take ‘time out’ to plan
Invest time in planning for the week by writing down the meals you’ve decided to cook and the ingredients required for each recipe before you do your food shop. As well as saving you time, you'll save money in the long run too as you won't be tempted to buy more food than you need. You’ll also cut down on those last minute ‘what’s for dinner?’ panics and be less tempted to reach for those frozen ready meals.
3. Prepare the ingredients
Prepare the ingredients as much beforehand as you can, and get all the family involved. If you have older children who get home before you finish work, ask them to start prepping the meal before you arrive. Jobs such as peeling the potatoes or other vegetables can save you a lot of time in the long run.
4. Make more than required
Cook twice as much as you need and either refrigerate or freeze the surplus, so you can feed your family with two servings. Doubling up on recipes and freezing what you don’t eat now can also help create meals for those occasions where time is not on your side! At least that way you have peace of mind that there’s food to feed the family in the freezer ready to go.
5. Don’t throw away leftovers!
Use leftovers effectively. Make more roast potatoes, Yorkshire Puddings and vegetables when you cook a Sunday roast, reheat it on the Monday with fresh gravy and turn it into Bubble and Squeak. You could even use the leftovers to make soups, stir fries or noodle-based dishes which are quick and easy to prepare if you have planned in advance.