You place the delectable meal on the table, step back, and expectantly look at your family’s faces. Their expressions are blank.
Once again, your hard work at the stove goes unnoticed and you’ll have a huge pot of leftovers because they’ll rather eat sandwiches than try something new!
Sound familiar? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back! To manage fussy families, our tips on meal delivery Melbourne and Sydney households often use, food textures, cooking habits, and much more will empower you.
A few simple tweaks in your strategy will make all the difference!
7 Tips on Meal Plans for Fussy Eaters
Getting your family to buy in to your meal plan can be surprisingly easy—and even fun. We also include some tips on how to accommodate their preferences without causing yourself too much effort.
Use Meal Delivery to Keep it Interesting
The excitement of food in interesting packaging arriving at the door can be enough for anyone to try something new.
With vegan meal delivery Melbourne locals who recently switched to a vegan lifestyle can prompt their children to taste new flavours and food items, and get them on board.
Let Them Cook with You
Your children’s excitement about dinner can also be sparked if they have a hand in creating it. Let them pick out spices, cut up veggies or suggest one of the side dishes to your original meal plan.
Having a positive attitude to what will be put on the table could make them more open to trying out everything you present. Not only that, but it will also keep them away from doing things that may disrupt the dinner!
Respect Texture Aversion
Some individuals do find certain textures quite a challenge to eat and perhaps your children have these preferences without even knowing it. Do they not like the taste of pumpkin or peas, or is it actually the texture of the dish that puts them off?
Use your food processor to try different texture versions of less favoured ingredients and see if their reactions change.
Hide the Veggies
Many children have made up their minds that they simply don’t like vegetables. So, don’t let them know they’re eating it! Chopping carrots, zucchini and sweet potatoes into tiny pieces makes them easy to hide in other recipes. Have you tried the following?
- Yummy muffins with zucchini.
- Flavourful meat stew with small pieces of carrot, hidden in the thick sauce.
- French fries and sweet potato fries on the same plate—they may not even notice what they’re really eating!
- Adding finely chopped vegetables to family favourites like a meat pie.
Acknowledge Dietary Preferences
Do understand that in the same way you may like vegan dishes or don’t use too much salt in your soup, your family members also have certain preferences.
Allow them to list their top likes and dislikes and make it clear how you try to incorporate it into the weekly meal schedule.
Feeling understood and acknowledged can go a long way in making someone be more positive about mealtimes.
Dish Up Small Portions
To help family members adjust to a new diet, don’t expect them to suddenly eat huge portions of something they’re not used to.
Make a deal that you’ll still prepare dishes they like, along with something less familiar. You simply ask that they try small amounts of it, so they can experience it, get used to it and decide for themselves which ones they like.
Have ‘Build Your Own’ Meals
Here’s another way to create some excitement at dinner time: let them build their own meals! No one can say they don’t like the food if they make it themselves.
Whether you allow individual pizzas or tacos, or each family member can create their own stir-fry mix, it’s always fun.
Provide a wide range of ingredients to cater to everyone. These evenings also mean you’ll spend less time at the stove because each person can do their own cooking.
How to Make Meal Planning Easier on Yourself
Above it’s clear that it helps to make compromises and respect those around your table. But as the cook, you also deserve some respect.
Therefore, along with our top tips, try these guidelines to make life easier for you:
- Create a weekly meal plan over the weekend when you have the time, so you spend less energy and time contemplating dinner plans during the week.
- Have meal prep days where you cut up vegetables and put ingredients in containers to freeze and store. This makes dinner preparations much easier and stress-free.
- Buy in bulk so you don’t have to spend time in the store every day of the week.
- Make small changes to accommodate individuals, but they must understand that making separate meals for each family member is not allowed. It’s not viable in terms of available time or your budget.
In Summary
Having dinner together should be a special time to reminisce about the day, and not worry about what everyone will complain about.
Smart strategies make it easier to help everyone enjoy the meal but also discover new dishes they may come to love. Perhaps you can all go on a culinary adventure in months to come?
Please share with us if you have tips for other households that need solutions for mealtimes!
