When toddlers refuse meals

Photo courtesy: SBV

We mums (and dads) agonise when our kids "just won't eat". For some, it lasts for a few days and then they have a few "normal" eating days and the cycle begins again. For most of us Maldivian parents, a normal meal would mean rice/roshi thoroughly mixed with garudhiya/a mild curry (ususally with veggies and a meat/fish). And we tend to feed our kids ourselves till they are at least preschoolers.

My son started this when he started teething, around 10/11 months. He's 18 months now and it still continues on and off. I've come to expect this, but however prepared I am, it's never easy to deal with. I noticed that although he refuses meals, he still liked to nibble on things - bits of cheese, bread, etc. I believe most kids do this. I've seen many a mum and grandma running after toddlers trying to feed a bit of roshi dipped in rihaakuru or something similar, when they refuse normal meals.

So if they like to nibble and not eat, why not give them something to nibble on, and make it nutritious? Here are some really simple ideas:

1. Goodness-Packed Omelette
    Finely slice and cook a few vegetables of choice.
    Add a cooked meat, finely chopped (tuna or a bit of chicken).
    Mix these together with one egg (blend veggies and meat finely for a baby)
    Heat a bit of butter/olive oil on a saucepan, pour the mixture, and viola! you
    have a nutritious meal replacement.
    Variants: Include some carbohydrate in the meal by adding chopped and boiled
                   potatoes in the mixture.
                  Add some cheese.

2. Patties
    Finely slice and cook a few vegetables of choice.
    Add a cooked meat, finely chopped (tuna or a bit of chicken).
    Mix these together (blend veggies and meat finely for a baby)
    Shape into balls and flatten to make patties
    Dip into egg, then breadcrumbs, and shallow fry.

A vegetable patty with chickpeas

 3. Veggie Kulhi Boakiba
    Make a milder version of kulhi boakiba mix.
    Add finely chopped vegetables.
    Bake like a normal kulhi boakiba. 
    You can find a yummy traditional kulhi boakiba recipe here.

   Chilles and Lime also has a toddler-friendly, super easy quesadilla recipe.

You can cut these into bits and leave them for him/her to eat. If you do not try to force feed them, usually curiosity gets the better of them and they'll start to nibble on.

It's best to start with these alternatives early on, for example, when they start teething. This way, they are less suspicious of these food. Make sure you try different looks and tastes for these nibbling recipes, so that the easily-bored toddler doesn't get bored!

Toddler recipe: Chicken turmeric rice with veggies

This one's inspired by the traditional Maldivian masbaiy (tuna-rice). Of course our traditional version is made with tuna and is much spicier  with whole black peppers, and we don't normally add vegetables. Some of my favourite sea-side memories include piping hot masbaiy eaten on large leaves - yum!

This will make approximately 3 portions, and will take 30 minutes or less to prepare.This is also suitable for babies 7 months and up. Just omit the garlic if you think it might be too spicy for the baby.

What you will need:
1/2    cup white rice
1 1/2 cup water
1/3    tsp turmeric
1 garlic (chopped)
2-3 curry leaves
5-6 large florets of broccoli
1 carrot (sliced)
2 large chicken drumsticks (skinned, deboned and cut into 1 cm cubes)
a pinch of salt (optional and not recommended for babies) 

Put everything together, except the broccoli and boil in a pot until the rice is soft and the chicken is cooked well. Add the broccoli, stir, cover the pot and let it simmer for about 2 minutes. If you want to puree it, keep the lid on until you're ready to blend, so that the rice is soft and mushy.

You can swap the broccoli with a green vegetable of your choice. For me, another favourite is spinach.

Chicken drumsticks are higher in iron and fat compared to chicken breasts. So for babies and younger toddlers it might be a good idea to give drumsticks, as it can be easily pureed too. On the other hand, if you prefer the leaner meat of chicken breasts that's higher in protein, that's fine too :)

 my broccoli got a little too mushy

When you're ready to serve as it is or blend, remove the curry leaves. Put the leftovers in portion-size containers and freeze. Bon appétit!