A Chef’s Top Hacks for Taming Fussy Eaters
A children’s chef has revealed her top hacks for taming fussy eaters, as many Australian parents admit to cooking multiple meals each night to cater to different tastes at the dinner table.
Chef Sharmaine Hristovski faces the challenge on two fronts - preparing meals for children in childcare and feeding her own two boys, aged three and four, at home. Like many parents, she knows the struggle firsthand, with her youngest currently wanting to eat noodles for almost every meal.
Sharmaine works at Little Zak’s Academy in Ryde, where she noticed many children leaving healthy foods untouched during meal times. Rather than forcing children to eat meals they didn’t enjoy, she decided to ask them what foods they actually liked.
“Pasta was always the big winner,” says Sharmaine.
She began using pasta as a base to create nutritious meals packed with hidden vegetables and flavours children would enjoy. One of her biggest successes was a creamy mushroom and spinach sauce the children loved. However, when broccoli was visibly added to the dish, many children refused to eat it because it looked “too green”, so Sharmaine blended it into the sauce instead.
Food fussiness commonly peaks around the age of three, with sensory sensitivities around colour, texture and smell often playing a major role. Sharmaine says patience, creativity and involving children in food preparation can make a significant difference.
Sharmaine shares these simple tips with parents trying to encourage healthy eating habits at home:
Use colour: children often have strong colour preferences, so encourage them to choose foods based on colours they enjoy
Hide vegetables: blend vegetables into sauces, soups or pasta dishes so children become familiar with the taste
Give choices: offer one vegetable they enjoy alongside one they are still learning to like
Get them cooking: children are more likely to eat meals they help prepare
Keep trying: it can take up to 20 exposures before a child accepts a new food
Sharmaine has also found children are more willing to try new foods in social settings, especially when they see their friends eating the same meals.
Her success in childcare has even prompted parents to ask for advice on encouraging healthy eating habits at home.
