10 Dinner Ideas for Picky Eaters
When your household has a picky eater — or two or three! — providing a balanced, nutritious, and flavorful dinner can feel like it’s mission impossible. If you’re tired of offering the same-old, same-old with little success, try out our 10 kid-friendly meals for picky eaters at dinnertime. At least a few of these nutritious, creative, kid-friendly meals for picky eaters are sure to turn “Ew, yuck” into “More, please!”
Our Favorite Meals for Picky Eaters
Here are some of our favorite dinner ideas for picky toddlers.
1. Baked Potato Bar
With a serve-yourself baked potato bar, your little ones can assemble their own dinner creations! Skip the butter, bacon, and sour cream, and instead set out healthy toppings like low-fat cheese, ground turkey, black beans, and steamed broccoli. This option puts plenty of nutritious offerings on the table while inspiring a bit of creativity and independence.
2. Pizza Pockets
Everyone loves pizza, and Nurture Life’s Cheese Pizza Pockets provide a delicious and convenient dinner option! The pockets are filled with mozzarella, ricotta, and a delicious marinara sauce blended with butternut squash for extra nutrition. We recommend pairing this dish with broccoli for a fiber boost.
3. Mac & Cheese With Cauliflower
A nutritious twist on one of the most kid-friendly meals, Nurture Life’s Mac & Cheese With Cauliflower features pureed cauliflower for an extra measure of fiber and vitamins. Your little ones will love the familiar flavor and texture of cheesy macaroni without even realizing that the veggies are there!
4. Chicken Fajitas
Build your own chicken fajitas with succulent roast chicken, lightly charred onion,s and sweet bell peppers. This recipe uses a sheet pan, so all you have to do is place the ingredients on a pan and let them roast to perfection! For extra-crunchy goodness, swap the tortillas for homemade black bean chips.
5. White Bean Burgers
White bean burgers incorporate plenty of protein, fiber, and nutrients without a ton of meal prep. Using canned beans and flavorful spices, these simple meatless burgers can be dressed up with low-fat cheese, fresh tomatoes, and your kids’ favorite sauces.
6. Peas & Cheese Tortellini
Combining bright English peas with a mixed veggie Bolognese, Nurture Life’s Peas & Cheese Tortellini is packed with hearty yet familiar flavors. The bite-sized tortellini is also great to serve with cute character food picks, creating fun activities around food.
7. Veggie Wraps
Another low-prep, assemble-yourself option, veggie wraps let your kids select their favorite toppings. Saute tofu with sliced carrots or other kid-friendly vegetables, and then set out crispy lettuce cups and crushed peanuts for a fun, DIY meal.
8. Chicken Bites, Mashed Yams & Green Beans
Chicken nuggets are practically synonymous with kid-friendly meals, and this Nurture Life meal balances nutrition and taste. Instead of deep-fried, our chicken bites are oven-roasted until crispy and served with delectable mashed yams and French green beans.
9. Breakfast for Dinner
Incorporating fun is always one of the best ways to win over picky eaters — so why not surprise your kids by serving breakfast for dinner? Invite them to help prepare their own egg-in-a-hole using whole-wheat toast.
Frequently recommended by Nurture Life’s pediatric registered dietitian, Lara Field, eggs are rich in B vitamins and one of our favorite superfoods for kids.
10. Beef Kofta
A type of Mediterranean meatball, beef kofta are lightly spiced and served with a side of calcium-rich Greek yogurt. For extra fiber and lean protein, consider reducing the meat and substituting plant-based proteins such as lentils or mushrooms.
It takes time to successfully navigate picky eating, but with some effort and consistency, your child’s finicky habits can be overcome. Start by trying out some of our picky eater dinner ideas above, and your kids’ evolving tastes may just surprise you.
Even if your little one is still hesitating to take a bite, Nurture Life has freshly made, kid-friendly meals to meet your child’s taste preferences. With balanced meals that can be prepped in 1 minute, you and your picky eater can always feel good about dinnertime.
Exploring New Ingredients for Picky Eaters
A significant part of overcoming picky eating at dinnertime involves slowly introducing new ingredients. While it can be challenging at first, it is worth it for your kids to become familiar with whole, healthy foods. Try introducing these foods:
- Spinach: Spinach contains folate, vitamin C, calcium, iron, antioxidants, and fiber. Eating spinach is good for brain, gut, and vision health. You can introduce spinach by adding it to staples like pancakes, smoothies, pasta, mashed potatoes, muffins, and scrambled eggs.
- Sweet red peppers: Sweet red peppers contain vitamins A, C, E, B6, and B9 (folate). They also contain potassium and manganese. You can roast and stuff them or dice them finely to add to bolognese and other sauces.
- Quinoa: Quinoa contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein. A great way to introduce quinoa is to make nuggets with Greek yogurt, eggs, and cheese.
- Sweet potatoes: Sweet potatoes are a source of vitamins A, C, and B6. They’re also rich in fiber, manganese, copper, and potassium. Making sweet potato fries is a simple way to introduce this nutritious ingredient!
- Zucchini: Zucchini offers iron, copper, potassium, riboflavin, and manganese. It also contains vitamins C, B6, and B9! You can make zucchini noodles or add it to a simple stew to introduce it to your kids.
Easy Picky Eater Solutions to Make Dinnertime Enjoyable
Preparing dinners for picky eaters can feel overwhelming — especially as you try to introduce new foods. A few easy tips can make introducing new ingredients a positive experience for you and your kids:
- Consider kid-friendly meal delivery services: If meal times are often stressful and chaotic, you could try a meal delivery service that specializes in kid-friendly options. At Nurture Life, we offer healthy meals, snacks, and smoothies created for babies and kids by chefs and registered dieticians. It’s the perfect way to provide fuss-free, good food.
- Introduce ingredients one at a time: It is best to avoid overwhelming your child with several new ingredients at once. Try one new ingredient at a time to make meal times more manageable and enjoyable.
- Start with small portions: Another way to ensure your kids aren’t overwhelmed by new foods is to offer small portions. For example, you can try one slice of red pepper at a time until your kids are ready for more.
- Pair new foods with favorites: Trying new foods can be intimidating. One way to make new foods more appealing is to pair them with a favorite dish. For example, if your child loves pasta but refuses cheese, you could make the cheese more appealing by adding a grated spoonful to their favorite pasta.
- Allow kids to play with their food: Contrary to what we usually teach at the dinner table, playing with food can be a good thing! Poking the food, pulling it apart, and moving it around the plate helps your kids familiarize themselves with the look, texture, and smell.
- Rotate new ingredients: You can help your kids try new foods by following the rotation rule. This simple rule means that if your child loves carrots and eats them on Monday, then on Tuesday, they should have a new veggie before having carrots on Wednesday again!
- Offer full transparency: Transparency builds trust, which can help a child’s relationship with food. If your kids ask what the green bits in their mashed potatoes are, it is best to be honest and say that you added spinach. It may be challenging, but it will help you build trust.
- Monitor snacks and drinks: One reason your kids may not be too keen on trying new foods is they have too many snacks and drinks during the day. This can affect their appetite to the point that they refuse new foods at meal times. You can try cutting back on snacks while you introduce new foods.
- Make mealtimes family times: Kids can be quite sensitive to their environment, and dinner times that are shrouded in chaos, arguments, and TV distractions can make them reluctant to try new foods. Prioritizing family-orientated meal times without distractions is key for creating a positive and encouraging environment around food. You can make meals even more special by getting your kids to cook with you!
- Be patient: Healthy eating for picky eaters is entirely possible — it simply takes some patience and perseverance from the whole family. Be encouraged, and give your kids and yourself time to make healthy changes!
Meals for Picky Eaters Made Easy: Try Nurture Life Kids Meal Delivery
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with meal ideas for picky eaters, try Nurture Life’s meal delivery service for kids. Each one of our meals is formulated with kids and picky eaters in mind, and it only takes a couple of minutes to have a delicious meal or snack for the whole family. They’re perfectly balanced with nutrients that your kids’ growing bodies and minds need, and they’re also flavored in ways that kids like. Explore our menus today!