Five Steps that I Took to Get My Picky Eater Pick Veggies!

Making my six-year-old eat right veggies has been my single most stressful parenting issue. A straight 'no' to a steaming hot spinach on her plate is all I used to get every single time I served it. While I knew there wasn't any magic formula to make my daughter eat all green leafy veggies, but there was a solution. Therefore, I started taking these steps to encourage her to expand her eating options and switch to healthier veggies.

While your child still won't like certain vegetables (but that's okay, isn't it all of us? Right?), there can be times when they fight over the last bite of Methi (fenugreek) left on the plate. Here's what I did:

1. Limited Snacks

I switched to healthy and lighter options like Suji idli, Poha or Upma or sometimes a glass full of milk with two wheat biscuits as snacks. By the time dinner was served, she was hungry. It’s plain and simple, hungry kids eat!

2. Replaced All Juices With Water

Water is a great source to cleanse the palate. It lets your child taste the vegetables better. For instance, they will get to know the subtle sweetness in carrot and beetroot

3. Took Her Vegetable Shopping

While we are shopping for veggies, I try and make it fun for her. For instance, I ask her to pick up a red coloured vegetable which is also sweet. And when she picks up a carrot, I tell her the benefits of the vegetable such as a carrot a day improves our vision. Then I ask her, 'Should we take more of these'? Most of the times her answer is yes. Similarly, we go on to other veggies.

4. Asked Her To Help/Involved Her

On weekends, I invite my daughter in the kitchen and ask her to do a few minimal chores. I let her take out vegetables from the refrigerator and wash them. This also helps with spending some quality time with her. We talk, we laugh and we cook it together!

5. Don't Force Her Anymore To Clean Her Plate

I switched to a one-bite-please rule. I try different recipes. For instance, making her a green chapati or a green raita (curd). Or making her eat carrots with a curd dip instead of serving gajar-matar sabzi on her plate.