Tasty (& realistic) swops for processed food/meat obsessed teens

[lechatnoir]

My teenagers' diet is awful. Their evening meal is usually cooked from scratch but this only accounts for a small percentage of their food intake and it's got increasingly worse as they've each taken responsibility for the rest of their meals & snacks but I do the shopping so not exactly blameless and have been buying what they ask for. They are all big & sporty lads who eat a LOT and unless there is something tasty on offer, will go to the shops and buy it themselves hence wanting to come up with viable alternatives. They are all quite capable of cooking a proper meal but often want quick/easy options. Things they currently make/like:

Instant noodles
Cheese & ham toasties
ham salad wraps
Eggs & avocado on toast (this one I'm ok with but only 1 DS will eat eggs!)
bacon or sausage sandwich
breaded chicken in some shape or form - they would live on this!
Processed bread: bagels, crumpets etc
Cereal (usually weetabix but if I ever get a more sugary cereal it will be demolished in about 3 sittings)

If our evening meal can be scaled up (curry, pasta etc) I'll save a couple of portions which they like but I'm already cooking for 5 big appetites so not always possible from a space/cost POV. I usually cook at one 'fridge' chicken a week which has helped reduce the ham intake so other ideas like this would be great.

No help, but my DS1 literally lived on Batchelors supanoodles and curry pot noodles as a teen. Unless it was sunday dinner or a curry, I don't think a vegetable passed his lips for about 4 years...plus he was a sweets fiend. Oh and the cereal...dear GOD the amount of cereal he ate!(And he was a thin as a whippet!)

I tried fighting it... provided tons of fruit and healthier options but barring a rare apple or bunch of grapes, it was all carbs and processed rubbish. (My girls were a bit better ) Fast forward a few years, heavily into fitness and trying to gain muscle and his diet is better than mine.
You can at least buy 'good' ham , have fresh cooked chicken pieces ready to chuck in wraps, but you might have to wait it out!
He also ate tons of pasta (usually late at night) so I used to make pasta sauces with a ton of hidden veggies blitzed into it...hidden like I would for a reluctant toddler... that meant at least he got SOME nutrients

Thanks @Sonolanona if nothing else I'll take comfort in mutual failure 😂. Actually the fact they are sporty & 2 are gym bunnies AND can cook does fill me with some hope when you say your DS came out the other side. It's just a bit depressing that their early years I was really good about providing healthy food and they are all good eaters (literally nothing they won't eat) so I assumed/hoped they would continue with the good habits but if anything we've all gone downhill with age!

Pasta sauce with lots of veg is a good shout might just start making a big batch every week and portion up some bowls of pasta ready to eat in the hope that it looks like a quick easy option as that seems to be a top priority & produces least mess as they are also lazy buggers about clearing up

I don't think that's a bad list really. They have hollow legs at that age. DTs hoover up noodles, or make tortilla pizza. They also demolish fruit.

I've tried to limit UPFs as much as possible, but it's not easy. They are in everything. I make a couple of loaves of bread a week (a no knead dutch oven recipe) it's really easy because you just mix it up and leave it overnight to prove and then tip it into a lidded casserole pot to bake in the oven in the morning. Or I buy Jasons bread or the Crosta and Mollica wraps for quick options that at least have no emulsifiers or other rubbish in them. Proper butter in a butter dish rather than spreads.

Instead of ham or bacon I buy serrano/parma ham which is just pork and salt. Or I'll cook and shred some chicken similar to what you've been doing.

Other than that it's having in lots of cheese, peanut butter (100% nut versions), plain greek yoghurt, fruit and the non-UPF cereals (some granolas and museli is decent) or "less bad" cereal like Weetabix and shredded wheat.

Pasta salads are a good idea and sometimes I'll bake lots of jacket potatoes. They keep in the fridge for 5 days and can just be microwaved.

Plenty of fish fingers have no UPFs and whilst not exactly a health food they're not a terrible option if teens just want to stick something in the air fryer.

Would they eat something like oatmeal bars? These are delicious and surprisingly filling – you could reduce the amount of sugar / syrup and perhaps add some nuts or seeds? https://www.lylesgoldensyrup.com/recipe/lyles-peanut-butter-flapjacks/#in

Hummus and veg sticks or pittas? Having crudités out before dinner works for getting veg into toddlers, wondering if it also works on teens! Swap out hummus for their favourite dip, there are loads of recipes for tasty ones.

Not a chance! There was a time these were their go-to snacks but now if it resembles anything vaguely healthy they run in the opposite direction. I think they would laugh if I offered crudites & it wouldn't touch the sides plus none of them seem to like humous anymore probably overdid it when they were younger as I used to make vats of the stuff.. Appreciate the thought and try not to let it depress you too much as I'm sure not all teens do this!

My macro obsessed teen likes protein powder, frozen fruit and zero fat yogurt for smoothies.
Eggs
Protein bars

My teen dd lives off muffins and ramen.

At this point I just let them get on with it

@boulevardofbrokendreamss one of my DS's eats loads of fruit but the others barely touch it which is annoying but they do eat salad and veg if offered.

I really need to go back to making bread again so will look up the dutch oven recipe thanks @GameOfJones and parma ham I'm sure will go down well occasionally as a pack won't last long. Ditto making granola, I've got a lovely recipe and the shop stuff is full of rubbish and so expensive so that's just finding the time & inclination.

Some good ideas thanks all.

Homemade kofta or meatballs instead of sausages?

Make chicken bone broth from the chicken bones and freeze to use as the soup for ramen. Have a stash of frozen veg to add to it (frozen peas, sweetcorn, spinach, grated carrot, chilli, shredded spring onion. Defrost the broth in the microwave, chuck in noodles and veg and cook (in the microwave or on the hob). They could also add a soft boiled egg or shredded chicken.

Just popping back to add... I lost ALL my forks for years....I was constantly replacing them, because DS1 (who was a skater) used to skate out of the door with two slices of bread and a pot noodle...and all my bloody forks, and never brought them home (I assume they are still at the Skate park even now )

Somehow he didn't get scurvy or even spots, from his appalling diet, so hang in there!

I really don't think it sounds that bad.

You could get plain noodles instead of instant and they could just add soy sauce and a bit of chicken And a handful of peas. A jar of pesto and grated cheddar so they can easily make pasta.

My dd has a mini rice cooker and often makes herself rice with some bits in for lunch or after school.

I wouldn't be making bone broth, koftas or homemade bread just for snacks. It will be eaten quicker than you can make it. Having said that, I do quite often make Nigella's breakfast bars (google the recipe - they are really nice/filling) and the teens like them.

Peanut butter. One of mine went through 2 jars a week in his mid-teens. We have a breadmaker, so he usually had it on home-made bread.

Honestly I don't think that's too bad for teens. One of mine didn't eat a fruit or vegetable for 7 years. I wish I was joking, I used to lie awake at night wondering where I'd gone wrong. He ate rashers in buttered, toasted bagels every single morning (and sometimes evening) for years.

Long story short, now mid twenties, he is the best cook I know! Has an instinctive knack with flavours creates his own recipes which are absolutely delicious. Very into nutrition and balancing out the macros!

Life is full of surprises!

Haha, I lived off beige carbs as a teen so that was a bit of wishful thinking! Agree with others that it doesn't sound too bad although I appreciate it must get expensive. I've got two small boys so I'm dreading the food bill as they grow!