To not feed my dc shit, just because the kid from school won't eat it?!?

[pinkclouds]

ARRRGGGHH!!! I spent the day thinking what will this child eat? So I opted for mince and Potatoes (Not a vegetarian) fairly safe option I thought.
The friend wouldn't even try it, not only that he couldn't even use a knife and fork at 7 years!!
WTF. My DC are told to least try something before dismissing it.Maybe it's me.

I wonder if all this horror about mince and potatoes is linked to the rise in ready meals...

i LOVE mince and tatties. must be cooked the day before, though, then reheated. with carrots in, oh yes.

however, i serve home made pizza (from the freezer) to small visitors.

i would just of asked the parents what the child's favorite food was and served that.

Jock I think those unfamiliar with mince and taties are envisaging a pile of plain mince on one side of the plate and a pile of boiled spuds in the other, which doesn't really sound very nice.

Though I think there is some general anti-mince feeling too.

Don't know how I would feed my DH and DD if I couldn't do cottage pie and bolognese on a fairly regular basis!

I had a child once who ate nothing at all. I offered her a bread roll.

"What's a bread roll?" she asked

This reminds me of the 'sausage pasta' thread. Long, weird conversation about whether pasta with sausage pieces in a tomato sauce was icky or not.

My grandad used to refer to those round stones that some roads used to be paved with as 'cobs' (short for cobblestones, I suppose). Could that be the derivation of cobs for bread rolls, as they are about the same size and shape?

Breakfast time for me and the thought of mince and potatoes is making me want to hurl right now, even though I am very unfussy and usually eat anything.

Originally from Aberdeen and was weaned on mince and tatties - definitely a Scottish thing! 'Tis yum, but if you're not used to it it I can see how you might be a bit .
Anyhoo, my failsafe with visiting kids is a 'picnic tea' where I put out loads of bread, ham, chicken, cheese, carrot and cucumber sticks, cherry tomatoes etc. and let them help themselves.

y kids will wolf the veg, and if the visitors don't, not my problem. I learned the hard way after having a delicious cottage pie literally shoved back across the table at me with an "I don't like that" without it even being tasted.

I wouldn't get het up over it. Visiting children often won't eat that much. I would say just ask the kids parents what they like and cook that. I hate baked beans, mashed potatoes (or anything mashed really - the texture is revolting) and fishfingers. I always have done. These are always seen as child friendly foods but not all children will like them!

I used to ask parents, but often the child would refuse whatever I'd cooked regardless, because it wasn't quite right. So then I just cooked something low hassle because I really hate food being refused, and the more effort you put in the more annoying it is to see it go to waste. I have a fussy kid and an eat everything kid, so when they were younger food for them was a bit safe (very plain, help yourself type stuff, no sauces). Now dd has grown up a bit the range of food we eat is larger, and I'm more comfortable saying "tough". I take the same approach to visitors, but they still come back. Just sometimes they go home again when I tell them what I'm cooking! I see that as their problem not mine really.

I don't mind mince and potatoes so long as it's mashed potato - can't stand boiled potatoes - ot it's not just a potato it's the way it's served/cooked. Just like some people like scrambled eggs but hate fried eggs - both eggs - just different ways of serving it - but it's not the most exciting healthy meal in the world to give to a child.

though actually am not overly keen on mash either - only really like roast potatoes, baked potato and boiled new potatoes - yes boiled new potatoes are nice so long as they've got mayo or a nice dressing - normal boiled potatoes blurghhh

Mince & tatties is shapeless, isn't it? Afaia, kids like food with edges. You could have made burgers and potato cakes with the same ingredients.

I like this thread, it's funny. Food faddery so often is, isn't it? It's so easy to make healthy, finger-food type meals: not many kids will go home and report that you failed to meet Raymond Blanc standards of imagination & presentation

DD would be quite happy with mince and potato and she's 4. To be honest though she'll eat most things except for peas.

Normally give visiting kids pizza and chips to be on the safe side though

Fuck me, I have just read through post after post criticising the op on poorly cooked mince, cheap mince, mince not cooked in milk (cooked in milk?? WTF??), boiled spuds, mashed spuds, mince with no flavouring....

As the op hasn't been back yet, how the hell do any of you know how she cooked her grainy, cheap mince and retro spuds? You're all off your trolley!

And I would be sick if someone gave me mince cooked in milk. I feel sick thinking about it.

Ok, the op did come back....bugger...but she still didn't explain her mince so my point still stands.

My husband grew up in Nairn and adores mince and tat ties.

I put a dash of milk into bolognese sauce, as recommended by Nigella.

I wouldnt be impressed if I went to somones house for tea and they put a plate of potato and mince in fornt of me.

Sounds like a plate of slops.

You don't cook it in milk, you just add about a tablespoon or so to soften the meat and the tomato paste taste, if you're using it.

Ok but not in anything gravy related or the mince itself? That's better. I was imagining a pan of mince swimming in milk and it being sort of boiled.

I don't get all the anti mince and potatoes thing either, it's lovley with gravy, much like shepherds pie?

Why not just ask what he wanted? If DS brings friends over I always ask what they'd like to eat or give at least a few options and let them choose. I'd never just make smething and hope they ate it.

Forgot to say I'm a southerner btw and love mince potatoes and gravy and my boys would have no problems eating it.