To tell my toddler DD fish is chicken?

[SalemSaberhagen]

DD is 21 months old and horribly picky. She will only eat bananas, chicken, pasta, ham chips and bread. Yesterday I made myself some fish and asked if she wanted any. She proclaimed it to be 'yuck, disgusting' and refused to try it. I broke off a few bits and put it on her plate and asked her if she wanted some 'chicken'. She ate it with gusto! I was so pleased.

I posted a light hearted thread about it on a Facebook group (yeah, I know) to say how pleased I was.

In amongst people sharing their own stories, I've been told that I don't respect my DD and I'm undermining her trust. I was asked how she will feel when she finds out.

Was I doing something bad by letting her think it was chicken?! I was just happy she was eating something else to be honest!

I tried this once and he sussed me

My lovely mum used to give us "it's only got steak in it and NO kidney pie" well at 7 I knew it has bloody kidney in it and tasted vile to me.

Two years ago (I am 38) she cooked me a sweet and sour chicken, said to her mum this is not chicken yes it is, just eat it. It was quorn, I cannot stand quorn it smells of socks and feet to me and squeaks, so had to say I'm sorry but I can't eat this "chicken".. Took her 12 months to own up to that one. I dread to think what she unknowingly fed me as a child

But I am not traumatised by these unknown foods nor do I dislike my mum in anyway.

And am guilty of doing the same it's a right of passage I think in our family.

DS would eat anything when he was little, but did you know that in our part of the country you could only get white ketchup (mayo) on special occasions and only in certain restaurants and as for white coco cola. (sparkling water)

We got away with that until he was about seven.....

In our house chicken was fish for years, little guy eventually became cool with what he was eating and less fussy. He probably doesn't even remember it now. It's what parents do, and if it means your child is eating better than it really doesn't matter!

When my 13 year old was younger, she was terribly fussy and would only eat chicken. When she finally ate beef, we were too scared to tell her it was beef in case it put her off and told her it was "just brown chicken". She happily ate it, but we now laugh about it. She still trusts me!

When is a chicken not a chicken?

When it's a pig, a cow, duck, squid or a fish.

Except in our house. It's all chicken!

God yes op. My dd only ate meat that I told her had 'died of old age' she's 17 now and still not convinced she's Sussed it yet.

I did exactly the same with my two. They thought fish was "yucky" so I just said all fish was chicken.

They are 25 and 22 now and both love fish so it didn't do them any harm.

I wouldn't feed a child old enough to want to be a Vegetarian meat by deception.
I do remember we once ate rabbit (hard times and it was cheap).
My Mum said it was chicken (I kept pet rabbits).
My brother delighted in telling me what it was and I felt upset, what with Thumper out in his run and all.

Worst was a Danish family who were lovely - they had a smallholding with a fab big Pig called Piggely and I got to know them over the year. I got invited for an elaborate 12 course Christmas Feast. Turns out the traditional meat for Christmas in Denmark is not poultry but Piggely. They told me 3 courses in. I was 23 by then though, so coped fairly well

OP, don't worry. you are teaching your child to eat a good range of food, that's all that matters.

I told my kids that everything was chicken when they all went through their picky phase. And then, because we lived rurally and our neighbours had chickens, it became chickens and 'food chickens'

Lie your head off.

When I was 14 I went on an exchange trip to Lille. They gave me a chicken casserole. I said: 'C'est lapin, n'est pas?' Maman said: 'Oui' and laughed. That's about the extent of my French.

I was used to eating rabbit but they didn't think so and thought they could slip it by me. We introduced my friend to Findus Crispy Pancakes in beef and onion when we hosted the return match. There was no disguising them and she liked them

Haha I tell fibs like this all the time
Not a huge issue. I called water juice for some time, broccoli are trees but luckily my 2 eat family well. Just managed to work it that they thought they were having a treat when they had raisins etc.
However!!!when I was 5-15 I was fussy, I ate rice, egg sausage and chicken,( at a push) so at my aunties house, age 10...ish. I was offered spare ribs, ewwww no...then maybe I'd prefer 'chicken on a stick' which I ate. Still didn't enjoy but I ate it. I still haven't forgiven her that one!!

I had my boys friend for tea and his mum said not to worry if he didn't like it as he was super fussy. I didn't tell him what we were having (pork chops), just placed it in front of them at the table. He ate the lotvand said it was the nicest chicken he'd ever had. Lol.

I'm astonished at how many parents do this. I call everything by its proper name and don't hide anything. Ds1 (9) eats it and if he likes it, great, if not then fair enough.
It would never occur to me to pretend that beef was chicken or whatever.
But then, his attitude to food has always been "can I try that?" which obviously makes things very easy.
Ds2 is 14 mo and rather a different character. It'll be interesting to see if I have to change with him and resort to lying about what he's eating. I live in fear of him becoming fussy...

I wonder what those who have criticised you would make of my dad. He got me to eat venison by telling me it was "dinosaur burgers"

I always swore I would never lie to children - not even about food because it would undermine their trust. And then I encountered an actual child.

Anything orange is made with "pasta sauce" and what? No! That's not cous cous. That's just teeny tiny rice. Just this afternoon I neglected to tell the DC that it wasn't tomato soup butcarrot soup which would be "a bit weird" apparently. Nope! Eaten with gusto!

I always try and explain that "some people call this by this name" once I'm certain they like it but that's just so I don't look like a loon around the general public!

We have sausage for all meat and sea sausage for fish.

My husband won't eat stew. I made a mincemeat stew and called it savoury mince and he loved it. Won't have it if I call it what it is. He's 32 I think he'll survive my lies!

My eldest dd 6 still loves chicken bites (scampi) and the best one of all she steals my chocolate cornflakes with chips in (sultana branflakes)

same here, a LOT of things were 'chicken' when my DD's were young. And we had things like courgettes were cooked cucumber and sweet poatoes were honey carrots.
They are young adults now and still laugh about it

My 7yo loves 'cucumber' lasagne. It's courgettes.

OMG, the perfect parent brigade are about again on the Facebook page you commented on!! I'm guessing their children don't believe in Father Christmas, The Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy!!!

My dd only found out eggs were just eggs and not chicken eggs or eating eggs 4 years ago she was 14 I had forgot i told her she was horrified

My 23 month old will only eat meat if I say it is dinosaur.... Nursery taught me that trick