Help with fussy eater please!

[IWillOnlyEatBeans]

DS2 (2.8) is becoming a bit of a fussy eater. He is absolutely fine with food he is familiar with, but anything new is met with horror and a very firm 'I DON'T LIKE THAT'.

DS1 (5) is great with food and never really had a fussy stage, so I am not sure how best to deal with it.

So far mealtimes have been going a bit like this:
I put the new food on his plate (alongside stuff he is familiar with).
He ignores it, eats everything else, then declares he is finished (this is progress in itself - a month or so ago he would scream if he even saw the food on his plate).
I insist that he tries two mouthfuls of it, making it clear he doesn't have to eat it all.
He eventually eats two tiny mouthfuls.
We make a big fuss and tell him how clever he is.

And repeat next time.

Is this right?? Or should I be doing something different? Should I be insisting that he tries it or just putting it on his plate and not commenting further?

I want to encourage him to try new things but don't want mealtimes to become a battle.

Thanks!

Anyone?

Does he respond well to the big fuss after he's had his 2 mouthfuls? If yes, then carry on as you are - have any of the new foods been accepted fully from doing this?

This is a notoriously picky age and I might be inclined to keep serving it but let him choose whether to eat it or not.

I say this from my perspective of having a dd who is better left to get on with it by herself - she doesn't like a fuss made of her. I think it depends on the nature of your ds and how important it is to you that he eats the new food.