20 month old just won't chew

[porsmork]

Not sure if I should post this in behaviour, or in food...

My Ds is 20 months old, has 16 teeth (all but back 4 molars) and REALLY dislikes chewing things. Anything with a skin on is especially bad (I.e cherry tomatoes, cucumber, Apple, satsuma). He'll pop the object in, chew it for a few bites then spit it out. Even if I take the skins off things, he will chew, then spit. Even sometimes with bread or toast.

It's making it really hard to feed him anything (without a huge mess), and his diet is becoming increasingly limited. Typically, he is fine with breadsticks and crackers/ rice cakes.

Has anyone experienced this, and has any tips for encouraging him to chew and swallow small lumps? And any ideas for things he can eat. I feel he's not getting enough protein or veggies at the moment.

Sounds behaviour driven rather than a physical problem as you are saying he will eat breadsticks.

My DD is 2 and she can be a bit fussy and with skins too - I'm sure it's pretty normal up to a point. But I just keep trying her with them and I'm sure she will eat them eventually. What I don't do though is swap them for something she prefers - if she doesn't eat it then it's a bit tough!!

I think that perhaps you need to stick to your guns a little and show this little man that he isn't going to get his own way.