When can you be sure they don't like something rather than are just being picky??

[flamesparrow]

Following on from the other food threads of the day...

What age does a child know that they really don't like something?? DD is always given what we're having - some nights she eats it, some nights she doesn't. I have always been the "eat it or go without" type because there is no rhyme or reason to what she will or won't eat - she'll like it one night, and then decide not the next.

She has very definate always likes, but no set in stone always hates.

When do they know categorically that they hate chicken korma etc? When do I know that she just doesn't like it and I'm doing the equivalent of trying to feed me cous cous (tis evil stuff that I hate)???

I think especially with smaller ones their pallets are always changing my ds will have something for months then decide he hates it refusing point blank to eat it only to salivate a couple of days later if I have some???

I tend to rotate his meals so this doesn't really happen.
How old is your dd?

Yes, Ds loves sausages & yet recently not that keen.
And yesterday wouldn't eat jacket pot & baked beans - practically his favouriet.

I think I once saw someone on mumsnet suggest - "try them three times & then try again in 6 mths " - is that the way to do it ?

I try not to ever catagorise anything as DS 'doesn't like'. I try to feed them a variety of things that they really do like and keep the things they apparently don't like to a minimum, for example, DS2 is convinced he doesn't like brocolli but he will always get a small piece of brocolli on his plate if the rest of the family are having it. DS1 used to say he didn't like rice or spicy things (mild curries) but after being presented with them enough times started eating rice and very recently started to eat and enjoy some spicy things (he is now 6 1/2).

Read something once about a some children needing to be presented with a new food 20 (? it was a big number anyway) times before eating it.

She's 2 1/2 btw

The only food I was convinced she didn't like was egg - i put it down to the texture being odd... then she went and ate it nicely for my mum