How do you get vegetables into your children?!

[DiscoDancer]

4 year old will only eat potatoes. I've been making my own veggie filled pasta sauce but he can't have that with everything. How else do you get them to have veg?! If I put some mixed veg into a rice dish, with a potato side dish and protein main, would that be too much?
Was thinking of adding couscous or rice to veg, but fear he would just pick it out.....
TIA

Salads. If I put a big bowl of lettuce/tomato/cucumber/peppers in the middle of the table to share it is like a competition to see who can grab the best bits

Can you not just insist he eats it?

Personally I don't see the point or agree with hiding veg. As children grow older they do need to accept that they will be served and are expected to eat vegetables. They do need to know what veg looks like on their plate and what each veg individually tastes like. So the sooner they learn this the better.

Eating meals all together around a table helps, we find. You can lead by example.

Start with traditional favourite veg like carrots and sweetcorn. Around the age of 4 we used to give veg super hero powers with our children. For example broccoli helps you run fast, cauliflower makes you jump high, carrots make you see in the dark (obviously) etc.

Soups

Stir fries (with chopsticks to make it more of a novelty)

Steamed so still crunchy!! Soggy veg is vile!!

Would he eat a pie? Chicken and veg in a cheese sauce as the filling?

Grated into mince

Blended into sauces

Raw with dips

Mine actually like quite a few veg.

I find if I serve the veg first, then bring in the rest of the meal a few minutes later, that they will have eaten most of the veg, rather than filling up on potatoes etc first.

I often give them a little bowl of chopped raw veg before dinner, as a sort of starter.

Dd1 is a dipper, she'll try anything if there's a sauce to dip it into - she always has ketchup or Mayo or salad dressing with everything.
Dd 2 is the opposite, she likes things all separate - I never try hiding things in sauce for her, she likes to see what she's eating.

Best tactics I found for getting DS to give a food a try were in no particular order

• Putting a small amount on the plate, ignore if it got left but big praise if it got tried
• Everyone eating the same thing at the table at the same time (no special or separate meals for children) so that it was 'normal'.
• Inviting other children round to share and conversely sending him to other people's houses for tea
• Keep very new foods for weekends when there's no time or other pressures. Go with favourites at other times.
• Persevere... (He's now 14yo and still doesn't like tomatoes but I am not giving up just yet)

Soup, but I guess this is 'hidden'. I tend to put lots of veg in and blitz it up. Mine love dipping pepper/carrot/cucumber sticks in houmous. Some good tips here.

Tonight DD is hungry. She has taken to opening the fridge with a cheeky grin on her face. Thing is, we only have fruit and veg lying around the fridge. So, she 'stole' the bag of baby carrots. I said, "not the carrots" in a shocked voice. She is munching her way through them. If we had crisps and biscuits and sugary stuff, she would have that.

I agree that soggy veg are disgusting but many children do like them like that so might be worth a try. My DD laps up my MILs roast dinners which are worse than Toby Carvery, while I push everything round on my plate and manage to force down some overcooked beef and some roast potatoes - I simply can't eat the carrots, beans etc as I feel sick ;)

Lots of good ideas already.o you can also use your pasta sauce as a pizza topping as well.
We always try and have some raw veg available when we are just having sandwiches, so cucumbers, peppers, beetroot, cherry tomatoes.

Bubble and Squeak?

I cut up veg for dinner on a small table and DD steals the raw veg. I get her to help cook.

I do normal dinners but also put out small bowls of cherry tomatos, raw peas, mange tout for her to pick at.

Out of the garden she ate strawberries, raspberries, baby carrot and peas today. All but peas grown in pots.

She grew some cress and just picks at it through day.

I'm a other one who just serves it and expects it to be eaten. I usually serve two vegetables at a time, so they have a choice. Eat with them, and don't make a fuss about it. If they don't eat something, then no problem, but I still offer it next time.

I do root veg mash or root veg wedges.

Grated/pureed and mixed in with sauce/gravy.

there are lots of meals that this works with - curry, mince dishes, fish pie, enchiladas, fajitas, burritos, tacos, pasta, lasagne, meatballs, bolognese, cottage/shepherds pie, burgers, casseroles/stews. would he eat stuffed peppers, marrow, courgettes, aubergines etc with melted cheese on top?

soups and pizza topping are good ideas too.