my ds won't eat meat. Any ideas gratefully received.

[wannaBeOnTopOfTheChristmasTree]

My ds (4) won't eat meat. He's good at eating fruit/veg, so in reality I know that I should be very grateful for that, but meat is a good source of protein and I would therefore like him to eat at least some. he will eat:

sausages (how much meat is actually in those is debatable), fishfingers (not meat I know but fish is still good source of protein), bolognaise (but only with lots of encouragement), occasionally cottage pie, and last week I did make meatballs which I managed to encourage him to eat at least some of. He will also eat ham and pineapple pizza (home made) but won't eat a ham sandwich or a bit of ham on a plate. If I give him actual chunks of meat i.e. roast chicken/beef/pork he will chew one small piece for about 5 mminutes before swallowing. I don't battle over it but I do encourage quite firmly. He does like cheese, he eats yoghurt, but doesn't drink milk but will drink milkshake so I do let him have that.

Has anyone been there (I know it's more common for children to not eat fruit/veg rather than meat) and can anyone give me any tips as to how I can encourage him/convince him that meat isn't such a bad thing? Or is there anything else I can cook that contains lots of eggs/cheese that can act as a decent substitute? He is a very good eater on the whole, I don't have battles getting him to eat his fruit/veg, but I do think he should eat at least a bit of meat. For the record I do serve meat with his meals, he's happy to leave it untouched, even with bribery.

I'm very happy he doesn't want chicken nuggets/burgers but a bit of roast chicken ain't that bad surely?

bump - anyone?

tbh I wouldn't worry too much,it sounds like he's still getting adequate protein from what he does eat. But what about trying cheesy omlettes or something like that? Do you think it is the texture of meat he doesn't like? Maybe you could put mince etc into a food processor to make it less 'bumpy' iykwim. Anyway I'm sure a veggie mnetter will come along shortly and offer you better advice!!

He may just be heading towards being one of lifes natural vegetarians!

As a child I used to dislike meat that was just a "lump" of meat on the plate (eg. slices of roast beef, chops etc) but would eat it in something like bolognaise. I think it was both a texture and taste thing which may be how your son is feeling?

As a teenager I ate less and less meat until I went away to college and gave up eating it all together (partly financial and partly as I didn't really enjoy much meat anyway).

You could try cooking with beans and pulses (protein rich)to see if he will eat that. He may prefer the texture to that of meat?

I wouldn't worry about it, it's perfectly possible to get enough nutritionally without eating meat. If he'll eat eggs with some vit c on the side that's good

omelettes
scrambled egg
boiled egg and dippies
poached egg

and what about other non meat sources? lentils (I know not all children will eat them but my dd will) beans are good.

Sorry, hadn't read other posts now realise I said the same as everyone else!

It sounds like at 4 he's just not really that keen so I think I would explore some alternatives.

DS is very keen on pulses which I find odd as I like them but I'm not mad keen, whereas he will eat chickpeas / kidney beans out of a tin when I am cooking with them..

What about other kinds of fish?

Would he eat bacon?

What about casseroles?

We eat a lot of those and good as you can cook the meat until it is very, very tender.

i dont feed ds meat; he does eat lots of lentils, beans, (easy 'disguised' if need be in soups, stews, casseroles).. textured veg protein but am not mad on that myself, eggs, cheese and we eat fish too which he loves etc..
as has already been suggested..again, as before i've heard its texture of meat that can be off putting for children
hv said to me its the iron in meat that they really need for growth..so add loads of iron rich veg w/ bit of vit c as body absorbs body more readily then
we also eat tofu - which can be as bland or tasty as you like, easy texture to eat though
i think everything has been suggested really might be worth dipping into food section for recipes if you need them

thanks all

Im not really that worried as such but as we obviously are meat eaters I was keen for ds to eat more. I do think it's a texture thing, as he will spend ages and ages just chewing on a piece of meat and seems to find it hard to swallow iykwim. But not the end of the world - at least he's not like me - I was completely the opposite and ate no fruit or veg at all, always loved a nice bit of fillet though

It could just be a phase. I'm bringing dd up as a vegetarian, she's 2.2 at the moment and very healthy and of normal height/weight etc. Just be aware of his protein and iron intake and I'm sure he'll be fine.

I read somewhere you have to present food to a child/toddler an average of 15 times before they'll try it.

You could be writing about my DS adores vegetables, potatoes, macaroni cheese, ham sandwiches, sausages & Cottage pie. I put it down to him being bone idle and not wanting to put the effort into chewing! I live in hope that one day he will eat more, in fact the big break through of this year is that he has started eating cottage pie!

My ds2m who is nearly three struggles with eating meat. He is OK with mince but chews endlessly if there are pieces of meat. I try to make it as soft as possible and cut it into small pieces and mix it up with rice or pasta, but he definitely has a problem with the chewing.

My DS has also never liked meat, apart from the occasional sausage, and when he was younger bolognese and cottage pie but not any more! I too think it is a texture thing and also the amount of chewing that is involved. I just compensate with lots of cheese and pulses (he loves lentils).
He's nearly four. I'm hoping when he's older he will like meat more and at least enjoy the occasional roast chicken!

Wouldn't worry about it - sounds like he is eating healthily to me.

I hated most meat as a child, still could take it or leave it tbh...

My little boy is exactly the same wannabe.

Today I 'hid' some chicken on his pizza under the cheese. I chopped it up really really fine and he wolfed it down. I have real trouble getting him to eat meat but like your little one he gets more than his 5 a day. Mine also eats saus and hot dogs but I am also dubious about them and limit them.

I also hide veg and meat not normally eaten by blending into pizza/pasta base sauce, have got away with brocolli, cabbage, leek, etc.. even mindees eat it. Some of them would recoil in horror if they knew I had got them to eat a "proper" vegetable . (I tell tehir parents but ask them to keep it a secret

no hope really from me, my ds has refused to eat meat and he is not 8 and still refuses all meat. He drinks tons of milk, yogurt and I make him smoothies and add egg to it. He discovered this year what vegetarians are so he tells everyone he is a vegetarian. I tell him that is fine with one big problem, he also hates vegetables. Just be creative and work witrh what he will eat. I give ds a fruit for supper instead of veg and load up his smoothies with fruit, eggs etc. whatever I can.