Four year old - is this normal food?

[ineedasleep]

Hi all.

I’m getting concerned I’m not helping my son from being a ‘picky eater’. He refuses a lot of the main meals at nursery (he goes one day a week) but he’ll eat the snacks and breakfast there. He won’t eat food that is saucy or items mixed together (think casseroles, lasagna, stews, curries etc). I don’t buy a lot of meat because 1. It’s expensive and I’m a single mum, 2. I don’t like meat and don’t enjoy cooking it so I struggle to cook with it.

Things my son eats:

Breakfast: Porridge with fruit (strawberries/blueberries or bananas) mixed with chia and flax seeds with whole milk
Greek yoghurt, chia seeds, flax seeds and honey
Multi grain cereal
Seeded bread
Mini pancakes

Lunch:
Omelette
Cheesy wraps with spinach
Cheesy eggy bread
Sausage roll or sausage sandwich
All are always served with cucumber and a fruit

Snacks:
crisps
fruit
crackers
Toast with peanut butter

Dinner:
Homemade pizza or store bought
Fish fingers, chicken nuggets, sausages, chips, pasta with homemade sauce.
mashed potato or some sort of noodles with spinach and a thin sauce or broth.

He doesn’t really enjoy rice and like I said, he’d never have things like a chili con carne or other such dishes that have lots of sauces.

I’m just worried I’m missing something and I’m creating an issue. He does NOT like trying new things and start charts etc do not work. I try to get vegetables hidden in his food but I’d love him to love curries etc but he’d never eat it. I guess dinner always seems to be the ‘easy to cook’ meal for me as by that time of the day I’m exhausted.

Any meal idea or support? Am I creating an issue or does this look ok for a four year old?

Seemed similar to my 5 year old. He doesn’t like saucy things (with the exception of curry) and only likes pesto on pasta. He refuses anything with minced beef in (but he will eat meatballs 🙄)
He does eat most fruit and veg though so I pick my battles. Lunch times are hardest here as he doesn’t like sandwiches/wraps!

Seems perfectly fine to me.

My 4 year old is very similar. He is very fussy about both sauces and meat and I can't even hide vegetables in a tomato sauce for him. What he does eat is fairly healthy but it is only a limited range. I had to start giving him a packed lunch at pre school becuase he wouldn't eat the school meals. He has recently started to get fussy about hot food and leaves everything to cool down. I am hoping he will get better over time.

I used to deconstruct the lasagne for ds so ragu, pasta/chopped lasagne sheets, grated cheese served separately on a plate with dividers. He's much better now and will eat a whole lasagne without separating it out.

Try roast chicken thinly sliced, roast veg & mash/roasted potatoes served separately with gravy in a little pot. He can choose to have the gravy if he wants.

Serve chappati/pitta/wraps as an alternative to rice, folded on the side Asian style.

I think that's a great variety of food for a 4 year old! My 3 year old DD is slightly more restrictive than your boy. I'm also worried about not wanting her to be a picky eater when she's older, but it seems pretty standard for their age group. Just keep doing what you're doing, keep any emotion out of mealtimes, and he'll get there I'm sure!

The only way you could be in trouble is access to school dinners ,check out fairly regular what he would be expected to eat and try to sneak it there fairly regular (if your interested in school dinners , it can be life saver when time is short) . I don't know a jacket potato , mac cheese , things they do occasionally serve up at school .That should make your life ahead easier .Think ahead .

My DD eats most things but she is also funny about sauces. Her only absolute no is onion so it either has to be big pieces she can pick out or no onion. But for example with spaghetti bolognese she likes the sauce separate to the pasta, not mixed in. I think that’s really common with kids as they like to inspect and identify it all.

She eats loads of veg though. Does he really only have spinach and cucumber? The lack of veg would bother me.

We serve veg with most things, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower, cabbage, peas, sweetcorn, salad veg are her favourites.

We did have to just have it out in bowls to serve yourself though, and after months and months of not trying things when she was a toddler (ate everything at weaning then refused from 2) she gradually started helping herself. We never made a thing about it.

DD inhales meat though, she will eat any and all meat in vast amounts. She has adult steak when we go to the pub 🙈

Getting them to help by chopping and cooking helps too. We only do that at weekends but she is a dab hand at chopping and peeling and can now make her own scrambled eggs (watched closely for the hob).

Oh and sorry you must also be aware what are banned items for your sons schools ,just so you know that won't be on your list at school any more , so no point .

Our neighbours 4 year old is the same. When we have spaghetti bolognese she has the sauce in a separate bowl. I think thats fine? She eats a lot more than our 4 year old anyway!

My 6yo is also a 'fussy' eater - won't touch anything with sauce and not keen on meat (does eat fish though). They'll eat some fruit and most vegetables. Everything has to be 'clean', i.e. separated and not mixed together.

I don't know if it's normal or not but what I do know is that I'm not going to let it spoil our family life. I remember enjoying a different but equally limited list of food as a child (with the difference that I was made to eat things I didn't like and gagged over them), and I gradually outgrew this and now eat almost anything as an adult.

What I do try to do is cook an 'unsafe' meal 2-3 times a week and ask DC1 to help with this. DC1 enjoys cooking with me, even if they don't then eat the food we make. But I alwys offer them some to try and occasionally, just occasionally, DC1 does and finds a new item which they like.

He's eating a variety of foods and assuming he's a healthy weight and full of energy then that's fine

From memory by biggest problem was my boredom

They don't need to eat saucy food , they don't need huge meal variety, so you don't make a fuss , don't make a thing or food and it should all turn out fine

I think it's a wider variety than my DD at that age ( the food boredom !)

Some children have more sensory issues than others, but the main thing is they are putting on weight! I read a really good article saying it's your job to provide the food and you're child job to decide how much and what to eat.
It's so easy to get over invested and get stressed about their food!
Another good idea is to go to the library and get books about nutrition for them.

My 4 year old DD is very similar wouldn't entertain eating anything like the things you listed curry, lasagne, chilli etc.

Eats very similarly to your son. It's not easy but they are eating from all the food groups with what their eating. I'm going to try DD on school dinners when she goes full time in September, if it's a disaster I will give her packed lunch x

I would have given my right arm to have my ds eat such a variety of food at that age. He did eat vegetable..but only raw..no cooked veg and any fruit in season, But otherwise, it was bread, chicken nuggets, potato.smilies and rice cakes! He is now a strapping 20 year old who loves experimenting in the kitchen, will eat a wide range of food, loves Chinese, Japanese, pasta with pesto etc but still steers clear of gravy type sauces and casseroles. At that age it's all fuel, so try not to worry too much about it.

I think you're doing brilliantly. The only thing I would change is to try to add more eggs into his diet and perhaps a couple of green smoothies a week. Maybe you could sneak in some more vegetables that way.

Brilliant he's eating so much healthy food, lots of nutrients there. X

Sounds good to me.

If he likes eggs what about French toast for variety?
My son loves toast and peanut butter and we also do almond butter, humous, and tahini. Maybe try him with different spreads/nut butters.
If he likes potatoes/chips you could do sweet potato fries/mash.

I'd try to get more meat into his diet in a way that's easy for you or a way that you don't have to cook it. A little ready cooked chicken shredded into an omelette maybe, or tuna pasta? My son loves Bolognese, I just throw the mince and all the ingredients in the slow cooker at lunchtime so I only have to cook the pasta come dinner time.