Mini Sous Chefs

By Marissa Ponikowski

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Add a helping of fun to the task of meal preparation by asking your kids to assist the head chef. We've got loads of tips and tricks sure to make children of all ages feel right at home in the kitchen. The best part? They'll be learning the whole time!

Nutritious Fun

Involving children in meal preparation means busy parents can combine making dinner with quality time. And kids learn by touching, tasting and feeling so any help they give in the kitchen is also aiding in their development. Getting the kids in on mealtime tasks will teach them about the food they eat - and, possibly make them more likely to eat it! And, especially if you choose to prepare healthy, balanced meals and snacks together, your children will learn good eating habits that can last a lifetime just by spending a little time with you.

Getting Started

Before you get your kids into the kitchen to start creating you need to make sure the space has been kid proofed. Kid proofing is about more than just moving breakable items out of the way and making sure dangerous items, such as knives, are properly stored. The best thing to do is take your children on a "˜safety tour' of the kitchen. Explain to them what they can't touch - and tell them why not - and give them plenty of options to explore by placing items they are allowed to use and play with, such as wooden spoons, rolling pins, and stainless steel mixing bowls, in accessible cupboards and drawers. It also doesn't hurt to store some of the ingredients your kids are most likely to use on lower shelves in the fridge. They'll feel very grown up if they can assemble ingredients themselves.

Make meal preparation fun by giving each of your children a special apron - and even a chef's hat, for added excitement! Also be sure each child knows the basic rules of the kitchen. They may be different in every home, but the rudimentary ones are:

1. Every sous-chef must wash his or her hands before and after meal prep - and several times during the process, especially if messy food or raw meat or eggs are involved.

2. No sampling allowed unless the head chef says so! This will help prevent illness from consuming undercooked food.

3. Spills are to be expected, but must be cleaned up, especially if they're on the floor and present the danger of slipping and falling.

4. Sous-chefs always help with the cleanup, too. (Give each child his or her own special task to complete at the end of each meal preparation session.)

Age Appropriate Tasks

Next, it's time to decide on the tasks your children are capable of helping you with, according to age. Here are some handy guidelines:

Two-year-olds can:

Wash vegetables and fruits

Tear lettuce and salad greens

Break up bread to be used for stuffing

With the help of a parent, hold the spoon and help mix

With the help of a parent, spread tomato sauce onto pizza or pita shells

With the help of a parent, form dough into cookies (Note: If you do plan to do this, pop the eggs to be used in the dough into boiling water for a minute to kill any bacteria. Then your little one can have a sample of the dough and you don't have to worry about food-related illness.)

Three-year-olds can:

Pour dry and liquid ingredients into a batter

Mix muffin, cookie or cake batter

Push buttons on a blender or food processor

Knead or roll bread, pie and pizza dough

Dip vegetables into a breading or seasoning mixture

Assemble pre-sliced ingredients into a salad

Help assemble sandwiches

Four- and five-year-olds can:

Squeeze the juice from citrus fruits

Mash soft ingredients, such as bananas and avocadoes

Measure dry and liquid ingredients