Cooking Games For Kids
Cooking games for children are more beneficial than what we can see with the naked eye. In fact, they are a great opportunity to learn to be responsible and organized, among other aspects. In addition, today there are many ways to enjoy this activity and learn at the same time.
By teaching them to be actively involved in the kitchen, even from time to time, we will be giving them a great contribution for their entire lives. As parents, cooking is one of the best contributions that we can provide for your day-to-day life. Find out more about it below.
While cooking can be tough at times, in general, it is an activity that allows you to unleash your imagination and thereby clear your mind. In this way we are able to distract ourselves and, then, is when we are more apt to acquire new knowledge through experience.
Also, in the event that we are not very fond of cooking, perhaps we can even redeem ourselves and learn to enjoy it, even a little, thanks to our children … It is a way to create a joint activity that everyone enjoys.
Many possibilities in a kitchen
Cooking is a rewarding activity because it connects people with a fundamental aspect of life such as food . The kitchen is also a place that represents the warmth of the home. And it evokes memories, because it is a space full of stories and anecdotes.
Cooking games for kids provide a wonderful opportunity to bond, spending quality time together. In addition, they help develop the capacity for mutual learning.
At the same time, one can talk about geography, the places from which a certain product comes or the origin of the dish to be cooked. Here are some tips and curiosities that will definitely permeate the little ones. This is a different way of bringing them closer to the general culture.
On the other hand, through kitchen games you can acquire hygiene habits as well as a notion about the way in which to handle food. In this way, you also learn to identify the various products and their respective states of conservation.
Tips to get the most out of cooking games for children
Don’t miss the following tips to keep in mind:
- Choose simple and age-appropriate recipes for children.
- Choosing a complicated or lengthy recipe can end up boring children. Handy ingredients that are not too delicate should be used in recipes.
- Let the children choose what they will cook (from the available options).
- Within a set of options given to them, the child should be able to choose what will be cooked so that his interest is heightened. Being included in the process will be far better than just being invited to take orders.
- Go shopping together to increase excitement for the project while giving them a realistic understanding of what cooking entails.
- Shopping with children is good exercise for their education . Allowing him to search the vegetables or other areas will let him know what each of them looks like. Similarly, if the child can write, it can be very helpful for him to write the shopping list.
- It should be noted that by guiding the child in the kitchen, we are educating them about many aspects at the same time. Colors, textures, flavors, instructions for use, etc.
Cooking is an activity that teaches patience, organization, and cooperation. This translates into a great contribution for the child, since developing these skills, as well as the ability to cook, will be of great use for the rest of his life.
Safety, hygiene and organization in kitchen games
It is important that we bear in mind that all kitchen sets for children must have the appropriate safety measures. This implies that a work area must be defined that is far from the burning burners to avoid burns, and other important aspects such as:
- Do not leave the sharp objects that we normally use in the kitchen within the reach of children. That is, scissors, knives, pizza cutters and similar objects. Ideally, they should have a kitchen kit with age-appropriate utensils.
- Whether or not you have this children’s kitchen kit, it is best to monitor their progress and be attentive to help them throughout the preparation of the recipe they have chosen. In this way, we can teach them different ways to cut an onion, for example, or simply how to properly hold a knife.
- Promote hygiene. We must remind the little ones that they should wash their hands before starting to cook, sometimes during, and, of course, at the end of the activity. They must be reminded that if they eat while cooking, it is not hygienic, in addition, raw foods (especially masses) can cause stomach aches.
More tips for cooking games
You cannot forget the following very important tips:
- It is also important to let the child know that he must wash the food he is going to work with. To do this, we must give them a demonstration, in which they can verify that it is not just about placing the ingredient under water and that’s it. You have to scrub a little sometimes, to make sure they are really clean. For example, potatoes must be well washed to remove traces of soil.
- Preliminary organization. Having a previously established action plan will help to make the most of that special moment. This action plan should leave things more complicated / risky for the adult, while the simplest ones like kneading, adding salt, etc., can be tasks for the child.
- Let the children taste the ingredients. It is important to let the little cooks taste a little of what they are doing, always in small quantities, so that the child can begin to build his taste memory and develop his palate.
The 2 easiest recipes for children
Try making one of these two recipes!
French toast
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup of milk.
- 1 tablespoon butter.
- 4 slices of bread.
Preparation
Beat 2 eggs in a bowl and add the milk until well combined. Then, soak the loaves –one by one– in the previous preparation. Finally, place them in a hot skillet with a little melted butter.
Butter cookies
Ingredients
- 250 gr of white flour.
- 150 gr of cold butter.
- 100 gr of sugar.
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- 3 egg yolks.
Preparation
Mix all the ingredients until they are well integrated. Let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Then, with the help of a rolling pin, roll out the dough until it is 1cm thick. Finally, cut with a mold and place on a non-stick paper and put in the oven at 180 degrees for a period of 10 minutes.
One last detail: don’t forget to enjoy the process. Be patient when you see the mess in the kitchen. Not everything is going to be perfect the first few times. In addition, we must set an example so that they can assimilate the idea of cleaning and / or organization that we want to instill in them. Cooking does not have to become a regret.
