Kiddie Cooking......

When I was a kid I used to enjoy watching my mum cook. There were quite a few times when my sister and I used to jump into trying to help her and end up making a mess of things.

Recently a friend of mine was telling me how he has trouble keeping his little kids out of the kitchen. This seems to be a common problem with most families, 'Let the kids into the kitchen and end up with something that resembles a war zone.'

This got me thinking and talking to a few other couples who seem to have mastered the art of getting their kids to help out without having a complete disaster on their hands.

These are the tips I got from them.

Let the kids start off doing the small stuff like wiping unbreakable plates or bowls and stacking them in lower shelves. They can also do stuff like folding kitchen towels and rinsing the veggies. 

Take them along when you go to shopping. This familiarizes them with the various items that go into preparing a meal.

 
Try planning the daily menu with them, and also try asking them to taste the food for final approval. The little connoisseurs find this an interesting experience.

Allow them to watch how you handle kitchen utensils, spatulas, knives etc.

Let them know what is kept where. They should also be reminded to keep things back in place after finishing the job.

Hunt around for some kids cook books. Under your supervision, they will be able to churn out some excellent stuff.

You need to be patient if they spill or break something.

Allow them to improvise and experiment on the dishes. Let them know that there is more than many ways to prepare a dish and that variety is the spice of life.

Teach them to be careful while handling appliances including gas and electric stoves. Similarly you should allow them to handle knives with a word of caution.

You are the best judge to know if your kid is mature enough to handle sharp knives or a food processor. Supervision in a must

Insist on cleaning the kitchen once the cooking is done. You wouldn’t definitely want your kitchen to look like it’s been hit by a cyclone.