Getting Kids to Eat (and Enjoy) More Vegetables

By Jamie Kaun

It’s a tale as old as time...the struggle to get kids to eat vegetables. 

I have four kids ages 2-11. They eat and enjoy some of the most kid-friendly veggies like cucumbers and carrots. But when it comes to some of the other basics like broccoli, cauliflower and even celery, well the love greatly varies.

We all know why it’s important to eat veggies — when part of a healthy diet, they can help prevent heart disease, protect against certain cancers and are a lower calorie option packed with nutrients.

Daily veggie needs vary by age and gender, but range from 1/2 cup to 3 cups for children. You can find the USDA’s recommendations here.

Even though we educate kids on why veggies are good for our bodies, the fact remains that they just want to eat what tastes good to them and veggies are not often at the top of their list of yumminess.

So how can you ensure they’re getting what they need daily?

• Keep trying! They may not like the taste of a particular veggie the first or even fifth time they try it. But at some point, they may develop a taste for it. If they don’t like it raw, try it steamed, roasted, with dip (ranch, hummus, nut butters) or even frozen. This works for adults too. Admittedly, I don’t love a variety of vegetables, including raw radishes. I recently roasted them with a little avocado oil and seasoning. They were delicious! And half of my kids loved them, which I consider a win. 
• Hide them in other foods. If your kid is adamant that they don’t like veggies and refuses to touch them, sneak them into their food. Add shredded or puréed sweet veggies like carrots or red peppers into mac and cheese, pasta sauces and taco meat. Spinach tastes good to kids when it’s in a muffin (here’s one of our favorite recipes). 
• Make it fun! Let the kiddos help choose what veggies they want on top of their pizza. Invite them to help you prepare a veggie in multiple ways (riced, steamed, roasted, etc.) and experiment with different seasonings. They enjoy being a part of the process and it may entice them to eat it!
• Pick your own or visit a farmer’s market. Kids may be more apt to eat something they helped pick at a vegetable farm or from a market. The more local the produce is, the better! The taste is fresher and you’re supporting local businesses. 
• Lead by example. Honestly, this is the hardest one for me. I grew up exposed to very little vegetables and definitely not a variety. There are still many veggies that I don’t care for but I make an effort to eat some of them so my kids will too. And for those I really just can’t enjoy, my husband eats all of them and encourages the kids. I wouldn’t have thought to have the kids try seaweed, but my husband served it to them recently and again, half of them enjoyed it so that’s a win. Plus, they were exposed to a veggie that their mama likely wouldn’t have given them.

Vegetable consumption is a struggle for many kids but these suggestions can help establish healthy nutritional habits that can stick with them for life.

If you need some inspiration, there are a lot of resources online that offer ways to get your kids to eat veggies. Two of our favorite kid-friendly sites for recipes are Weelicious and 100 Days of Real Food.