Anyone Feeding Ground Turkey/chicken to 9 Month Old? Preparation Ideas Please..

I cook ground turkey with worchestire sauce, pepper, garlic and onions. Use minced or crushed garlic and maybe dried onion to be smaller bites for the baby. It reheats from freezing great. For tacos, I use taco seasoning (use in moderation because of all the salt).

My son thought the pureed (boiled) chicken with brown rice I gave him was not so great! I think it must have been the consistency. I just figured he didn't like chicken. Then I tried again this time I cooked it low and slow with carrots and a little garlic. It was d- lish! I cooked it in my LeCreuset pot- if you don't have one of those you can use any stock pot/ sauce pan/ dutch oven. I just bought the cheapest chicken (usually a thigh and leg combo) because of the dark meat it is higher in fat- and better for the little one. Then I used a little olive oil and browned the chicken pieces (no skin) with a little onion and garlic thrown in for flavor. Once all the chicken is browned (do it in batches if you have to) I added my peeled carrots and then the chicken back in. Add a couple inches of water- enough to cover about half the chicken. Then bring to a boil. Once it starts to boil, lower the heat and simmer for about 4 hours if you can. The chicken will fall of the bone (literaly) then I just chopped it even smaller to where it looked almost like someone had already started chewing it (gross I know). The carrots he also loved. He love, love, loved it. I just freeze it after it is chopped- and pull out a little at a time. Freezes perfect. The crock pot would produce the same kind of result. Try it! Remember NO SALT!

Hi Y.,

I used thin turkey cutlets for my son at that age. They will cook in minutes in a nonstick pan with a spritz of cooking oil spray. Just cut them up into small pieces.

I prepared ground beef plain--just browned it. Babies like bland food. I don't think you have to worry about flavoring it. My son would not eat meat that had been cooked in garlic or onion, but your baby might be more adventurous.

Another big hit in my house was (and still is) small chunks of tofu. Buy the firm kind, rinse with cool water, press out the excess water between paper towels, cut into cubes, throw into a skillet with a tablespoon of butter and brown. It's a good source of protein and not expensive. It's also soft and easy to eat. (There are those who say that boy babies shouldn't eat soy products because of the estrogen in them, but my pediatrician says that's ridiculous. Tofu is a main staple in Asia, and there aren't scores of boys turning into girls there, so no worries.)

:-) D.

My son loves ground Turkey and has ever since he was about 10 mos. old. Before my son, I really never bothered with other ground meats so it has been a learning experience!

Every kids taste buds are the different!! My son wouldn't go for bland, he'd push it away and want my garlic chicken or my sauteed in olive oil and scallions...but, he hates anything saucey. And, I get very firms yucks from him. But, my BF little girl loves spagethi...go figure.

What I did yesterday, in fact was sautee some green onions in olive oil (just one or two) with mushrooms and ground turkey. Since, my son and I usually eat the same thing I cook enough for two or immediately freeze and it warms up well once in the pan, but not so well in the microwave (gets oily and new studies of plastic are scary). When my son was younger, and was dead set on eating what we were eating, I would simply using the food processor to chop up whatever I was eating for him. If he didn't like I'd have a jar of Earth's best Stage 2 or 3 Food on hand, as those are pretty good and were a favorite of my son.

There are some great cookbooks out there for several ways to change it up, a little bit...but, truly my son's tastes change almost weekly and you never know if he's going to like turkey today or prefer carrots over peas...

good luck!

Some kids, especially young, don't like garlic as it has a "strong" taste. My kids at least were/are like that, still at their age.

As for "meats"... go slowly. Just a little at a time. A tablespoon at a time... proteins are concentrated, you don't want to overload their system or kidneys etc. At least, per our Pediatrician... who recommends meats at about 1 year old. But every one has different experiences.

I would flavor my "meats" with sauces... which my kids like.
They liked spaghetti sauce on anything too. Or you can try marinades. Just be sure the meat is cooked until tender, and then mince it up well, and in tiny pieces. Or, use a baby food grinder to mince it up, and then that way you can "control" how finely ground it is.

Or try using ground turkey/chicken in "casserole" type dishes... yes, buy the meat already ground up... or use it in soups/stews.

As for amounts to cook... just a little goes a long way. Or you will have lots of left overs that may go to waste. Try it out and see how she does and how much she consumes. Then you will know how much to cook first.

Usually you can indeed freeze cooked food afterward...in a ziplock or container or ice-cube trays or something. But reheat it in something other than plastic as plastic leaches out toxins when it is heated.

Good luck,
Susan

I limited what I exposed my first son to cause it never seemed like the right time, or he wasn't old enough to chew it...etc...etc... Now, he is the pickiest of eaters!!! My second son is nine and a half months and has been eating whatever we eat for months. He eats ground beef, chicken, sgetti, mashed potatoes...anything! His doc said as long as it is all well cooked...and obviously in smaller bites it's fine and he'll let you know what he does and doesn't like! So far my son just doesn't like cinnamon stuff.