Starting Meats: How to DIY

We were given the thumbs up for meat at 7 months. Here's a few ideas that worked for us.
The first I did was a "baby meatloaf". I mixed equal portions ground beef, ground whole grains like oatmeal or dry whole grain bread, and shredded carrots, sweet potato and squash. Baked it in a loaf pan covered with tin foil so it didn't dry, then pureed and frooze extra in small portions.
Usually I batch cooked 'casseroles' in the oven, then froze them for later use. Put meat and some veggies and water in a casserole dish and cook in the oven until meat is tender and done. Then put in food processor and puree.
DS's 2 favorites were:
1) Pork and apple (and whole grain brown rice when he was ready). Cut a nice center loin or tenderloin in chunks, layer with a lots of sliced apples, add a bit of water and away you go. You can add whole grain rice and more water too.
2) Chicken breast and sweet potatoe. Cut up and layer in casserole dish, add water, cook then puree. I used lots of sweet potato to make a nice texture.
Some fresh herbs, like parsley, are good for seasoning if you like, and parsley actually has alot of nutritional benefit. I stayed away from salt or any 'shaker seasoning' that contained salt or artificial stuff, but I did use fresh parsley, basil, oregano, and garlic and onions for natural flavor.

I would recommend starting with chicken and pork. We found it best to bake them and then put them in the food processor. In the beginning I used only sea salt (for the natural minerals) and put it in the food processor for the best consistency. I bought little 2 oz tupperware and made big batches at once to keep it simple but eventually I knew how much to give her on my own. I would heat it before serving so that it wasn't cold and then add a baby spoon of flax seed oil which is packed with omegas. She loved it! Then I started adding garlic and other things like herbs and she gobbled it up! You can even process it with chick peas for more protein and extra taste -always sure to be a pleaser Then came beef which has a stronger taste and can you believe it, she is addicted to meatballs! Whenever she pushes other foods around uninterested, a meatball always saves the day! Good luck in your culinary endeavors, it is an exciting time!

hi S., i have always made all my baby food, for chicken, i just boil it until it kind of falls apart, then shred it. a 7 month old may not be ready for that though, i tried it in the processor, but its kind of gross. not too bad if you process it with some apples if she has had them already, its not so crumbly. or just use ground beef/chicken/turkey and "fry" it with a little water in the pan. i would definitely not use any seasonings or oils at all. processed apples are great to mix with lots of foods, try it.

NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOO salt, sugar nor oil that is only for todlers and still I will go as natural as posible.Those things are not for babies. Good luck enjoy your precious little one.JO(baby nurse)and mother of 2
p.s Sorry did not tell you how to prepare it ok.

1)Ground beef, chicken, turkey or veal.

2)put meat in a hot empty pot and keep stiring because it may stick but it will eventually spring it's own juice reason why you do not need anything else in it.

3)then you can puree it.

Enjoy it's lots of fun to see your little ones eating healthy!!!!!!!!

I made chicken balls and veggie fritters or patties for my girls. There is a great chef named Annabel Karmel and I used her recipes. I think you can get them online - try and google her. Hope it helps.

I need the same advice, but I do know from my doctor that you shouldn't add salt. I just picked up a good book so I'll follow up tomorrow with a recipe from that. I'm doing all homemade baby food so far but haven't started meat yet, as we just started a few weeks ago.

There's a book called "the complete baby and toddler meal planner" by Annabel Karmel which I used. It was great. I cook the meat ( usually wrapped in foil in the oven), no salt, and then I grind it in a food processor. At 7 months your daughter should be able to cope with that if you mix it with pureed veggies

Hi S.,
I am a professional nanny and have been doing this for 20 years. I cook chicken, beef, liver and fish in the babys formula or watered apple juice (when they get older) and grind it with a hand held grinder along with the vegetables your child eats, add a little formula before serving and this cuts the strong taste.
Try Annabel Kormels books available on amazon, great tips.
A.

babies tummies really aren't said to be strong enough to process teh enzymes in meat until around nine months, keep that in mind while you make your decision.

While you are preparing your baby's dishes, NO SALT, oils are not necessary either. prepare how you would like, then put them in a food processor with something else softer to help absorb the flavor. You can use meat broths but an even healthier alternative is applesauce.

Good Luck

Hi S.,
I remember when I started my children on meats, I had them eat what I prepared for dinner. For instance, if I made chicken for dinner, I would make sure it was tender and not spicy. I would cut it in small pieces so the child could pick up the pieces with his/her fingers or big enough to chew without choking. The goal is to get the child used to the texture of meat and knowing how to chew.

Good luck and have fun!!

When I started giving my son meats, I started with chicken and grilled it just like I would ours. Then grind it in the food processor and add some chicken broth to it to moisten it and give it some flavor.

I also have a 7 month old and on our recent visit to our fabulous pediatrician last week we talked about foods/feeding. Our little one is doing Stage One foods at the moment.

Our Dr. recommended not starting meats before 9 months old. I believe she said this was due to meats being difficult for babies' systems to digest. Perhaps it's a quick phone call to your pediatrician would help.

Good luck.

i poached some chicken breasts and ground it up in a food mill. i didn't add any salt or oil. the texture is a little grainy so i usually mix it with a fruit (pears or apples) or veggie (squash or sweet potato).

Babies don't need meet if you are feeding the foods with nutricional value, steaming vegetables, laughing cow cheese, potato, kidney beans, rice, etc. You are providing your baby with sources of protein. Meats are not started till after age 2 because of all the bacteria especially in beef, fats and by products in hotdogs. Not to mention that these things get caught in the roof of their mouth and can choke. If you are going to give her meat at least wait till age 2, chicken is the safest and no need to put anything in it to cook it, just boil it and cut it up, use the leanest cut of beef. Remember she doesn't know what it is supposed to taste like and will spit it out, don't be tempted to put any seasoning, her stomach lining is still that of a baby, not adult.

I never was good at the DIY part of it, but I used to buy those meat sticks by Gerber that are sold right along side the baby foods and my kids LOVED them...

Seasonings are more for us than them. I would prepare her portions plain. When she's a little older you can add spices, but I wouldn't give her salt and oils. The longer we can hold off giving those things to our kids the healthier they will become.
Chicken I would boil, the beef I cooked in the oven, and I also purreed them, or finely sliced them- by the time I was finely slicing she had a few teeth to chew with. Good luck. :)

One good way to start is wiht ground beef or turkey. I made soft meatballs and then really didnt have to grind it up, just mush it. Another option is sto make chicken soup, it makes carrots really soft and chicken really soft. YOu can then cut, mush or grind. Good luck.

Hi S.,

I have an 18 month old baby boy. TO be honest with you, the only meat I've been giving him is chicken breast. For some reason, I'm not ready to give him red meat yet. He has tasted it though but for now I'm just giving him the chicken and turkey too. I think it is healthier.
Both me and my husband also try to buy organic meat, the less hormones and antibiotics, the better for me. Sometimes we can't find the organic chicken breasts I like so we buy the others.
I basically boil the breast and put some olive oil with a tiny, tiny bit of salt. YOu may want to avoid salt until yours is a year (ask your doc) I used the food processor at that stage but now I just cut it in tiny pieces.

Anyway, good luck and these are just my thoughts. Let me know if you need more input.

I.

I just gave my boys very tiny pieces of soft, tender meat - like chicken or well cooked ground beef - mashed up with my fingers. I wouldn't really cook it any special way, just made sure it wasn't spicy. I don't usually cook with salt.

I never cooked meats seperately for my son. I take whatever we are eating and grind it up. You may find a cheese grater works good too - especially on chicken cutlets. As far as beef I started with meatballs because they can be mushed up a lot and you can cook them for a long time so they are mushy.

Chicken is pretty easy. Poach it with a few mild herbs. (parsley is great and high in vitamens and Iron. Hold the salt. cook bonelss chicken breast just till cooked through then cool. Pulse in processor with enough of the broth to make the processor work. When choosing herbs, use what you would eat but in a mild version. that way she will become accustomed to your food. It works for beef too just use tenderizer on it first (the meat mallet kind). I have even done Venison.

just add broth or water to help it puree.

I didn't add anything to the meat. I would cook our regular meals and at the same time boil a piece of chicken, no oil or salt or spices.
Then I would take the meat, the leftover potatoes/rice/pasta and whatever veggie we had and process it. Then pack it into the ice cube trays and freeze it. I would do this about every 2 weeks so I would have enough on hand plus I would have a few different options to feed them. I did the beef the same way. I just boiled it and processed it with the other veggies.
I always added some milk to the mixture to make it smoother and a little creamier.
At this age I don't personally think they need any additives in their foods. JMO though.