Easy Dinner ideas for kids

Preparing dinner for kids can be as tedious as it could get. Being a mother of two with a large age gap of 6 years is another issue. Both my kids have different palates when it comes to food, which I am sure, most people can relate to.

But these simple and hassle free ideas can surely make your life easy.

My older kid is 9 years old and he has a varied sense of taste; homemade pizzas, burgers and pastas would definitely make him a happy person, but he will also not mind rice with any kind of meat, Naan bread is also one of his favorites.

Whereas my younger one, who is going to be 4, surely gives a tough time, when it comes to preparing food for her. She could live on milk if she had to :). Chicken corn soup, chicken porridge are some of her favorites. She isn’t too big of a fan of pizzas, breads or pastas. She can eat noodles though.

What I like to do is, I usually prepare few things before hand.

Homemade burgers

Like for the burgers, I just throw in the spices in the minced meat and make patties out of it and fry them and store some in fridge required for the week and the rest in the freezer. There you have one dinner sorted, not just for one day but for days. All you need to do is, take mini buns, put the patty in, along with the cheese and whatever your child likes and toast it on the pan or put in the air-fryer. Homemade wedges, carrot/cucumber sticks or rounds in our case, make great sides.

Homemade Pizzas

For pizzas, I buy pre-cooked pizza bases, just lather on some pizza sauce, topped with whatever cooked meat/veggies you have on hand, sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese and toast it in the oven or even air-fryer. Serve with sides of fruits or cucumbers. Bread pizzas can also be done.

Pastas/Noodles

For pastas, there’s not just one specific recipe, you can prepare it however you like, if you have some cooked meat on hand, don’t think it’s that much of a work. Sky is the limit, be it spaghetti with meatballs, Alfredo, red sauce, and so on.

Parathas/Wraps

Another great idea for kids is to make tortilla wrap with any filling they like. For healthier options, I often give him paratha rolls (fried flatbread) made with wheat flour, make a roll or just as is, with any curry. My younger one also likes to eat paratha with honey or egg roll.

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Rice

Rice is another easy option for kids. Most kids like to eat rice, usually in any form. Black pepper beef goes well with white rice, one of my kid’s favorites; biryani or even peas pulao are other go to options. Both my kids would eat rice, so that’s an easy dinner ready.

Soups/Porridge

My younger one is Indonesian born. Somehow, she loves their chicken porridge (Bubur Ayam) a bit too much and chicken corn soup is also one of her favorites. For both of these, I make chicken stock from the bones beforehand and store them in small containers in the freezer. Whenever, I need to make soup, I just use the stock from one of the containers, throw in corn and other stuff, and there you have it. Similarly, for chicken porridge, just need to take one of the stock containers and put in the rice to make soft porridge. I serve bread or buns to my older one with the soup, to make it a meal.

Kebabs/grilled meats

Kebabs in any form; rounds, long, ovals, also make great dinner ideas. They can be served on their own with sides or in burgers, rolls or bread. Grilled chicken can be used in so many ways, I tell you.