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How to get your kids involved with cooking

Children and cooking just go together. Kids just love to get their hands mucky and be able to delve in a bowl of flour and butter. Mixing it together with their hands is something that they will all enjoy.

Spending your time in the kitchen with the kids, creating something for you all to enjoy is time well spent. Teaching your kids to cook, not only gives them fun, but is also giving them practical lessons that will serve them well for the rest of their lives.

Safety is, of course, an important factor in the kitchen and you should explain the safety precautions that should be observed as you go along. It's best to explain the safety measures as you go along, because if you give them a whole list of safety precautions before they begin the cook, it will probably all go in one ear and out the other.

Make sure they also know why' certain precautions are taken, e.g. we always leave pan handles pointed away from the edge of the cooker so the pans don't get knocked off. Knowing why we do things helps the child's understanding and he is more likely to observe the rules.

Starting with simple things, such as biscuits or little cakes is a good way to begin. The children will not only enjoy making them, they will enjoy eating them too. Icing the cakes and sprinkling on the decorations also adds to the fun.

Next, you could progress to simple meals. Scrambled eggs on toast or even boiled eggs. We all know it's not always easy to get a boiled egg just the way we like it!

Gradually the children will learn more and more and will soon find that they are able to produce a whole meal.

Maybe the kitchen won't always be as you would like it after they have cooked and maybe the food won't always be perfect, but they will have tried and will only improve from then on.

Try to also teach the kids about nutrition and why certain foods are good for you; this will help them to make informed choices when choosing what they want to eat. So many kids enjoy junk food, but I believe if they are introduced to more healthy foods early on in life, they will not become so dependent on the junk.

The part of cooking that kids maybe won't enjoy so much is the washing up and tidying the kitchen after their efforts. This is something else that should be taught right from the beginning. If they get used to clearing up as they go along the job won't seem so tedious at the end and they will just do it naturally in the future.

As well as teaching the children a skill for the future, you will always have someone else in the house to cook a meal occasionally, which every mother will appreciate. Maybe they will even bring you breakfast in bed once in a while!

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