The Good Foundation
At Jamie’s Ministry of Food Australia, we see the positive mental and physical impacts that food education and cooking skills can make in the lives of everyday Aussies. These skills have an even more positive lifelong impact when they are taught to children from a young age.
Health and Wellbeing statistics tell us that 1 in 4 Aussie children/adolescents aged 2-17 are considered obese, which means that now more than ever food education and cooking skills are vitally important.
That’s why Jamie Oliver has created his Learn Your Fruit and Veg program which is all about making food fun, again. It’s inspiring kids to get their hands messy, fingers sticky, mouths watering, and learn about food; What it is, where it comes from, and how food and the body works.
At home, the best way that you can encourage your child to explore what they’re eating is by getting them involved in the kitchen. Not only does this immerse them in the world of all things food education and cooking it creates a space for connection and bonding between the family.
We’ve curated some of Jamie’s best tips for getting kids involved in the kitchen and excited about learning about new foods below:
START THEM YOUNG
Investing the time when your kids are young and impressionable is absolutely key. Expose them to the widest variety of nutritious food you can – the more experience and food knowledge they can gather, the more confident they’ll become, meaning they’ll be curious and try new things.
START SMALL & BUILD-UP
It’s always good to start small, with jobs such as picking herbs, spinning salad leaves dry, mixing and measuring, and giving kids decisions to make to empower them. You can then progress to elements of a recipe, then go on to slightly trickier techniques over time. The more they cook, the better they’ll get.
MAKE REGULAR FOODS MORE EXCITING
Think coloured homemade pasta made with spinach and beetroot, using a crinkle-cut knife for fruit and veggies and creating different animals out of regular combinations of food to get the kids excited about being in the kitchen.
You can find Jamie’s top kitchen tips and tricks to help you get the kids into the kitchen and learning about fruit and veg here: https://www.jamieoliver.com/features/category/family-cooking/
If you’re interested in booking a Jamie Oliver Learn Your Fruit and Veg program for your child’s school you can register your interest here: https://www.thegoodfoundation.com.au/courses/jamie-olivers-learn-your-fruit-and-veg-online/
