Soooo you’ve got whiny kids that don’t want to eat their vegetables, eh?

Yeah… we’ve got ‘em too.

There once was a day we found green beans in my daughter’s milk glass after dinner.  We couldn’t believe how sneaky she had been, and more importantly, how she had actually OUTSMARTED us with her hiding place!  😂😂😂😂

Have no fear though!

I am here to help! I have compiled a list of TEN FABULOUS WAYS to outsmart your kids into eating their vegetables!

Use this list of ideas to reference back on frequently!

10 Ways To Sucker Your Kids Into Eating Their Vegetables!!!

1. Consistency.

Try again and again.  They say they don’t like green beans?  Well force them to eat “X” amount of bites before they can be excused from the dinner table.  And do it every.single.time you serve green beans at dinner.

It might just be a wives tale, but I’ve heard that your taste buds can change, especially as kids?!? If that’s true, then kids re-trying the same foods often enough could be just what they need in order for them to give it a chance so they might start actually enjoying it!  

Fun Fact: I tried to google this whole “do taste buds change?” idea to see if it was true, but I got bored very quickly reading about taste buds and decided it wasn’t crucial to this blog post. Feel free to comment below if you know anything about this! 😜😜😜

2. Let Them Take Ownership In It.

Take them grocery shopping with you and let them pick out whatever vegetables from the produce section that they want to try.  Let them look up recipes for this vegetable with you. Let them cook this vegetable with you.

For example… my girls wanted to try “spiraling” zucchini when I received a vegetable spiraler for a present from a friend.  They didn’t plan on eating the zucchini of course… they just wanted to spin the thingy that made the zucchini turn all swirly!  

However, the trick was on them! Once it was all spiraled and cooked, it looked so fun that they actually wanted to try it! They had pride in saying that they helped mama cook dinner, and then they thought it was FUN to eat!!  

And of course they realized that it doesn’t actually taste bad like they thought it would… in fact, it doesn’t taste that different from actual spaghetti!

Try the Spiral Vegetable Cutter that we use HERE! 👈🏼

Another way to let them have ownership in it is to start a garden with your kids!  Getting to watch vegetables grow and then getting to pick them is fun for sure!  And surely kids that grow their own vegetables will tend to eat more vegetables, right?!?  

3. Hide It.

Four words: Cauliflower pizza dough crust.  I mean, it’s absolutely DELICIOUS and nobody knows there’s cauliflower in there!!!!  It’s a hidden vegetable!

((Please note that cauliflower tater tots, on the other hand, did NOT go over so well in our household.  Even my husband and I found ourselves pushing those nasty tater tots around on our plates before finally deciding to call a truce and state that nobody had to finish them!  YUCK.))

Even Campbell’s Spaghettios are known for having a full serving of vegetables in each can!  Do a little research and spend a little extra time at the grocery store until you find what works for you and your family.  

Check Out These Books 👇🏼

The Sneaky Chef by Missy Chase Lapine is a fabulous book for simple strategies to hide healthy foods in kids’ favorite meals!

 

Healthy Smoothies: 60 Energizing Blender Drinks & More! by Good Housekeeping is a smart book that provides smoothie recipes jam-packed with fruits AND veggies!

 

 

4. Give Them Their Veggies First

If your child is hungry, why not serve them their veggies before the main course?  Children with hungry bellies are going to be more likely to eat the vegetables if that’s their only option when they’re hungry.

Too often if we serve the meal all at once, kids will get “full” on the stuff they like.  And then the vegetables are the only thing that they’re left pushing around on their plate and now those vegetables definitely don’t look appealing since they’re cold and since your kid is full.

By serving the vegetables first, there might be more of a fighting chance that they’ll be hungry enough to suffer through them!

5. Make It Fun.

What if you could make eating vegetables more fun??

Try looking on Pinterest for some fun ways of presenting the vegetables.  Make them into fun faces. Or turn them into something that would spark your kids’ interest.

Also, giving them a sauce or dip to try it with could make it more of an interactive experience.  Dipping food is SUPER FUN!

 

6. Bribe Them.

Ahem… I mean, have them earn a reward.  Yes, that sounds much better.

If you eat all your vegetables, then you can earn dessert!

If you eat all your vegetables, then you can earn having a friend spend the night!

 

7. Bully Them.  

Yep.  Sometimes you just gotta bully your kids into eating their vegetables!  😂

You know, toughen ‘em up a bit.  Try out some of these phrases with them: (Obviously these phrases might not be appropriate for ALL ages!)

1. Suck it up buttercup!
2. You want to be a big kid?  Big kids eat their veggies!
3. Do you need me to call the WAAAAAA-mbulance?!?
4. Are you wearing WHINEY-PANTS?!? Big kids don’t wear whiney-pants!
5. Hurry Up! I’m getting bored watching you be a sissy!

Is that too far???  Sometimes I never know.  🤷🏼‍♀️😂😂😂😂😂😂

But you get the point, right?!?  Hey, it’s all out of love!

 

8. Make It A Game.

Sibling Competition: 

Whoever eats their vegetables first gets to pick what dessert the family eats that night.

Whoever eats their vegetables last has to do the dishes after dinner.

For an only child: 

If you eat your vegetables before the timer goes off, then… (fill in the blank).

 

9. Be Realistic and Tell Them The Truth.

Tell them that it’s about being healthy.  Tell them that you want them to live a long healthy life.  Tell them that if they don’t eat their vegetables, they might get sick more often.  Tell them the “why” behind it and help them understand.

You could even spend some time googling together to research which vegetables help what parts of your body and why each one is important.  

Knowledge is power. And knowing that you care about them and that’s why you want them to eat their vegetables sets a very good tone for why they might want to eat them.

 

10. Model It.

Yep.  So this one’s probably the most important.  You gotta eat YOUR veggies! And you better not be complaining about eating them either!  Children learn so much from what they see us do and what they hear us say.

If you make eating vegetables look like the normal thing to do, that’s what they’ll learn.

And if there’s a vegetable that you don’t like, model for them how to mix it with other food to make it easier.  Or tell them you always eat your veggies first to get them out of the way so you can enjoy the rest of your meal.  

Let them hear what you’re thinking to help them realize the process of what they can go through when they’re stuck eating a vegetable that they don’t like.

Set the example for them.

 

So there you have it.  

I think most importantly that it’s about making it an expectation in your household that everybody is expected to eat (or at least TRY) their veggies.  And you gotta be serious about your “it’s not an option” kind of attitude. Depending on the age of your child, you might consider a consequence if a child refuses to try their vegetables.

And when all else fails, do as my husband would say… “PUT SOME CHEESE ON IT!”  😂 Everything’s better with cheese!

 

Which vegetables do your kids like the most?

Anybody have suggestions on how to get kids to eat more vegetables?  Comment below!