“Finish your breakfast!” “Don’t leave the veggies on your plate!” This is an everyday scene at Meera’s home. Her 5 year old is a picky eater which leaves Meera worried if her kid is getting enough nutrition. Making tasty yet healthy meal plans for kids is a daunting task for Meera.
“Mom, I’m tired of eating the same fruits and vegetables every day. There’s no variety in my lunch box. I’m going to eat in the school cafeteria from tomorrow.” That was Vivaan, a teenager and an absolute foodie!
No matter how the eating habit is of the child, mothers are always anxious when it comes to their kids’ health. The first step towards raising healthy kids is offering healthy meals on their plate. However, in today’s fast-paced lives, we often end up eating out, most of which are processed and loaded with preservatives, added colors and sugar. One easy way out to avoid this situation is to plan your meals well-ahead of time. That way, you won’t run out of ideas and can easily make tasty yet healthy meals for your kids.
Looking For Healthy Meal Plans?
We’re glad that you have landed on this page. We understand the pain of all the parents and hence have come up with quick, easy meal ideas for kids. Most of these dishes can be made with ingredients easily available in your pantry. You don’t have to be a master chef to cook these meals and the entire family can enjoy it together.
Easy Breakfast Ideas
As they say, eat your breakfast like a king! A healthy, hearty and power packed breakfast gives you child kickstart to your super active kid. Kids love variations (usually) but in moderation. Also, the breakfast should include some forms of carbohydrates which will provide the required energy to their agile bodies.
Breakfast ideas for the family
- South Indian breakfast ideas: Idli and Dosa with Sambar and Chutney; Upma; Uttapam; Paddu. You can have a portion of fruits, fresh juice or milk along with it.
- North Indian breakfast ideas: Stuffed Paratha (a great way to feed veggies to the picky eaters); Puri and Sabzi.
- Quick breakfast ideas: On days when you’re in a hurry, a bowl of cereal and milk, oatmeal, smoothies, ragi porridge, cheese and cucumber sandwich could be your savior.
Healthy Lunch Ideas
When it comes to lunch, you need to ensure there is a balance of carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins and other nutrients. The thumb rule is the more ‘colour’ is in the plate, the healthy it is. Healthy meal plans are incomplete they don’t Include fresh vegetables, lentils, nuts, legumes. Non-vegetarians should include fish and lean meat.
Lunch ideas for toddlers
- Mashed sweet potato and carrot with a dollop of butter
- Traditional khichdi with lentil and vegetables cooked in desi ghee
- Mashed beetroot rice
- Lentils with green peas
Lunch box ideas for school goers
- Chicken sandwich
- Vegetable fried rice
- Egg fried rice
- Bisi Bele bath
- Lemon rice
Healthy And Filling Snack Ideas
Snacks are important part of a kid’s meal which help to keep their hunger pangs at bay. If you have an active kid at home, these healthy snacks ideas will help you with lots of options. And are filling too!
- Fruit chaat (you can use all the seasonal fruits)
- Butter corn
- Healthy muffins (great idea for the little ones who crave for anything sweet)
- Bhelpuri
- Cheese paratha
- Milkshakes
Check out our recipe for Healthy Tomato and Basil Bruschetta.
Dinner Ideas
Dinner is that meal of the day when the entire family sit together and relish. While it might seem to be a daunting task to plan meals for a choosy spouse or a picky toddler, we have some great hacks to share with you. While planning dinner, involve the entire family in the activity starting from selecting the menu to assembling it. It’s not only a great way to involve all the members of the family, but everyone gets to eat what they like! If you still need some ideas, we have scouted some for you.
Easy-peasy dinner ideas
- BBQ chicken pizza with a wheat base
- Baked macaroni and cheese
- Chicken spaghetti
- Roti with assorted vegetables and dal served with salads
- Rice and fish curry
At Mesmara we have a wide collection of cold pressed oils that are healthy and nutritional as they retain their natural goodness. When added to your dish, it adds extra flavour and aroma with health benefits. Check Mesmara’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Virgin Coconut Oil, Cold Pressed Sesame Oil, Cold Pressed Groundnut Oil. These are also available on Amazon and Flipkart.