10 Cooking Skills To Get Your Little Chef Out Of Their Cocoon

Cooking can be a great exercise for children of all age groups. As a parent, you should introduce your child to the basic cooking skills from a young age, and in the long run, this will help them in developing all the essential skills, and these essential skills they can use throughout their lives. When deciding on what cooking skills your child should master, make sure that you use your judgment properly and allocate the cooking task that will be suitable for your child.

We know and understand that safety is the most important concern, but beyond the safety aspect little trial and experimentation will make the cooking part for your little chef. Scientifically it has been observed that kids who develop all the important cooking skills are able to recognize the basic differences between baking and boiling. Various studies have also shown that kids who know basic cooking skills can easily ace in the following skills-

a) Ability to recognize and make healthier food choices.
b) Less dependency on convenience food.
c) A choice to eat from a wide range of food.
d) Ability to prepare basic food items more confidently when they grow up.

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Once your kids will be able to develop basic cooking skills, they will be able to make healthier food choices and this will also help them in minimizing the junk food intake thereby cutting down the risk of high blood pressure, obesity, and sugar.

So, now let’s take a look at some of the essential cooking skills your child must know when they turn 15.

Basic Cooking Skills for Kids

1. Measure and Mix

Well, measuring and mixing are 2 very simple ways by which you can help your child in the kitchen. Ideally, a 10-year-old child should be able to measure and mix the basic ingredients with your help. Once they are capable enough to do it on their own, then make sure they are holding the bowl all by themselves as in when they mix. Also, measuring is a great way by which your child can apply their math skills such as fractions. Just tell them that it’s okay to make mistakes because practice will make them more perfect.

2. Essential Knife Skills

The knife is one of the most essential skills that any child can learn and master. Therefore, if you are introducing your child to knives, then we’d suggest that the best option would be to start with a blunt knife and that could be a frosting spreader or a butter knife. Before starting, make sure that you educate your child on basic knife safety before they can move on to sharper knives.

However, knives with shorter blades such as a paring knife will be a perfect choice for your little wonder chefs. Make sure that you are always in or around the kitchen whenever your child is handling a task that involves the use of a knife. And we can also assure you that as a parent it will take you a lot of time to trust your child with a knife.

3. Preparation of Eggs

When it comes to basic cooking skills for kids, the preparation of eggs is very important, and one of the easiest skills that your child should know is how to prepare an egg. There are different ways by which an egg can be prepared and cooked. And most of the preparation methods are so easy that they can be easily made by your child.

A simple omelet or a scrambled egg is the heart of every morning breakfast. Children between the ages of 11-25 years can be taught how to safely and responsibly cook eggs for themselves or their parents. Furthermore, scrambled eggs can be an excellent way to educate children on the importance of heat safety, appropriate cooking heat, and the importance of monitoring your dish over different heat temperatures.

4. Making of a Healthy Salad

Salad preparation can be simple or complex depending upon the will of the chef. There are a range of steps involved in the salad dressing and preparation which consists of washing, drying, and preparing the lettuce along with other vegetables, and balancing the right ratio of toppings. You can teach your child about how to create their own custom salad dressings as per their taste and choice. Allowing your children to monitor and control their own salads will add a tinge of excitement to their greens and raw veggies. And this is a great and perhaps a healthy way by which you can make your child eat all the essential and healthy veggies.

5. Cooking Grains

When talking about the basic cooking skills that your child must know, preparation and cooking grains is also a very basic and essential part of cooking that will take your child a long way. As a matter of fact, you should teach your child how to clean a pulse, how to strike a balance between pulse and water ratio.

And to add to this they should also know how salt and other condiments need to be added to it. And make sure that you also let them know about how a pressure cooker works and how many whistles need to go in for the preparation of a basic yellow dal. For starters, you can assist your child with the pressure cooker, but once they grow up and get accustomed to the whole cooking process then you can let them make the dal on their own.

6. Basics of Baking

Baking can be a tedious and tiring skill for a young child to learn and master. Therefore, if you have small children at your place, then we’d suggest you start with the basics first. There is a range of ingredients that goes into baking, from wet to dry ingredients. Tell your kids about the different ingredients and ask them to mix them for you. For instance, you can ask them to mix dry ingredients such as flour, salt, baking powder, etc, and then the wet ingredients such as water, and oil. You also teach your kids how to properly mix and whisk all the ingredients together.

7. Setting and Clearing of Table

When talking about the essential cooking skills that your kid must know, we would also like to mention the most underrated task and that is setting and clearing the dining table. This is a task that is loved by all the kids from the age group of 3 to 5. They will willingly help you in setting up the table before mealtime.

So, make proper use of their enthusiasm and excitement by teaching them where the utensils will go, and how to fold the napkins properly. The same procedure will be repeated once your mealtime is over. Let your kids take the plates off the table and let them only put them back into the kitchen. By helping you in setting and clearing off the table, your kids will feel extremely happy and proud.

8. Food Presentation

In case you have budding chefs who are very artistic and creative in their approach then this will be the best task for them. You must give your child the freedom to get creative and food presentation is an excellent way to get your little ones interested in cooking. Food presentation can be as simple as arranging the berries in a bowl of yogurt to making a cute silly face on your sandwich.

In case you are having a birthday party at your home, then you can ask your child to lay the food table or make them the charge of designing the vegetable platter or anything that comes to your mind and is creative enough for your young chefs. If you are baking, you can ask your kids to assist you with decorating the cupcakes or a cake.

9. Basic Breading Skills

By now, we are assuming that your child should be able to have a firm hand on all the important cooking skills. Therefore, as a next step, you should introduce them to the standard breading method. This means that they should be able to dip various ingredients like chicken tenders or even veggies in flour, then egg, then a breadcrumb layer, before placing it in a pan or in the oven. Once your child is able to master this skill like a professional chef, they might ask you to make their own chicken nuggets from scratch. As a parent, make sure that you keep introducing age-appropriate cooking tasks and techniques so that your child can master all the basics at the right age and time.

10. Meal Planning and Shopping

With basic cooking skills at their fingertips, now your kids should be able to actively participate in meal preparation and planning. You can take into consideration their opinion as to what they would like to eat in a week, or what portion of the meal they would like to proudly own. In case you have a party at your place, you can ask your kids to assist you with the planning of the menu and then cooking up the meal. Take your kids along with you to the store, and ask them to collect all the basic ingredients that you would be using on a regular basis. By involving them in the shopping, you would be taking a step forward in helping your kids pick the most appropriate and nutritious ingredients for cooking.

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Final Words

These are the 10 essential cooking skills that your child must know. If you have a passionate chef at home, then you must enroll your child in online cooking classes and courses. These online cooking classes will help your kids to ace the basics of cooking skills and will also make them champ at cooking. Furthermore, with basic cooking skills, your child will be able to help you out in all circumstances and in all possible ways.

So, if you are looking for the best online cooking classes for your little chefs, then check out the official website of PiggyRide. You can explore a range of online cooking courses and enroll your kids in the most suitable ones. Furthermore, you can even check out our weekly free workshop section and let your child participate in the cooking workshops. Don’t wait and let the cooking journey of your child begin today.
Happy Cooking!