There are some interesting statistics out there that tell us about our 12-18-year-olds:
nearly 50% can’t boil an egg
42% can’t boil pasta
Just over 80% don’t know how to roast a chicken
60% can’t bake a potato and
45% can’t confidently follow a recipe through to the end.
These important cooking tasks do have an impact on overall health and well-being. And it’s not a positive one. We understand life is easy with convenience meals and snacks, but not all the time do we check the quality of these foods, nor do we think about the convenience and quality of the foods we have on hand in the pantry and fridge.
If your teen needs to start engaging more with food, then here are a couple of things to consider (don’t worry… pick your time and place for these!). These could be great things to try in school holidays
-Drag them along to the supermarket with a list of some of the items from your shopping list that they need to seek out to add to the trolley. Send them off to do this, it’ll give you a little bit of peace (ha!)
-Plant veggies at home…even if it’s some herbs in a pot that sit on the kitchen windowsill
-As often as possible and reasonable all eat together at the table
-Nominate one night a week that your teen cooks the family meal OR is in the kitchen at the same time as the cook. This way they can find their way around the kitchen, develop their cooking skills and contribute to the family dinner.
Good luck everyone!
