The Key to Health is a Refined Palate

This past weekend was a major family event – we gathered together to celebrate the birth of my two new nephews. All three of my siblings and three of my cousins (who are like siblings) were in town with their respective families. As usual, every gathering revolves around a meal. This time it was at my Auntie Janet’s house – who, like most of my family members, is a wonderful cook.

After we stampeded the buffet table and piled our plates high with my aunt’s homemade delicacies, I noticed that my 5 year old nephew - who makes most picky eaters look like serious gourmands - gobbled up his borecas (Sephardic potato and cheese pastries - they are in left corner of photo). Even this little guy who could live on just French fries and pizza, already shared the family love of home cooking: at age 5, his palate was already being “trained” to eat the real deal.

Observing my nephew made me think about how we often hear about the importance of introducing new foods to children - but rarely do we talk about refining their palates. Because the truth is, the more refined our palates are, the less likely we will indulge in an unworthy food.

When we regularly consume really scrumptious, superb meals, we are much less likely to reach for a carefully engineered “item,” otherwise, known as processed foods. It can be hard to figure out how to teach kids to be healthful with the rise of childhood obesity – but simply exposing them to quality meals (which happens to be fun for everyone) will minimize their preference for processed foods and set up good eating habits for life.

Turn them into food snobs (without spending a fortune):

1) Many children are naturally picky, which is normal, and will eventually  outgrow it. But if the child continues to be treated as a picky eater and never offered anything new, then their meal repertoire will never expand. I was out to dinner with my 6 year old niece - who is actually a very adventurous eater - but when I offered her soy sauce for her rice, my brother started to say she didn’t like it.  She stopped him and said she tried it at school and liked it. Keep offering new foods - they will often surprise you.

2) When you eat in a restaurant, disregard the kids menu (which is often not as healthful) and instead have them pick something from the main menu. If you don’t see many dishes that are kid-friendly, check out which vegetables and proteins are on the menu – and create your own meal. Many chefs want happy customers and are more than willing to prepare simple dishes like steamed broccoli and cauliflower or plain grilled chicken. Discuss the menu options with the kids and ask them to be creative in coming up with a meal. I’ve spoken to many people whose kids are sophisticated eaters - and a lot of that is because they keep the food conversation going.

3) Find eateries that have naturally healthful cuisines like Asian or Mediterranean restaurants. The Seattle restaurant, Boom Noodle, has wonderful bento boxes for kids that include a protein entrée, edamame, fruit and rice – all “real” food and I watched kids all over the restaurant chow down on them.

4) While cooking at home (or eating out), if your kids still opt for the usual wheat-and-dairy fare, try offering a few side dishes that will provide some extra nutrients like black beans, raw or cooked vegetables, fruit, brown rice, cubed tofu, corn, olives, sliced avocados, or any other healthful ingredients. Offer the most nutritious foods first, while they are hungry, and after they’ve had a few bites, then bring out the rest of the meal.

5) Try to use high-quality ingredients as much as possible and help them learn how to pay attention to how food tastes and smells – to enjoy and savor each bite. Ask them to describe what it tastes like - they are very imaginative. Set up a taste test between a tomato shipped in from far away and a tomato from someone’s garden. And of course, my usual advice: get them cooking!

If we put delicious, “real” food in front of children, they will eat it. And likewise, if we keep putting processed foods in front of them, they will eat that too – so let’s get them hooked on real food that’s full of nutrients as young as possible!

Read this article to find out how it’s never to early to expose children to strong flavors!

Stay tuned for the next post where I will share my family recipe (and photos) on how to prepare borecas.

My brothers, cousins, and the kids eating together.