There’s no question about it: getting kids to eat dark, leafy greens can be a challenge. Leafy greens tend to be on the bitter side, which is a flavor profile that most kids tend to avoid.
While you can use various cooking methods – such as adding lemon juice – to help decrease the bitterness of leafy greens, a good first step is simply to make leafy greens more familiar to your child.
Here’s an easy way to involve your kids in preparing leafy greens, without adding much extra time or stress to your meal prep.
How to Play the “Leafy Greens Washing Machine” Game
- Fill the kitchen sink half-way with water; add leafy greens (if the greens haven’t been pre-washed, you may want to add 1-part vinegar to 3-parts water to help kill any bacteria)
- Tell your child to be the washing machine and spin the leaves around.
Once the leaves are washed, it’s time to add the leaves to the “drying machine.”
- Line a Ziploc bag with paper towers.
- Partially fill the bag with the greens and seal the bag.
- Tell your child to whip the bag around his head like a lasso.
At some point in the washing and drying process, don’t be surprised if your child decides to take a bite of the greens on his own. But he may not either. Rest-assured that the more hands on nudges your child gets, the more inclined he’ll be to eventually take a bite.
Either way, you now have your greens washed and dried for dinner, making this simple hands-on nudge a win-win activity.