How to Teach a Child Basic Baking Skills: A Guide for Parents

How to Teach a Child Basic Baking Skills: A Guide for Parents

Teaching your children how to cook is an essential skill. Whether you're teaching them the basics or how to make an intricate baked good, learning how to cook is a skill that every child can benefit from. As parents, we often overestimate our children's understanding of cooking. It's important to remember that just because a child has watched us do something, does not mean that they know how to do it themselves. There are many things in cooking and baking that we've learned over the years through experience. These things may not be as clear to an inexperienced cook. For example, if not listed on the recipe, there are small things that a beginner cook may not know. Things like placing cookies inches apart, letting a baked good cook before removing it from the pan, or oiling a pan before adding batter. These are all tricks that experienced cooks either had passed down to them, read in a recipe, or learned from experience itself. Getting your children in the kitchen at a young age provides them with these needed experiences. It also encourages them to learn more about healthy, wholesome ingredients and how their favorite foods are made. To help you successfully teach your children how to cook, follow these next few tips.

Teach Them to Read Ingredients

How to Teach a Child Basic Baking Skills: A Guide for Parents | Bob's Red Mill Blog Teaching your children how to read through an ingredient list properly should be the first step in your skill-building process. Knowing the ingredients, quantities, measuring units and tools needed to make a recipe successfully will help ensure that their meal turns out a success. When walking your children through the ingredient reading process, explain the different units used in measuring and the abbreviations used for each.

Get Them Familiarized with Utensils

Show them the most common utensils used to measure ingredients and how to measure out wet and dry ingredients properly. Overflowing or underfilled cups should be addressed. Children need help understanding that specificity matters when it comes to baking. Being thorough when reviewing a recipe will help children in all future procedures.

Improve Their Cooking Knowledge

Now that your children understand how to read a recipe, it's time to go back through and explain all of the cooking terms used. When baking with kids, it's essential not to assume that they know what something means. How to Teach a Child Basic Baking Skills: A Guide for Parents | Bob's Red Mill Blog While your children may be able to follow a recipe that they have baked with you before, that does not mean that they fully understand the process of the cooking terminology used in the recipe. Kids learn by being taught by you or by others explaining it to them. When cooking with your little one, explain each step of the recipe, the terminology used, and the reasoning behind it. After explaining the need to oil a pan before baking and showing your child how to do so properly, they'll be much less likely to forget. The result? A baked treat that no longer sticks to the pan.

Make Kid-Friendly Recipes

Ready to start cooking with your kids? Try out these healthy kid-friendly recipes to make your time together in the kitchen even more fun!

Five Ingredient Almond Chicken Tenders

These Five Ingredient Almond Chicken Tenders are the perfect kid-friendly treat! Delicious chicken seasoned with almond flour and baked to crispy perfection. They're a gluten free, kid-friendly meal that adults love too!

Green Machine Booster

How to Teach a Child Basic Baking Skills: A Guide for Parents | Bob's Red Mill Blog If you have a little one in the kitchen and aren't ready to commit to a full-cooked recipe, try making this Green Machine Booster. Loaded with protein and fiber, it's the perfect kid-friendly meal that is easy to make. Whether you have your child help wash the ingredients beforehand or add them to the blender there are several different ways you can get your kids involved.

Watermelon Quinoa Salad with Fermented Honey

Getting your children to eat healthy recipes can be a trying task. Just the mention of veggies or salad, and they're running in the opposite direction. By including your kids in the cooking process of this Watermelon Quinoa Salad with Fermented Honey, you can teach them just how delicious healthy foods can be! A great way to get them to eat their fruits and veggies; this recipe is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. When you make cooking a family activity, you provide your children with the quality time they need to learn this critical skill. By showing them the tips and tricks others have taught you throughout the years, you can be assured that they're prepared to handle any almost recipe without your supervision. Remember, cooking is not a skill that one learns overnight. Be patient when teaching your children these skills. After all, they're learning! We're confident that whichever recipes you choose to bake with your children, they'll indeed be made with love. Know of an important skill that we didn't touch on? We're always looking for new tips and tricks to help out little ones become the next best chef. Let us know your cooking tip in the comments below.  
Bob's Red Mill
June 23 2020

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