Kids coking

[Lolly]

Mine started helping at about 1. Just stirring stuff and plopping in pre-measured things. Because there were so many of them who were little, I ended up turning my back and just letting them go at it a lot. Around 4 or 5, they could scramble eggs and turn pancakes basically on their own. They did more than that; those just stand out in my mind. By 9 they were following basic recipes. One dd was making full meals at 11. She just loves cooking, and she doesn't like many foods (she makes her own food pretty much all the time). At 14 all of mine can handle making many meals on their own. 15 years old and they tend to start looking up their own recipes online and experimenting a bit. My 18 yo is pretty much gourmet at this point. She has many food allergies and almost everything must be made at home from scratch for her. As a result she has learned to cook it all and manipulate recipes so that she can eat them.

[JustGin]

LOL - one of mine was at age 4! Seriously, one morning, I came out of the shower to find that my then 4yo dd (she's 15 now) had cooked french toast! She had climbed up on the counter, gotten the electric griddle down, mixed up the eggs (forgot milk), and dipped and grilled and was soooo proud of herself. I was stunned to put it mildly.

I was very honest with her and told her I was proud that she had managed all that by herself, but it scared me that she had used the griddle without a grownup nearby. We made a deal that she could continue to cook but she could not use any equipment without me or daddy to watch. She was great about that, and now she is a full fledged cook, as witnessed by the 3 pies and the apple crisp sitting on our table today all made completely from scratch! :001_smile:

 

My other two were not so precocious, but they can cook as well. I started allowing them to use knives, the stove, etc, when they were 6ish, 7? I always showed them how and then supervised until I was comfortable they knew the proper way to use everything.

[Diane1]

My kids started at about age 5 I think...I was always in the kitchen with them.

[Impish]

My littles help w/measuring, stirring, jazz like that.

 

Diva can make a few dinners on her own now, bless her. Its amazing that when I'm not up for it, Wolf's exhausted (his job is very physical) to have her volunteer to make supper!

 

My kids will 100% know everything about feeding themselves before they leave home. I'm still amazed Wolf didn't die of malnourishment when he was single. Of course, he was usually dating someone that could cook...:glare:

[JaniceO]

My oldest is 12 (almost 13) and he loves to cook. He's been making full meals for a couple of years now. His pancakes rock! I trust him (most of the time) and he does fine.

 

My second oldest is 11 and I would never trust him in the kitchen by himself. He enjoys helping out and wants to try to do things on his own, but he's spacey, forgetful, and impulsive. He requires close supervision.

 

My 9 year old doesn't really have the patience to be in the kitchen (and honestly I don't have the patience to have him in there either).

 

I think I'm going to get my 5 year old some child sized kitchen tools and a kid cookbook for Christmas and let her help out some more. See how she does and if she likes helping out.

[Laurie4b]

Mine started fixing their own breakfasts and lunches while preschoolers. I allowed them to use the stove pretty young--I would guess around 6 or so--to cook eggs. Not sure when I allowed sharp knives, but it's been quite a while and my youngest is 12. I just asked my kids and they couldn't remember a time when they didn't. I showed them how to use one; I don't consider them particularly dangerous. They've had pocket knives forever.

[Harriet Vane]

My kids started as toddlers, helping stir and such with the baking.

 

At around age 4 their father had them standing on a stool by the stove, flipping pancakes.

 

They have always helped in the kitchen. It's a slow progression. For example, in the younger years they cut strawberries with a butter knife. As they got older, they cut strawberries with a sharp knife. Then they progressed on from there.

 

My daughter made her first, mostly-alone meal at age 12. I did (and still do) help with putting heavy things in the oven. Light things (like cookies) she does entirely by herself. I also help with big knife cutting--dd sticks with smaller knives for now.

[elise1mds]

My 8-yo will occasionally make meals. He's been doing that for about a year, since he was just barely 7. His favorite meal is muffin tin meatloaf and sliced carrots sauteed in butter. I let him be in the kitchen by himself, though there are plenty of times where he will ask me to be in there to help him with a new recipe. He won't put things in the oven or get them out yet, but I let him use the stove as long as he promises to stay in the kitchen and keep an eye on it or tell me if he needs to come out so I can do so. He's very safety-conscious, so I don't worry. I also screen recipes to make sure they're not too complicated, and I make him follow a mise in place plan so that he has everything chopped and/or available before he turns on the stove. He told me he wants to be cooking one dinner per week by the time he's 9, which I think is a reasonable goal for him.

 

He's been in the kitchen with me since he was 2. His first recipes were Mexican wraps that consisted of cans of beans and corn and salsa dumped in a bowl with some cheese and melted together on a tortilla. Once he learned to read, it was off to the races. Cooking is, to him, a grand experiment, and he's all about experiments. :)

 

My 5-yo is less interested. She likes to help me, but she doesn't want to be independent yet. She's still mastering reading, though. I suspect once she takes off with that, I'll find her in the kitchen with her brother a lot more often. She likes to make desserts. My Carb Queen strikes again ;)