When should my 8 yr old begin??
Answer:
well I started helping in the kicthen at age 2 1/2 with mixing things, and at age 7 I started making main courses for dinner with my mom working on other things with me, and at age 10 I did full 3 course dinners completly on my own. if your child is 8 and not doing more than microwave and toaster then he is way behind in learning any thing about cooking. he should have been boiling watter for hotdogs at age 7 at the latest. I did it by age 5. he should have been baking in the oven by age 8. and he should be preparing food on the range by age 9 also at the latest. I was baking bread on my own at 6. microwave and toasters are what you teach a 3 year old about.
I am 17 now. and I am preparing to be a culinary student by this fall at one of the best culinary schools in the US.
Have the little boy deep fry some fries
He should not be boiling water at all! He shouldn't be touching electronics. Wait til he is 9. 8 is a little too young. 10 is when they will go independent, wait for 9, he'll know more about electricity and not to touch it. But good luck on his cooking! I'd like to test out his food! Should be tasting good!
I have my 7 year old toast bagels (we have a toaster overn and she needs to let me know so I can chek that it is turned off after) and use the microwave for nachos and cheese. She also likes crackers and cheese eaten cold, cereal, etc. I am pregnant and after the baby don't know if I will be up that much to cook, or how long I will be able to stand... if I loose alot of blood again.. so I am showing her how to make porrige in the mircowave too and heat frozen dinners
My children are 11 and 9.
They help me with anything that is beyond the electronics/stove aspects of cooking (microwave is allowed with supervision), and I am teaching them some *BASIC* knife skills.
My children are able to make my grandma's homemade chicken and dumplings (the dumpling part) and homemade tortillia pizzas and the like...for hot water boiling, that to me, should wait 'til teen years, and even then, depends upon how responsible he is.
Eeeek! Deep fry some fries?! Egads! Someone call child protective services on that answer!
You know your child better than anyone. You know what he's capable of and how mature he is. No, I personally would never have let my son near boiling water when he was 8!
Don't second guess yourself...you're original thought was right on the money! Microwave and toaster things (even the toaster can be a bit dangerous). The micro will teach your son about how when things are cooked properly, they turn out great. He'll realize that proper micro timing, etc. are important. This will carry over into real cooking when he gets a bit older.
You're on the right track, as I said, and your initial thought was obviously best for your son.
There's nothing that says your son can't help you prepare dinner. You'll be there to supervise, and he can do all the measuring, pouring, setting the table, etc.
But again, only you - the one who knows your child best - can know what he can handle and what he can't.
I would only allow them to use the stove under supervision, at that age -- they could "forget" and leave the room, and it only takes a second for things to get very dangerous... I'd even supervise the first few uses of the toaster and microwave: there are important rules to be learned with both (i.e. don't try to pry toast out with a metal utensil, especially while the toaster is still plugged in; don't put any metal in the microwave). Eight years old is a good age to start, but don't just throw them in there.
My son is five and loves to cook! He is a whiz at the microwave and can chop and cook on the stove with supervision. He loves to eat things like shrimp and capers so I feel that teaching them to love cooking also teaches them to like different foods. We cook lots of fancy foods together and that is the highlight of our day, With your help, your eight year old should be able to make lots of fun stuff. It is also a chance to learn about nutrition and math.
My oldest grandson loves to cook. He has been helping in the kitchen ever since he was 4. Boiling water is not a good idea for an 8 year old.
Sometimes not a good idea for a 15 year old. My oldest daughter (the mother of the oldest grandson) was and still is horrible in the kitchen. First she wanted to know how to boil water. Then she pulled up a chair to watch the water heat up. I asked what she was doing and she explained she didn't want the water to burn.
When he was 7'ish, my grandson was pretty handy with the toaster and microwave when he was fixing himself a snack or meal. He was not allowed to use the stove unless someone was in the kitche with him. He was doing burgers and scrambled eggs with supervision, but no interference.
He pretty much had run of the kitchen by the time he was 12. At 14, he sometimes watches the food channel and heads for the kitchen to experiment with a recipe. He has plans to be a chef, I just hope it's not where he needs to ask "Want fries with that?"
the microwave and toaster are ok to use at 8 but i would leave using the stove alone at least for another year or 2 there are many foods that can be cooked in the microwave. like hot pockets,pizza rolls or even tv dinners safety first
The Family Circle and AWW etc do cook books for kids...they're awesome...but all has to be done under parental supervision.
Good on you for helping your kid explore
I started off letting my 10 yr old helping me make grilled cheese sandwiches and she makes em better than me now. And shes been doing it since she was 6. Under supervision of course.
You are on the right track. Next, after boiling water, try scrambled eggs, hamburgers, or rice a roni. Something that he can watch, but if it burns, it can still be eaten.
I WOULD SAY IF YOU ARE NOT RIGHT THERE OVERSEEING WHAT HE IS DOING MICROWAVE FOODS ARE THE BEST. HELP HIM GET CREATIVE WITH NEW FOODS TO MAKE, THERE ARE EVEN COOK BOOKS FOR MICROWAVE COOKING. AS FOR STOVETOP COOKING, IT IS A GREAT LIFE SKILL TO TEACH. LET HIM DO MOST OF IT BYHIMSELF AND JUST STANDBY TO MONITOR. THERE IS A GREAT COOK BOOK BY EMERIL FOR KIDS. IN SOME CULINARY STORS THEY HAVE GREAT COOKING TOOLS MADE JUST FOR KIDS (SAFE KNIVES, PANS, OVEN MITS, ECT...). MOST OF ALL TEACH HIM THE PLEASURES OF MAKING A HOME COOKED MEAL. EVEN LET HIM MAKE THE FAMILY DINNER ONCE A WEEK.
http://cgi.ebay.com/childrens-cook-books...
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My kids start cooking at 8 years old. My 10 year old can already make a mushroom omelet all by himself.
Really, with proper supervision, your 8 year old can do a lot of things!
Start with toast, oatmeal, heating up things in the microwave, making hot chocolate (from instant mix).
Also, get him to help you around the kitchen. Kids can peel veggies, grate cheese, measure ingredients, stir things etc etc.
With proper supervision, he can make grilled cheese sandwiches, scrambled eggs, Hamburger Helper/ Tuna Helper, salads, jello, pudding, cookies, nachos, quesidillas.
One that is always a hit with my kids is homemade pizzas. I buy the small individual pizza crusts, sauce, toppins and cheese and let them asemble their own pizzas.
The most important thing is to teach him proper kitchen safety as you're working. If he's there working alongside of you, it will make him feel important/valued and teach him valuable skills.
Here's a link to some kids' cookbooks that my sons like
http://www.companyscoming.com/index.php?...
Also remember to teach him to clean up as he cooks!!
Why not have him plan a menu for your family and have him help cook it? 8 year old boys love to please, and this will instill a sense of pride in him (plus, help prepare him for life in the real world!)
its too early for 8 yrs cook ur selves and put t in the refrigator giude him to use micr wave oven donot allow him to cook r boiling water it can b dangerous
I was boiling water for hot cereals when I was 5 years old. By the time I was 7 I was baking on my own.
go to www.kraft.com they have good recipes that kids can help with. i wouldn't let him alone in the kitchen until he is about 10-11 make sure he has supervision. if he wants to be independent, than make sure you are in the kitchen with him. they also have great recipe books for children that have easy recipes. good luck and bon apetit
DEAR YES GO FOR IT OK TAKE CARE AND A VERY SAFE NEW YEAR OK
We are Italian and Jewish. All of us learned the fundamentals of cooking before we were ten. We grew UP in the kitchen.
My son does the same things that I did at his age. He can boil pasta (he has me drain it, though... That's one of the rules until he's a little older). To boil pasta, I don't see what the problem is. Throw some water in a pot, some salt, let it boil, and then throw in the pasta. After the pasta's in, turn down the heat to medium so that it doesn't overflow.
He can preset the oven for baking and broiling things, but *I* put things in and take them out until he's bigger and stronger. He's allowed to mix up foods, too.
In letting my son help out in the kitchen cooking, I think that I'm giving him a sense of independence, while teaching him cooking skills, too. He's eight, by the way.
Foods that are okay (with parental supervision of course) would be mac and cheese, spaghetti, hot dogs, and frozen veggies. Teach him the basics about boiling water, and drain it for him until he gets older.
Sandwiches to start. An 8 year old should not be boiling water. Have your child help you prepare things. A child that age can stir and add toppings to things etc.
Well, when I was 8, I was already cooking like a chef. That was because my mom hated to cook. We didn't have a microwave back then, so I had to cook everything on the stove. It was weird growing up.. :)
My son is 8 and can work the toaster and microwave. I think I may start teaching him how to work the stove this year. I will probably start with simple things like hot dogs and soup. (He likes Ramen, so I may show him how to make that first...)
I think you are on the right track for now.
easey things like tost or mabe even scrambeled eggs
i was taught to use the microwave really young just to get food i wanted like when i was little i liked warm milk and i would wake up every morning and push the GO button on the microwave and it would just warm the milk up. The only thing is that the milk was in there b4 i woke up and that the time was already set too. That way it was simple to learn. Other wise I didn't use the microwave until i was 10 or so. Or at least that is when i learned how it worked. The toaster on the other hand is very simple. Tell them that wen you want something toasted you put the food in the two slots and push down the lever. This way it is simple. But if i were you i would help them get the food out of the toaster and microwave so they didn't burn themselves.
your off to a great start when you want to teach him how to use the stove make sure he is tall enough or use a stool to reach the stove and watch him and give him easy things to cook on the stove
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